Many sports call for specific conditions that may be considered ideal. The game of golf calls for warm temperatures and a light breeze. Last Thursday, the East Grand Rapids girls golf team weren’t given those ideal conditions during their regional golf tournament. Mother Nature decided on a cold day, full of heavy rain.

The team missed states by 4 strokes. While this and the weather was disappointing, there were many positives. The Lady Pioneers tied for 4th place at regionals. Sophie Hawksworth, a Senior captain, placed in 8th place with a score of 95. This allowed her to individually qualify for states. Furthermore, Grace Ruppert, a fellow Senior Captain, tied for 9th with a 97. Ruppert was forced into a playoff hole and missed the state tournament by 1 stroke.

Hawksworth is excited to be in the state tournament but wishes to be with her fellow teammates. When asked about whether the conditions were a major factor in the outcome, she replied “I think that the conditions of the regional tournament definitely affected the performance of all the golfers at the tournament. I believe that our team definitely could have made it with the right conditions. We were very close and it came down to four strokes.”

While Hawksworth won’t be able to play alongside her fellow teammates, she still plans to continue their style of play, saying, “Going into the state tournament, I don’t have any specific goals. I just plan on having fun at my last golf match while trying not to lose to many balls.

Looking back on the year, senior Anja Naski explains how the Lady Pioneers will be remembered for the the fact that they actually won some jamborees this year and placed second at conference.

When asked about her fellow seniors, she replied “We all have been playing together for three years, and this year seems to be the year which we really bonded.”

Naski will miss playing with her close friends and the underclassmen will definitely miss their senior leadership.