Mercy Academy Golf seeks new heights this season

Building upon the most successful season in school history, Mercy Academy Golf Coach Bailey Wiegandt is prepared to elevate her team to new heights this year. Despite the loss of a few talented seniors, Coach Wiegandt is confident that the team's returning players are ready to surpass last year's achievements, including being the first Mercy Academy golf team to qualify for the state tournament.

"Qualifying for state last year really brought the girls closer and they felt so much pride in the team," Coach Wiegandt said. "The hard work paid off."

Instrumental to this success will be returning players such as Mercy Academy senior Mary Johnson, a major team leader with four years of experience on the team and an excellent drive. Mercy Academy juniors Allison Jarvi and Paige Atkinson will also be critical to the team's success, Coach Wiegandt said. Additionally, she highlights underclassmen such as sophomores Sophia DeFazio, Ella Craig and Kelton Shaw as likely difference-makers this season.

The new season also introduces new personnel to the coaching staff, including Assistant Coach Grace Wiegandt, a Mercy Golf alumna and Coach Wiegandt's sister. When it comes to leading the team forward, Coach Wiegandt said one of her biggest priorities will be to condition the team for 18-hole events.

"We have no problem excelling in nine hole matches, so we need to carry that into the 18 hole tournaments," she said. "I really want to work on playing full rounds more often, so we are primed and conditioned when it comes to those long five-hour events."

To overcome this hurdle, Coach Wiegandt said it will be as much about mental conditioning as it is about physical training.

"We need to just play one hole at a time and try to move on and forget what happened on the last hole because there is nothing you can do to change it," she said. "You have to focus on what you are doing in the moment and take it one shot at a time."

Coach Wiegandt said the ultimate goal this year is to advance to the final round of the state tournament in Bowling Green as a team, a feat that has never been accomplished in Mercy's history.

To reach these new heights, Coach Wiegandt plans to continue working one-on-one with each player, focusing on individual skills to understand their strengths and weaknesses. She said during practice, she will run drills that concentrate on specific areas such as the short game, iron game, driving and putting.

"When we go out to play nine, we put it all together," she said. "I love it when a certain skill 'clicks' for someone."

Though Coach Wiegandt has ambitions plans for the team this year, she said her ultimate goal is to provide fun and fellowship for the players while instilling perseverance, etiquette, social skills, work ethic and love for a game that can be enjoyed far beyond high school. She takes pride in achieving this throughout her tenure, along with growing the team to 15 players and introducing more young women to a sport that is often male-dominated.

With the support of the Mercy community, Coach Wiegandt looks forward to a season of unprecedented success.

"I am really excited and eager to get out there and play," she said. "We have so much potential to excel. We've been building every year, and I believe this will be the best season yet."