The Salem Community High School girls’ golf team isn’t just undefeated in regular season play—it’s undefeated in spirit. Step onto the course with them, and you’ll quickly realize their success is powered by something deeper than mechanics or a steady swing. It’s a blend of confidence, camaraderie, and the life lessons only golf can teach.

For juniors Brenna Hays and Addison Lever, golf has been a study in contrasts. Hays began with summer programs in middle school before joining Franklin Park’s fledgling golf team. Lever, meanwhile, only picked up a club for the first time this past March. “I just tried something new,” she said, laughing at her own boldness. “It’s been a lot of fun.” Both young women now count themselves as key contributors to a roster that thrives on shared encouragement.

Sophomore Reagan Schuler has been part of the game for most of her life, thanks to her dad and grandpa. “I was probably five when I first picked up a club,” she recalled. By seventh grade, she was hooked. Classmate Brynn Kessler followed a similar path, influenced by her father, but she didn’t take the sport seriously until her freshman year. “That’s when I decided to really commit,” Kessler said.

Hannah Duncan remembers her grandfather coaxing her onto the course as a child, but she drifted away until the summer before high school. “Once I picked it up again, I just ran with it,” she said. For teammate Mya Russell, family played a role too—her father and brother both golfed. Still, it wasn’t until she joined Franklin Park’s team in seventh grade that she fell in love with the game.

Each player has her own origin story, yet what unites them is the pull of golf itself. Russell describes it simply: “Once you hit one really good shot, you want to recreate it. You keep coming back, trying to perfect your game.” Lever, new to the sport, agrees. “At first, nothing goes where you want it. But when you finally hit that one straight shot, it’s like an itch—you just can’t stop.”

That persistence is as much mental as physical. “Golf is a mental sport,” Duncan explained. “You have to walk onto the tee box with focus. Every shot requires you to reset and commit.” Russell echoed the point, adding, “We remind each other—we’re playing for the glory of God, not for ourselves. That keeps us grounded and connected.” Coach Craig Vieira and coach Connor Brooks see that resilience every day.

“There’s really no fear with this group,” Brooks said. “They practice hard, even outside of team sessions. They’re confident because they put in the work.” Vieira frames it in broader terms: “Golf probably teaches them more about life than any other sport. You have to make decisions, execute, and deal with the results—good or bad. That’s life.”

Confidence, though, is never confused with arrogance. “If you’re not confident, it’s not going to work out,” Schuler said. “But if you’re cocky, golf will beat you down.” Her teammates nodded in agreement. For them, confidence is built on preparation, humility, and mutual support. “We all want to beat each other,” Russell admitted. “But we also want each other to succeed just as much as we do.”

That balance between competition and camaraderie has forged a tight-knit group. “It’s like our own little community,” Lever said. “Golf connects you to people—your teammates, your opponents, even other families. It helps with your mental health, too.”

For Vieira and Brooks, coaching this group is less about rebuilding swings than about “aiming” their players, as one coach put it. “They know what they’re doing,” Brooks said. “Sometimes we step in with mechanics, sometimes Craig handles the mental side, but often they just need a nudge. They coach each other as much as we coach them.”

As the postseason looms, the team is eyeing another state run. “First conference, then regionals, then sectionals—and then hopefully all of us at state,” Russell said. Whatever the outcome, the lessons will last far beyond October.

After all, every hole ends the same way: the ball finds the cup. The journey may take detours—doglegs, sand traps, even a few missed putts—but persistence wins. That’s the lesson the Salem Community High School girls’ golf team carries with them: finish what you start, trust your preparation, and step up to every shot with confidence.