For South Whidbey’s girls golf team, the only direction is up, and there’s not much room to leap.
After placing second at the state 1A girls golf championships in 2015, the Falcons are poised to vie for a state title this season. The Falcons lost two top-20 finishers in Rosie Portillo and Grace Stringer to graduation, but senior Tarra Moore will look to lead the way after placing fifth last season. After a stellar freshman campaign, sophomore Kolby Heggenes will look to improve on her 13th-place finish. Returning varsity starter junior Riley Yale will also be in the mix.
“We’ve got a lot of veterans from the year before which is always good to have,” Yale said. “We’ve got a couple newbies but they have some real potential. I think we’ve got a pretty good chance.”
First-year head coach Garth Heggenes takes over the program after former longtime coach Tom Sage stepped down this offseason. Heggenes said the team has a good chance of returning to the state championships.
“The goal is always going to be place first,” Heggenes said. “I’d love to see the younger ones develop and become good players.”
He’s been working alongside assistant coach Grant Lancaster, the club pro at Useless Bay Golf and Country Club. Lancaster said he is teaching golf fundamentals while also hoping to instill fun into the players during the first two weeks of practice.
“Everybody wants to win, no matter what competitive sport you play in, but there’s work to be done if you want to do that,” Lancaster said. “As long as we continue doing what we’re doing and having fun, that will all unfold on its own.”
Yale said the goal during preseason practices is to develop short-game skills, putting or chipping.
“We didn’t too much of that last season and I think it could have helped us out a little more, so we’re kind of focusing on that this year,” Yale said.
On the boys side, returning state participants Anton Klein and Thorin Helmersen are both hoping to crack the top-20 this season. They highlighted putting and chipping as key factors in their success season, and as something they’ve focused on practicing in the preseason.
Klein, a junior who tied for 14th in 2015, felt his experience at last year’s state tournament gave him a new edge in preparation for the season.
“My goal for last season was just to make it to state and I just ended up playing really well there,” Klein said. “Everything came together and this year I’m looking to beat that.”
Over half of the Falcons’ 16-person squad is comprised of freshman, which head coach Steve Jones thinks will lead to positive results in the future if they all stick with the sport and dedicate the necessary time to developing their game.
“We’ve got a really nice group of kids,” Jones said. “We’ve got a good core of upperclassmen of juniors and seniors who are already showing leadership.”
The Falcons open their season with a jamboree on March 10, hosted by Lake Stevens. Tee off is at 2 p.m.
