Women’s golf aims for success

How do you cope with the loss of four three-year starters? If you’re the Luther College Women’s Golf Team, the answer is, pretty easily.

At this past weekend’s first half of the IIAC conference tournament at Pheasant Ridge Golf Course in Cedar Falls, all five varsity golfers shot below 90, something a more experienced team failed to do even once last year. Krista Solie (‘10) hot the team’s low individual with a score of 80, a collegiate best by four strokes. Solie golfed in the conference tournament as a first-year but has spent the better part of the last two golf seasons as a spectator because of severe back injuries.

“I’ve worked really hard to keep my back in shape, and it felt good to simply not play injured,” Solie said. “I also putted really well, and we have put so much extra time as a team this week into putting in general that it really paid off.”

While many players like Solie have come through, expectations were low for the season, especially from the lone stalwart of the last four women’s golf teams, captain Emily Looft (‘10).

“Graduating four seniors was terrifying,” Looft said. “We’ve had the exact same top five for three years in a row. This is the first time we’ve essentially had a completely new team, but the team dynamics have turned out great.”

When there is room for new talent to rise to the top, some surprises can come along, as evidenced this year with Andrea Pagh (‘10). Pagh hadn’t ever broken the 90 stroke mark until this year where she not only made the team, but at one point in the season, shot a team best 79.

Low expectations have allowed the team to blossom under the leadership of Looft and Solie who say that this year they have spent more time practicing on the course than in any of the previous four years.

“This year’s team is more focused on golf than any of the previous teams I’ve been on, if not just for the fact that previous teams had more demanding course loads,” Looft said. “Not that we aren’t good students, but we had a lot of nursing or biology majors before, and sometimes they didn’t have as much time for golf.”

“Everyone on the team seems more excited about golf in general, and that’s rubbed off on us, so we’re really excited, too,” Solie added.

Another player that has stepped up is Kate Traxler (‘13) from Northfield, Minn. This freshman will be part of the future of the women’s golf program at Luther with her monster drives of more than 250 yards and consistent top five finishes among the team.

When asked about the womens’ golf prospects for next year, Traxler is apprehensive.

“It will be really tough to replace everyone,” Traxler said.

One gets the feeling, though, that the Luther Women’s golf team could be just fine.