Two days after placing 10th at last year’s Division II girls state golf tournament, then-Woodmore sophomore Mikayla Baer was already thinking about 2011.

“I'm proud of it,” Baer, now a junior, said, “but I definitely know I can do better. We're just going to go back next year and see what happens.”

Baer tied for 10th place with Sydney Kirby, a senior for D-II state champion Shaker Heights Hathaway Brown, after shooting a 77-80—157 on the Gray Course at Ohio State University.

Woodmore golfer Mikayla Baer finished 10th at last year's Division II state golf tournament. (Press file photo by Dean Utendorf/www.woodmorephotos.com)

Baer was the first Woodmore girl to qualify for the state tournament. Bear, however, is golfing during this year’s regular season with the Woodmore boys’ team, but will get her chance to finish even higher when the girls’ tournament meets come around.

Here is a capsule look at some of the other girls’ golf programs in The Press coverage area.

Clay
Clay captured the final City League girls golf championship last fall, then promptly graduated everyone off that team last spring save for junior Tylor Brummett.

Coach Kevin Crosson's Eagles are now members of the newly-formed Three Rivers Athletic Conference.

“The TRAC will be difficult, but we play those schools all the time in the Northwest Ohio Girls Golf League so there will be no major surprises on championship day at Stone Ridge,” Crosson said. “We are all familiar with each other and compete against each other on a regular basis throughout the fall.

“I expect the girls to be very competitive throughout the season; hopefully with all of the hard work they do, we can make some noise at the TRAC championship.”

Clay has just one senior, Rachel Orr, to go along with juniors Brummett, Chelsea Henagar, Samantha Yoder and Nicole Badik. The rest of the squad includes sophomores Courtney Quinlan, Kaitlyn Sheahan, Samantha Maze, Alyssa Fussell, Emily Yoder, Alexis Kapfhammer, Kellie Riley, Haley Reindel and Molly Kristoff, and freshman Maddison Grimes

“Tylor and Rachel have the most varsity experience, but the the rest of the girls have a great passion for golf and they have been working hard all summer long,” Crosson said. “The sophomore class is going to determine how many more championships will be on the banner in the gym.”

Eastwood
The Eagles, led by coach John Cavendish, jump from the Suburban Lakes League to the newly formed Northern Buckeye Conference this season. Eastwood returns two letter winners from 2010 in junior Kelsi Grover and sophomore Elisa Reyes.

“I also have two girls returning as sophomores this year, Hannah Cook and Samantha Whritenhour, who have worked hard over the past year and will take up the third and fourth spot this year,” Cavendish said. “I also have five rookies, including two juniors and three freshmen.

“Although we are young, we do have a lot of potential. We are still waiting to see who will round out the team in the fifth and sixth spots; ideally all five will compete for those two spots all year and improve along the way.”

Cavendish said he and the rest of the NBC coaches are excited about their inaugural season.

“When I started a dozen or so years ago there were eight or 10 (girls) teams in northwest Ohio,” Cavendish said. “Now the state has two entire divisions and we (the NBC) have girls golf as a league sport. That is just wonderful.”

Genoa
The Comets are also moving from the SLL to the NBC this season and will be led by assistant coach Amanda Fox.

Head coach Kevin Ball said Genoa “is thrilled to finally be an official (girls golf) sport after years of playing as a club sport.”

“Amanda has quickly made the girls team better with her enthusiasm and knowledge of the game,” he said. “She is such a great role model for the girls. Amanda played high school golf for Eastwood and now she has brought her talents to Genoa.”

This year's team consists of five juniors, one sophomore and two freshmen.

“They look forward to a successful season and hope to enjoy many more to come,” Ball said. “Paige Neuman, a junior, is our leader this year and continues to motivate her teammates both on and off the course. Junior Skyler Zunk is not only a veteran golfer but also the team's comic relief. When pressure mounts on the course, Skyler is there to make everyone smile.

“Maddi Smith, also a junior, is a hard worker who always strives to improve not only her game but her teammates. Rikki Shoemaker is a freshman with lots of potential and she always has a word of encouragement for her teammates.”

The rest of the Comets' squad consists of juniors Emily Henneman and Kayla Deppen, sophomore Savannah Compton and freshman Amanda Aman.

“Emily Henneman is new to the sport, but in only a few weeks she's already shown a knack for golf,” Ball said. “Her positive attitude will serve her well every match. Kayla is also new to the sport, but she is quickly improving and she has the ability to hit great drives. Savannah's consistency on the course is the envy of all her teammates. She has all the makings of a future team leader.”

Cardinal Stritch
Veteran coach Jeff De Selms, whose Cardinals compete in the Northwest Ohio Girls Golf League, will look for their third straight sectional tournament title this season.

Seniors Ally Niehaus, Celene Harrison and Taylor Laston return from last season. Niehaus was a first-team all-league player as a junior, when she averaged 43 for nine holes.

“I have high hopes for that young lady,” De Selms said of Niehaus. “Coming out of this area in Division II, she has great potential of maybe even getting to the state level. This is going to be one of my stronger teams, if I can get a freshman or two to step up, than we've had in a long time.”

Junior Hannah Tucker, who had a 55 average last season, sophomore Emily Turski (49) and freshmen Victoria Pinciotti, Maddie Niehaus and Macy McGrady will all vie for starting nods.

“I'm hoping Emily can be mid- to low-40s this year and be a great complement to Ally and the seniors,” De Selms said.

Oak Harbor
Coach Bob Van Horn has four golfers this season in senior Karanne Witt, sophomore letterwinner Kaylie Hallet-Symanski, junior Whitney Rutledge and freshman Brooke Tice.

Witt, who averaged 46 a year ago, earned second-team All-Sandusky Bay Conference honors the past two years.

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