There’s been much excitement surrounding this year’s Warren golf team as the Lady Dragons have brought back all seven players from last year plus two new players.

Last year was the first year that a WAHS girls team competed as a team in District 10 (Region 3) golf since the fall of 2016.

“It was really a learning experience for the players going up against seasoned teams in the region with many years of competition and practice,” said coach Scott Pearson. “Success isn’t totally measured in wins and losses as Warren gained valuable experience and, even though it was Warren’s first year in team competition, a then-freshmen, Kate Shippee, played well enough throughout the season to earn an automatic spot as an individual District 10 qualifier.”

Fast forward to 2024, and Warren brings back seven letter winners along with two new members that have some golfing background. This is a large senior-laden class with five players Maddie Walker, Lexi Paris, Marisa Palmieri, Katharine Smith, and Allie Lauffenberger. There are three juniors in Elissa Errett, JoJo Gray, and Maelee Mandeville. The lone sophomore is Kate Shippee.

“The ultimate goal for the season is obviously to be competitive within the region, compete for the District 10 championship as a team, and to have as many players as possible qualify for districts as an individual,” said Pearson. “During the season, we are hoping to improve every player’s game through competition and practice, but to also garner excitement and publicity for the team to be able to continue to grow the program for future classes. Golf is a difficult game and it usually takes years to be good, so it would really be beneficial to the program to have underclassmen play early in their careers to be able to play at a high level in their last years of school. In preparing for this season, there were some optional practices during the summer with course and range time. Further, some players went to camps, had private instruction, and played together with other players during the summer. Many players have put in extra time to try to hone their game and it isn’t uncommon for some players to go play another 9-to-18 holes with other friends and family members in the offseason and during the season. The work and practice that the players have put into their game has improved their scoring average about 12-to-18 strokes per an 18-hole round. The understanding and implementation of the fundamentals and techniques has improved their confidence along with their course management. We hope to continue to improve all phases of their game throughout the season.”

There will be 13 automatic qualifiers from the region and two play-in qualifiers to make a total of 15 qualifiers for the district.

“Of course, we are hoping for as many automatic qualifiers as possible and to take the rest of the team for the other two play-in spots,” said Pearson. “The play-in spots give everyone a chance to qualify for districts, so this gives incentive for non-starters to continue to improve their games.”

This year’s region also consists of Meadville, Erie High, McDowell, and newcomer Ft. LeBouef. McDowell won a District 10 title last year and competed at the state level as a team and Ft. LeBouef has a well-established program and is moving up from the Class 2A level. There are five region matches played this year in an 18-hole format while last year the format was 9-hole matches.