Golfers find their swing

The weather has not been cooperating much this spring with high school athletes but golfers for Bremerton took advantage of sunny skies this week to post some victories in battles against Bay Division schools.

The Lady Knights earned their first victory of the season Monday, April 10 against Lincoln 53-29. Alicia Davis led the way for Bremerton with 17 points while Rachael Gonzalez added 14, Ashlea Olwell tallied 12, Jordan Rogers posted eight and Kairee Connolly rounded out the scoring for her team with two points.

For the players and coach Rita Pepper, it was an exciting culmination to a season in which the girls have showed determination and improvement but were waiting to taste victory.

“We’re not winning a lot but the season is going great,” Pepper said. “It’s because everyone is coming to practice and showing enthusiasm. Every single player is showing improvement and the girls get along great. They’re just a great, great group of girls.”

“It’s fun to be on the team because of how many of us are second and third-year players,” Connolly said.

The junior is joined on the team by her sister, Aimee.

“We’re able to talk to each other,” Aimee said. “We all really just pitch in and help each other with whatever needs to be changed in our game.”

The team is small with just eight players, and only two, Olwell and Gonzalez, are seniors. The team is young in another sense as well, considering Bremerton has only offered girls’ golf for six seasons.

The Bremerton boys are also a young squad with just a pair of seniors, Kyle Spitzer and Luke Henry. Their season has seen its ups and downs with a win in the first match against Olympic March 16 before a three-game slide. Next up was powerhouse South Kitsap March 23, a team the Knights are just not yet ready to measure up to. For coach Chuck Huhta, falling at Port Angeles March 29 was much more difficult as it was a match the Knights could have won.

“We lost to Port Angeles by four points. Our first four played as well or even better than their first four,” Huhta said. “We could have and should have won that match.”

The elements were not in the Knights’ favor Thursday, April 13, hosting North Kitsap at the Gold Mountain Golf Club following a layoff for spring break.

“We were in a driving rainstorm that was terrible,” Huhta said.

The Vikings came out ahead 102-175 in stroke play.

This week, however, Bremerton was able to edge out a win on Tuesday, April 18. The Knights outscored Wilson 103-101 at Gold Mountain.

Brad Guzman led the team with 25 points in the match. Henry (23), Doug Tran (22), Spitzer (20) and Zach Morrison (13) also scored for the Knights.

With plenty of sophomores and juniors, “the future looks good,” Huhta said. “We should improve next year in a different league. We’re trying to be as positive as possible.”

The Knights next travel to Gig Harbor for a battle with the Tides Monday, April 24.

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