Girls? golf focused on early meets

A trip to Ames last season might not have ended how the Washington girls? golf team was hoping, but what they ultimately gained from the trip could prove valuable for 2015.

The Demons earned a trip to state in 2014, but struggled against the top competition with a tough first day. In the second round, the Demons put together an impressive performance, improving by 14 strokes as a team, taking eighth at the meet.

That experience on the big stage is only going to help the team this season, according to head coach Leonard Kull.

?We significantly scored much better in the second day, by about 20 strokes or so,? Kull said. ?As young as we were, and not having been to the state tournament for a while, I knew there wasn?t anything I could tell them about what it was like. They just had to experience it. They did that, and played much better on the second day.?

Kull said the team, which returns four girls from the state qualifying team, is going to be hungry to get to the state tournament, but the preparation will start with the meets early in the season.

?It left a good taste in their mouth, and with the four people we have returning, who knows what?s going to happen this year,? Kull said ?That?s in the realm of possibility that we could qualify (for state). Right now we are focused on the dual meet season, and then tournaments will start in May.?

The Demons will lose the top golfer from last season, Megan Buitendorp, who earned All-State honors with a ninth-place finish at state in 2014.

Leading the charge this season is senior Sarah Waite, who is one of the top returning golfers to the team.

Waite was one of the many Demons who improved her score in the second day of last year?s state tournament, putting together a 93, to finish second on the team with a 194.

?It was a great experience to be there,? Waite said. ?It wasn?t as great when we got there (scoring-wise), but it was good to have that feeling that we can be there and we can make it there. We learned a lot about everything that goes on and what we need to do to get there.?

Joining Waite is junior Deanna Peiffer, who was third on the team at state with a 201, after improving her score by seven strokes on the second day.

Peiffer said she learned a lot about herself at state last year.

?The first day, I was super nervous,? Peiffer said. ?I?m not even sure how I hit the ball. I was scared and in the second day, it was a lot better because I knew the course and it felt like another meet and I wasn?t going to freak out about hitting a bad shot. I was more relaxed and ready to go.

?This year, I?m just hoping to get more confident and not think so much about it,? Peiffer added. ?I just want to play my game, which I know how to do, and perform like I know I can.?

Also returning to the team are junior Brenna Burlingame (212 at the state meet) and sophomore Brenna Weidman (234 at the state meet).

Joining the squad this season is freshman Sarah Nacos, who Kull thinks will make an immediate impact for the Demons.

?She?s a pretty accomplished golfer in her own right,? Kull said. ?She?s been in a lot of junior tournaments and done very well. She?s excited about being able to compete at the high school level against the best competition we can come up with. She has a lot of potential.?

The Demons have yet to get outside for practice, with Kull hoping that Wednesday would be their first practice at the Washington Golf and Country Club, but practicing indoors hasn?t harmed the team.

Instead, Kull said he almost prefers being indoors, giving them more time to focus on the little things.

?It suits me just fine being inside,? Kull said. ?All we try to do in the first two weeks is build a swing. Instead of hitting the ball, watching it and worrying about where it?s going, we just (focus on the swing). I prefer to be inside (to start).?

With practice officially starting a week and a half ago, he is hoping to have his girls hone their swing and not necessarily change their approach too much.

?My philosophy is not to spend a lot of time changing a girl?s swing once we?ve established it,? Kull said. ?There?s more than one way to do it. Some don?t look perfect, but wind up being very effective. We only have two months to get where we want to be, so we concentrate on how to go about doing different types of things, rather than the full swing.?

With the team practicing indoors, Kull also said he is focusing on building some team chemistry and a few leaders have stepped up for the team.

?I?ve been really impressed with Deanna Peiffer, specifically,? Kull said. ?She?s grown up a lot. She?s been a big help, taking some of the younger girls under her wing. She?s a great kid and I appreciate her effort so far this year.?

With the team chemistry building, Peiffer noted that there seems to be a different atmosphere around practices.

?I think we are working a lot harder and are more focused, because we know that state is a possibility,? Peiffer said. ?We are working more as a team this year, talking to each other and helping each other. Even though golf is more of an individual sport, we make it a team sport.?

The Demons will open up their season on April 9, when they travel to Keokuk for an all-day tournament.

The first home meet will be on April 20, when they host Mt. Pleasant.