By Jack Friedman
Staff Writer
Mira Costa’s young but successful golf team came out swinging on Oct. 12 at Palos Verdes Country Club in its match against Peninsula.
With a 215-212 victory, the Mustangs clinched the 2010 Bay League title. They will begin their CIF run with either a 9-1 or 10-0 record, based on the outcome of their game yesterday against Peninsula at the Chester Washington Golf course in El Segundo. However, results were unavailable at the time of publication.
“I am very happy for the girls. It was an all-around team effort, and if we keep treating each game like it is our last, I am confident about our chances that we will do well in CIF play,” coach Jim Hands said.
Over the years, a Bay League championship has been a rare achievement for the Mustangs. This is Hands’ first time winning the Bay League title since becoming coach. However, the girls did not let the pressure get to them and feel that they delivered in the right moments throughout the season, including their match against Peninsula.
“We were especially poised coming into this match. Peninsula has good players, so we expected a fight that would come down to a final putt. Peninsula has a great team, but we were never intimidated. That was our ultimate key to success,” freshman Megan Kim said.
Kim led the team, shooting a score of 40. Kim has shot the lowest score on the team throughout the season, sinking key putts on the back nine holes of the golf course. Other contributors were co-captains sophomore
and junior Chari Noddings, who shot a combined score of 89.
“I knew it was going to be a close match, but we were confident in our chances to win. I was impressed with the resilience our team showed throughout the match, especially our freshmen and sophomores. They played like confident, veteran golfers,” Noddings said.
With the close of the Bay League season, the girls feel that they still have a lot in store as they prepare to make a run at the CIF playoffs.
“The season is not at all over. Although a victory was nice, we must stay focused. Hopefully, our record this year will grant us a favorable standing in CIF. The team could really use some motivation from our Costa fans,” Raquel Gordon said.
Along with the team’s run for CIF, fans can count on seeing some of the players represent Costa in CIF individual tournaments. These will take place following CIF; spots and schedules have not been decided yet.
“Hopefully, we can take advantage of our favorable standings and capitalize on an overall successful season. I am confident in our team’s ability to win and we will continue to work and polish our games before CIF,” Gordon said.
Leave a Reply