Bakersfield Colllege women’s golf
started the 2009 season out with a
win at the Olivas Links golf course in
Ventura on Aug. 30 and 31.
The Renegades played three rounds
of golf in two days. They defeated the
host and defending state champion
Santa Barbara City College Vaqueros.
The second day of the tournament
counted as a Western State Conference
match, where the Renegades
won by 13 strokes.
The win speaks big on what the
Renegades hope to accomplish this
season. With an incomplete team last
season followed by a third place finish,
the girls are expecting a spot in
the playoffs. Leading the team are returning
sophomores Katherine James
and Ellen Krausse, who as coach Larry
Cook said, “Are the star players of
the state of California.”
There are three new players to the
team; in freshmen Vivian Davis, Dee
Ray, and Stacie Netzer who the Renegades
are depending on to add to the
team.
With practices almost everyday,
the girls work hard to prepare for upcoming
tournaments. Their ability to
strike or drive the ball is not an area
where they struggle but relies more
on chipping and putting, as James put
it, “Basically if you have a great short
game, you have a good game.”
With nine tournaments before the
playoffs, and an upcoming tournament
in Palm Springs Sept. 11 and
12, Cook and the Renegades believe
they are primed for a deep run to the
State Championship this year.