As the Ankeny Centennial girls’ golf team prepares for its season opener on April 5 at Fort Dodge, Mother Nature has not made things easy for the Jaguars.
Centennial coach John Petersen said the cold, rainy and windy conditions this spring have prevented his players from getting much time on the golf course.
“The weather has made practices difficult,” he said. “We have had two practices in the gym and the rest in the freezing cold. However, the girls’ attitudes have been awesome! We have a lot of excitement for the upcoming season.”
There are 28 girls on the roster. Eight of them saw some varsity action last year, when the Jaguars posted a 2-3 record in the CIML Iowa Conference.
Seniors Kaitlyn Ault, Samantha Lazear, Delaney and Grace Miller, and Tessa Woerdehoff are back along with juniors Olivia Joensen and Vivian Wilson. Sophomore Payton Drefke, who was the team’s No. 1 player a year ago, has also returned.
Drefke posted an average score of 50.7 strokes for a nine-hole round. She carded a 47 to earn medalist honors in Centennial’s win over Fort Dodge at Briarwood Golf Club.
Drefke was a two-time runner-up. She later shot a 96 to place sixth in the Iowa Conference meet at Veenker Golf Course, leading the Jaguars to a fifth-place finish.
Ault placed second on the team with a 55.4 average. She shot a 95 in the Dragon Invitational at Jester Park and later fired a 111 at the conference meet, placing 16th at both events.
Wilson was third on the squad with a 57.3 average, followed closely by Joensen at 57.7 and Grace Miller at 58.2. Lazear posted an average score of 60.9, Woerdehoff had a 62.6 average, and Delaney Miller finished with a 64.3 mark.
Joensen and Grace Miller each shot a 112 to help Centennial to a sixth-place finish in last year’s Class 4A regional meet at Elmwood Country Club in Marshalltown.
“We definitely saw a lot of improvement last year and are excited to be more competitive this year!” Petersen said.
The Jaguars will host the Centennial Invitational on April 11 at Briarwood. They placed fifth at last year’s meet.
“Our main goal is for each girl to improve and enjoy playing the game of golf,” Petersen said. “We know that the more interest the girls gain, the more they will play, and the more competitive we will be as a program.”