Women’s golf notched their first home tournament win of the 2015 season against St. Ambrose and Monmouth on Sunday, Aug 30., giving the young team a boost for future success.
This season the Vikings carry only two senior captains on their roster, Caitlin Doherty and Samantha Barlage. However, the shortage of upperclassmen leaves room for newcomers to make an immediate impact.
“As a team, we had a lot of underclassmen in our top five and top six,” said Doherty. “Coach said they pulled their weight today, which is really nice to hear because coming into your first tournament is nerve-wracking, but it was home so we had a lot of confidence.”
Barlage agrees and said she believes one of the team highs of the day was the performance the freshmen displayed.
“The accomplishment of the freshmen and them doing pretty decent out there is a good thing,” said Barlage. “I want them to be comfortable playing, so I think that’s a big step for them.”
One step to make the underclassmen feel comfortable on the course was the overall sense of positivity and fun.
“We are a team that believes that if you want to do well, you have to have fun,” said Barlage. We have a really good team mentality, and that is one of the things I am most proud about.”
Having a good mentality and spreading warm vibes is something freshman Rachel Cheval appreciated most about her first tournament as an Augustana Viking.
“Whenever we would get up to one of the tee boxes, we would talk to one another,” said Cheval. “Everyone was really positive, and that helped a lot.”
Yet, Cheval was nervous about playing in her first collegiate tournament, which was expected from head coach Tom Lawrence.
“This year’s freshmen class has the potential to contribute right away if they continue to improve during the season,” said Lawrence. “Freshmen have a tendency to be a little intimidated during their first few meets before they get acclimated with college golf.”
Despite some freshmen jitters, the team finished the day on a high note with freshman Claire Benisch as their 4th scorer. Benisch’s 90 gave the Viking’s the victory over Monmouth. Although, even with the first victory under the team’s belt, they know there are areas that need improvement before their next two day Highland Classic tournament.
“There will definitely be more scores and more competition at the Highland Classic,” said Doherty. “We know that we need to work on working around the greens and getting close to the pin this week during practice in preparation for this coming tournament.”
With goals to finish in the top three or four in conference, the Vikings will look to their freshmen to preform well.
“Our team goal for the past few years has been to finish at the top of the conference,” said Doherty. “I think we will be able to do it with these underclassmen stepping up.”