Women’s golf team shines in early season, looks to spring semester
Emery Custer takes a swing.
Photo credit: Jake Knabel
By Ransom Watts
Early season success may signal great things to come for Concordia women’s golf this year, and consistency is the name of the game as the team has maintained a top position in the team score through the first four competitions.
The Bulldogs opened the season at the Mount Mary University invite in August, placing third in the team score with a total score of 659 through two rounds. Every competition since has seen Concordia in the top two, consistently scoring in the 600s over two rounds.
Senior Emery Custer has led the way for the Bulldogs, both as the top competitor and in individual placing. Custer said, however, that success is a team effort.
“Every member of this team plays a vital role in our success,” Custer said. “Each day, we have to show up ready to give 100 percent.”
Custer is proud of how the team has outperformed preseason predictions.
“We’re already outperforming what the preseason rankings predicted, and I couldn’t be prouder of what we’ve accomplished so far,” she said. “That said, I’m not surprised— we had a strong feeling coming into the season based on how well we recruited.”
Olivia James, Savannah McFalls, Maddie Lewis, Emery Custer, and Amelia Ptacnik at the Mount Marty Invite on Aug. 28. Photo: Jake Knabel.
Coach Brett Muller also said the Bulldogs have defied preseason expectations.
“Coming into this season, I knew we had more potential to perform better than we did last year,” Muller said. “It’s been great to see them play the way we have in tournaments.”
The Bulldogs are not satisfied and are still pushing to do better and achieve more.
“We’re all chasing the same goal: winning a team title,” Custer said.
Custer and Muller said reaching the Great Plains Athletic Conference championship is the goal.
“Both our fall and spring seasons are important, but everything ultimately builds toward the spring, that’s when GPAC is held, that’s been our focus from day one,” Custer said. “We’ve already seen what we’re capable of, and I think placing in the top three is a very realistic and achievable goal for us.”
Muller wants to peak late in the spring. “Our goal is to keep improving and play our best golf of the year at the GPAC Championships at the end of April,” Muller said.
Another part of the success is a new Concordia two-round team score record, which was achieved at the Briar Cliff University Lila Frommet Invite on Sept. 8. The women scored a new team low of 658 through two rounds. Custer once again led the way, finishing the tournament with a score of 75 on the first round and 73 on the second over a 70-par course. In the individual placings, she finished second overall.
“We’re only beginning to scratch the surface of what this team is capable of,” Custer said. “I truly believe this team has the potential to be a program builder. The way we’ve competed so far proves that we can hold our own against some of the best, and there’s a lot of promising talent coming up in the next few years.”
Muller said the team has plenty of young talent as well. “Freshmen Olivia James and Amelia Ptacnik are performing well at our No. 4 and No. 5 positions in the lineup,” he said.
