As the weather warms and the days get longer, West High’s girls golf team begins its preparations for the upcoming season. Each day, the team gathers at Finkbine Golf Course to practice, working toward its newest goal: qualifying for state.

Following a drop in members after COVID, the team has been building up the program in recent years. When Rylee DeSaulniers ’25 joined her freshman year, the team was majority seniors. After her first season, DeSaulniers worked to recruit players for the team. While most had never picked up a club before, DeSaulniers explains that the coaching staff remained incredibly supportive. Mary Goodfellow has been coaching girls golf at West for 28 seasons and the team agrees that her guidance has been invaluable.

“Mary was super understanding when we started,” DeSaulniers said. “She was patient with all of us and knew we were trying our best. That’s really hard to do, especially when you don’t have someone who’s been [golfing] forever. She built this team from scratch because she had to. That’s really difficult, trying to teach your entire team how to play.”

Gretchen Van Iddekinge ’25, who joined DeSaulniers her sophomore year, agrees that Goodfellow’s unwavering support and guidance has pushed the team to grow in more ways than one.

“She sets realistic goals for us. Each meet, she’ll have a [specific] goal for us. She gives us beads for each of our accomplishments, which we keep on our bag. She’s super encouraging, understanding and is happy for our little accomplishments, even if we’re not winning,” Van Iddekinge said.

While the coaches provide strong support for the team, the players motivate each other to achieve more; Van Iddekinge appreciates the tight knit group of upperclassmen, who all push the team forward.

“We’re all beginners. We all are learning it at the same time, so as seniors, we boost [our teammates] up and hold each other accountable. We all take lessons together and during the summer we’ll play together. We’re always golfing with each other [and] we are learning together,” Van Iddekinge said.

The team’s bond and strong senior leadership has brought a lot of excitement for this upcoming season. The team hopes to showcase their skills at meets, while creating long-lasting memories.

“[With] this being our last season, it’s going to be really exciting because we are not used to winning meets; we haven’t actually won one of them before,” DeSaulniers said. “This year we’re in line to win some meets and qualify for state, and that’ll be really exciting.”

With their eyes on the prize, the team’s focus is consistency, with this year’s final goal to qualify for state.

“[Last year] we didn’t think we were going to qualify for state. This year, we’ve worked really hard. Now, we’re fully ready to play our best and try our best. We’ve come a long way, and we have worked really hard [to get] a chance to qualify this year,” DeSaulniers said.

Ainsley Wilson ’28 is also optimistic about the team’s chances this year. As the Iowa Golf Association Junior Girls player of the year, Wilson is excited to officially be a part of the team after practicing with them last summer. Joining the team, she hopes to challenge her focus, and become a better teammate and overall player.

“You’re motivated to do well because other people are counting on you. It’s just really fun to be part of a team. That’s something I’ve never done before, because my sport is more individual,” Wilson said.

Wilson explains that she started golfing when she was young and kept playing because she loved the tournaments and all the new experiences they brought her.

“I compete out of state all the time. There’s a bunch of different organizations, and they all have their big tournaments,” Wilson said. “In a lot of tournaments, even if you don’t win, you can still earn points. So no matter what your place is, the points will still help you. If you just give up, your ranking will not do very well. Even if you don’t have a chance to win, you still have to play well.”

Because golf is an individual sport, it can be difficult to overcome mental blocks or challenges. But with the help of a supportive team, athletes can grow into better players.

“This year, [girls golf] should be highlighted more. Golf is a sport where you can’t get subbed out; you’re all in. You get put out there for hours alone. It’s such a mental sport, and it’s hard because you’re alone and your coach isn’t there all the time. You have to figure out how to be there for yourself, and how to change your mindset. If you’re playing bad, you have to fix it,” DeSaulniers said.

The whole team is enthusiastic about the upcoming season and is hopeful they will have more opportunities to be in the spotlight. They are confident that their accomplishments will gain girls golf more recognition, and appeal to prospective players.

“We’re happy for each other’s successes and accomplishments, whereas other teams [may] see [each other] as competitors. When you only have six spots, you’re fighting hard for them. In most golf teams, all the girls are each other’s competitors, working for that spot; [however], we’re all happy for each other’s accomplishments and [prioritize] our total team score,” DeSaulniers said.