The women’s golf team teed it up over the weekend at the Ames Country Club, finishing sixth at the American Rivers Conference tournament with a score of 1,118 over the three-day tournament. 

“We finished sixth, which I was pleased with, given the condition of our squad,” head coach Larry Shoop said. “The whole team did a really fine job of increasing skills and performance on the course. I’m very proud of them and what they’ve accomplished this year. We came close at number six, but we plan on building on that.”  

Coach Shoop also mentioned Hannah Mulligan, a freshman who proved she could compete against more experienced opponents and keep the team’s spirits high.  

“She’s a spark plug,” Shoop said. “She stayed upbeat with a contagious attitude and kept everyone pumped up. We’re thankful that she walked on.”  

Senior Emily Jansen performed well at the tournament, scoring an 86, 91 and 92.  

“I started out very strong shooting an 86. That 86 was my confidence on the course,” Jansen responded.  

Both coaches Shoop and Jansen admitted that the team could focus on their swing game for the spring season. Shoop added that the team would be doing different workouts that would improve their swing. 

“We are going to implement a physical conditioning regimen,” Shoop said. “I’ve done it in the past, and sometimes they’ll pick up on it. We’re going to improve on our swing mechanics this winter.” 

Jansen had some of the same feedback when discussing how the team would be practicing during the off-season. She mentioned the team struggled with their close shots, agreeing that it’s an area needing to be worked on in the offseason. 

“We should really focus on improving our short game and limiting as many strokes as possible,” Jansen said. “We’ll just need to stay focused as a team and practice throughout the winter.”

For now, coach Shoop says that he needs to get ready for the shift to the men’s golf team. Overall, he confirmed that he was proud of how far the team has come throughout the season. 

“I’m proud of them for how they finished this year; we exceeded expectations,” Shoop said.