The women’s golf team finished their season on Oct. 23 with a record of 8-2.

The team had to endure a coaching change, with their head coach stepping down and their former assistant coach taking up the head coaching position.

Captain and junior Maddie Malan said that their new coach is fantastic and that her team shares that opinion.

Coach Matthew Mores said that his transition from assistant to head coach was seamless. Mores is a PGA pro and has been coaching golf for over 20 years.

Mores said his favorite part about coaching the girls is their work ethic and teaching them how to hit certain shots.

“When they are able to execute the shot they are having trouble with, it’s pretty special.” Mores said.

Malan said that the team really has a fun time together. The team’s closeness has helped them perform exceptionally in most of their games, especially versus rival Bishop O’Dowd.

Piedmont beat Bishop O’Dowd in both home and away matches this year.

“The wins versus O’Dowd this year were really big for our team” Mores said.

Like many other Piedmont teams, Women’s Golf measures themselves against Bishop O’Dowd’s strong program, Mores said.

“Any time you can beat a rival, it’s a pretty special thing, and it helped motivate the girls this year,” Mores said.

Tough matches like O’Dowd require everyone to do well, not just the more experienced players, Mores said.

There were three brand new additions to the team this year. Seniors Anna Goldberg, Audie Walter, and Katherine Weisbrock all played their first season of varsity golf this year, learning quickly and having a serious impact on the course.

“We’ll be sad to see [the seniors] go.” Malan said.

Mores said that captain and senior Minnie Cooper had a great season, but the part of her game that never really gets noticed is how hard she works.

Cooper’s dedication to practice is what made her stand out this year, Mores said.

“I joined the golf team because I had grown up playing with my family and thought it would be a great opportunity for me to get better,” Cooper said. “I want it to be something I can do for the rest of my life.”

Cooper’s favorite thing about the team is how close the girls are with each other. Being on such a small team, they got to know each other very well, Cooper said.

“A lot of us were pretty shy at first, but we have become really good friends.” Cooper said.

Cooper said that her favorite moment of the year was when all of the girls on the team went out to dinner the night before NCS, which happened to be their last match of the season, and Cooper’s last High School match. Cooper has competed in NCS playoffs three out of her four years on the Women’s golf team, this year included.

Cooper said that her advice to next year’s team is to get more people to join the team.

“It is great to have a small program but I think a lot more people would realize their love for golf if they just tried it out,” Cooper said. “If anyone is thinking about joining, my advice is to just go for it.”