To notch 58 consecutive league wins in any high school sport seems unfathomable.
But that’s until you realize just how good the Redmond girls’ golf team is.
With 38 athletes hitting the links at tryouts this year, the Class 4A defending champion Mustangs have a deeper talent pool than many schools have for their football or basketball teams. That is the culture that has been established for the program many call unbeatable in 4A Kingco.
“They take a lot of pride in (the winning streak) and they love the game,” said Redmond head coach Jake Crowley. “At practices they work really hard and we have a nice mix of experienced seniors, improving juniors and an unbelieveably talented sophomore class of eight kids.
“Golf is becoming a popular sport at the high school level with nice turnout numbers.”
THE FAB FOUR
Although the Mustangs have a number of players capable of shooting low numbers on any given day, the nucleus of the team consists of four senior players who will look to lead the team with a barrage of birdies.
Senior Kara Zitzman, the team captain, may be one of the best the program has ever seen, with two straight state appearances, including a ninth-place finish last spring.
“She’s exceeded our expectations in terms of her leadership,” Crowley said. “She’s been in the shadow of some really good players the last couple of years, and now she’s taken ownership of that captain’s spot.”
Zitzman, who has never been part of a losing effort on the Mustangs’ golf team, would love to keep it that way.
“I’d really like to finish the year undefeated,” she said. “Especially for my whole high school career since we’ve been undefeated every year and I hope we win state again.”
Rounding out the Fab Four Seniors are Maddie Curtain, a three-year varsity letterwinner, Kelly O’Donnell, who made the cut at state last year, and Taylor Conway, an extremely talented southpaw transfer from The Bear Creek School who won the 2B/1B state championship as a sophomore and finished runner-up last year.
“We have great senior leadership,” Crowley said of his crew of upperclassmen. “They’re talented and work really hard.”
In addition, the Mustangs have a great, young prodigy in Kelly Kennewick, who defied the odds by making the 4A state tournament as a freshman and may be ranked as high as No. 2 on the team this year.
“(Kelly) made a huge leap over playing in the summer,” Crowley said. “She has aspirations to finish high in the district and state tournaments.”
PARKING LOT PIZZA
For the Redmond girls’ golf team, winning has become a tradition, and the sense of being one big family is something that this year’s seniors want to keep for future classes.
“We want to keep the traditions, the little things we do, like pizza in the parking lot and our par-3 championships,” said Crowley on the key to having a close-knit team. “So when kids come into the program they have these fun, competitive experiences and it grows from there.”
Crowley also noted that he makes an effort to get his teams involved in tournaments throughout the league season, as it helps for postseason preparation.
“The league is set up in nine matches and they’re all nine holes, but when you get to districts it’s 36 holes, and state is also a 36-hole tournament,” he said. “Our goal is to give them as much opportunity to play competitive golf as possible, and they seem to thrive on that.”
Thrive is precisely what the Mustangs did in their first tournament of the year on Mar. 16, the Whidbey Island Shootout at Whidbey Island Country Club. The Mustangs ran away from the field during their early-season tune-up, placing five in the top 10, led by Zitzman who won the individual medal by four shots with an 82.
But the game of golf, first and foremost, is fun, and the smiles on the girls’ faces as they exchange friendly banter while hitting balls on the Bear Creek Country Club driving range says it all.
“The team is wonderful,” Zitzman said. “We have a lot of potential, and I think we’re more of a family than we’ve ever been. We have a lot of fun together.”
HIGH SCHOOL GOLF AT A GLANCE
REDMOND MUSTANGS
• Head coach: Jake Crowley, 3rd year
• Last year: 12-0 in 4A Kingco, 1st in Kingco and districts; Class 4A state champions.
• 2009 turnout: 38.
KEY RETURNERS
• Sr. Kara Zitzman: Team captain was ninth in state last year, has been named All-Kingco all three years in the program and has earned a tuition golf scholarship to Western Washington University.
• Sr. Kelly O’Donnell: All-Kingco team last year and made the state cut.
• So. Kelly Kennewick: State participant as a freshman. Represents the future of the Mustangs’ golf program.
• Sr. Maddie Curtain: Three-year varsity player hopes to make the big dance for the first time as a senior.
TOP NEWCOMER
• Sr. Sydney Conway: Transfer from Bear Creek School won the 2B/1B state title as a sophomore and was the runnerup last year. Will attend Whitman College and play golf there.
AT THE NEXT LEVEL
Two Redmond alum are currently playing golf at the collegiate level. 2007 grad Brittany Zefkeles, the No. 1 starter at George Fox University, transferred last fall to play at Div. I Seattle University, and 2008 standout Taylor Conway also plays for the Redhawks.
DID YOU KNOW?
The Mustangs have won 58 straight league matches dating back six years, and five straight Kingco and district titles.
coach’s quote
“We have a lot of athletic, motivated and talented kids who love to play golf. We want to compete for league, district and state honors. We have a very strong sophomore class who hopefully will push the four standout seniors.”
— Jake Crowley on his loaded 2009 squad
OVERLAKE OWLS
• Head coach: Doug Weaver, 5th year
• Last year: 7-1 in Emerald City League, tied for 1st with Bellevue Christian; 8-2-1 overall
• 2009 turnout: 18.
KEY RETURNERS
• Sr. Alec Pakzad: Rock-solid game with plenty of competitive experience. Had the best scoring average on the team last year. Co-captain will play golf at Seattle University next year.
• So. Reid Fredrickson: Made the state tournament last year as a freshman, had second-best scoring average on the team.
• Sr. Philip Falco: Co-captain has a great all-around game. Qualified for state tournament last year.
• Jr. Kevin Bush: Has improved as a golfer every year since making varsity squad as a freshman.
TOP NEWCOMERS
• So. Sam Brown: Coach Weaver sees a lot of potential in him.
• Sr. Corey Koczarski: Senior decided to try out for golf. Look for steady improvement as season progresses.
• So. Imrom Jiwani: Moved up from JV team, will improve as he grows physically and mentally.
DID YOU KNOW?
In his four previous years as the Owls’ golf coach, Weaver has a record of 39-6-1. His team in 2008 sent four golfers to the Class 1A state tournament in Bellingham, placing ninth overall. Weaver was again selected as the Emerald City League Coach of the Year, his third such honor.
COACH’S QUOTE
“We should be battling for the league championship again this year.”
— Doug Weaver on his team’s outlook for the season
BEAR CREEK GRIZZLIES
• Head coach: Greg Cheever, 1st year
• Last year: Sea-Tac 2B League champions
• 2009 turnout: 8.
KEY RETURNERS
• Sr. Johnie Freatman: Team co-captain has a natural golf game with the ability to score low at any time.
• Sr. Eli Sanger: Co-captain has excellent course management and a fundamentally sound golf swing. Made state last year.
• Jr. Irwin Kim: Took junior year off to participate in track, but came back with a renewed desire to play golf and contribute to the team.
• So. Gannon McCahill: Made state as a freshman and has worked hard on improving his game.
TOP NEWCOMERS
• So. Will Stansell: Smooth-swinging sophomore has the ability to go low.
• Fr. Calvin Freatman: Johnie’s younger brother is a natural talent and creative from tee to green.
Did you know?
Johnie and Calvin Freatman lost their father approximately 13 years ago due to illness, and Johnie will be dedicating his senior year of golf to his mother Trina as a demonstration of gratitude and love for all she’s done for him.
COACH’S QUOTE
“We have a combination of both experience and energetic, focused youth. We are focusing on ‘one match at a time’ while building towards a league title, district title, and then a state title.”
— Greg Cheever on his 2009 team
