Armed with a potential state champion, three golfers with at least one year of experience and a newcomer with vast potential, the Dolores High School girls golf team appears primed for a successful season.
Coaching the Lady Bears for the second consecutive year will be local golf instructor Jeff Carr, whose ability to effectively teach the game helped the team make great strides last season.
“All four of our girls from last year will return and we have one new girl this year,” said Carr. “We’ve been doing inside practice at the rec center since late January and we started at Conquistador Golf Course on (March 9). Given what I’ve seen so far this year, I’m expecting our team to be competitive.”
Leading the way for the Dolores team will be junior Kiselya Plewe, who finished 11th at the state tournament as a freshman and sixth at the state tournament last season. The junior, who attends Montezuma-Cortez High School and plays for the Dolores team since M-CHS has no team, said that she is hoping for an even better result this year.
“My goal is to score consistently this year and break 80 in every tournament,” Plewe said. “I want to win state and I think I can do it.”
“My goal for Kiselya would be a top-five finish in the state,” said Carr. “First place would be terrific and I think she’s got the game for it, but it kind of depends on how things fall.”
Also figuring to play a key role for the Lady Bears will be Montezuma-Cortez High School junior Keyana Matteson, who is set to kick off her third year of high school golf.
“My goal is to shoot under 100 this season,” said Matteson. “I’ve never done that before, but I’m close.”
Other returners for the Lady Bears include homeschooled junior Abigail Smith and Dolores High School junior Selah Kabakoro. With one year of high school golf under their belts, both players will look to improve this year.
Rounding out the Lady Bears lineup will be Dolores High School sophomore Harlie Valdez, who is playing high school golf for the first time this season. Valdez played on Dolores’ state qualifying volleyball team in the fall.
“Selah (Kabakoro) wanted me to play golf, so I decided to try it,” said Valdez. “I really like it so far.”
Dolores will play its first tournament of the season in Montrose on March 16. The Lady Bears will host a tournament at Conquistador Golf Course on April 21.
“We played some holes on March 9 and our girls showed really good swings,” said Carr. “I’m excited to see everyone play in Montrose.”