After going 8-3 last year and placing 2nd in their division, the girl’s golf team was looking to improve and take their shot at winning league and PCAL.
Last year’s team was led by Coach Milton Grant. However this year, Grant decided to step down from coaching golf due to personal reasons, “It leaves more time for me to be with my family,” Grant said, “but I am still active in girls’ golf. I am part of the [Girls’ Golf] club and am club advisor.”
New coach, Tivi Latu, stepped in. Latu is no stranger to the golf world. In her college years, her skills in the sport earned her a scholarship to CSUMB where she played competitively as a D2 athlete. “I try to work on teaching about core values, [like] good honesty, sportsmanship, [and] integrity,” Latu said, but most importantly, “I learned to make it [Golf] fun and keep it simple.”
The team had eight players – five returners and three newcomers. Returning this year were senior Ilana Mendez; juniors Laura Magana, Diana Cruz, and Sarah Henriques; and sophomore Vanessa Zuniga. Joining them were juniors Natalia Hernandez and Aleena Villarreal; and sophomores Valeria Gonzales and Alejandra Alvarez.
Mendez, a captain and third year returning player, had great expectations this season, “I wanted to win league championships and be undefeated while doing so,” she said, “Most importantly, I want the team to feel accomplished because last year we knew we should have won the league, so this win would be like redemption.”
At the last league game of the season, Latu’s lessons did not go to waste. In their match against King City and Notre Dame, the team officially won the Mission division title, finishing the season a perfect 9-0. “I feel like we expected it, our team was very strong and we improved,” Henriques said.
Although the team endured challenges to go undefeated, Zuniga believes two factors made it possible, “We had a great coach and the great bonding of the team.”
Mendez also agrees that the team’s improvement lies within the whole team and not just single players, “We all chat with one another and so I think I improved not only my golf game, but my social game,” she said, “which is a huge part of being able to play golf, you have to get along with others.”
After winning the title, the only thing left was the PCAL championship, which was played at Laguna Seca golf course. The championship consisted of 14 teams belonging to the Gabilan and Mission divisions.
Each team member would play 18 holes in the 6 mile course. Alisal placed first in the Mission division with a score of 628, finishing 8th overall. Although they managed to place 1st in their division, the team did not qualify for CCS because only the Gabilan Division advanced to CCS.
Latu was proud of her team’s effort. “My experience, applying what I do and what I used in the past, really made things better,” Latu said. “I kinda could relate to the girls a lot more closer, and I also didn’t just put everything on me. I actually asked them what they wanted, so I wanted their opinions as well, so it wasn’t just always about what I thought.”
As for Mendez, playing golf has opened up many opportunities for college. “I got to meet a lot of influential people playing golf and they’ve been able to help me with scholarships and grants that will allow me to to go to college” Mendez said, “Playing golf, I was exposed to an entirely different community which is awesome when you’re trying to find your footing in this world.”
“I’m definitely proud of my team because we have a lot of new players and they all did amazing,” Mendez said, “I feel like because our team chemistry is so strong we were able to remain undefeated because we truly enjoyed playing with each other so it was more than a game to us.”
