Seniors aim high for LC girls golfers

Winning a league championship is the goal of every team in the Greater Spokane League. To repeat as a champion is even tougher.

The Lewis and Clark High School girls golf team is seeking a fourth- straight GSL title this spring. The Tigers will lean on seniors Katrina Bech and Courtney Alfaro.

“I think they’re doing a good job so far,” said Tiger coach Michelle Grafos. “I don’t think they’ve shot the scores they’ve wanted to the last couple of tournaments, but they’re definitely leading the charge.

“Even if they don’t win, I think they’re going to give everyone a good run, for sure. I’m excited to see if they will do it.”

“It’s something Courtney and I have talked about,” said Bech. “We’ve talked about winning the ‘four-peat’ thing, which would be pretty cool, winning it the entire time we were here.”

Bech, like Alfaro, is in her fourth year of playing at the varsity level for the Tigers. She will take her talents to Washington State University next year, but first up are the challenge of leading LC to the state tournament while improving her individual game.

“She’s a quiet leader,” Grafos said of Bech. “She just does her thing every week, and she sets an example at practice.

“Both she and Courtney kind of get the other kids going. The kids look to both of them, which is really cool.

“Her long game, she’s gained distance, which makes a huge difference, especially when she makes that jump to college,” the coach said of Bech. “She realizes her short game is going to have to come around for her to be a competitive player next year.

“Her chipping and putting for sure are her focus this year. She took care of her long game last year, so she’s focusing on her short game this year.

“Next year, she knows the challenge she’s in for, and Katrina’s worked on her game a lot independently. She knows she has a lot to work on, but she’s excited about the opportunity that she’s going to have.”

“I’m excited, but I’m also pretty nervous, actually,” said Bech. “The girls who are there are really good, and they’ve proved themselves to be good golfers. I haven’t got down low-enough (scores). I know I can, but it’s just a matter of doing it.”

Alfaro will challenge Bech for the No. 1 slot on the Tiger team this year and looks forward to the leadership role the two of them have inherited.

“We really are very close,” said Alfaro. “We spend a couple of hours a day together. Golf is a social sport, where in between shots you’re talking with someone.

“We have really bonded; Katrina and I have been together for four years.” ”

“When she gets up there to hit the ball, her confidence level is 100 percent better than it was last year,” Grafos said of Alfaro. “It’s just exciting to see her grow into the footsteps vacated by our seniors from last year.

“She’s a really good player. She has an eye for the game. She loves to play and is an overall great asset to the team.”

While the pressure to win a fourth-straight title is ever present for the Tigers, winning is not the end-all focus for the two seniors in their final season.

“We’ve definitely worked really hard, and we have a really good group of girls on our team,” Alfaro said. “We just have a really solid group who can shoot that score.

“We’re working really hard. We’re a good team and really solid, so I hope we keep up what we’re doing.”

“For our team, I want us to win, but I want to have some fun because it’s my last year here,” said Bech. “I want to go out with a bang, but I want to have some fun with the team.”

“I hope they see how good they can be at golf and that they can carry that with them for the rest of their lives,” Grafos said. “Just like any of my other players, I hope they have fun while they are finishing up their careers at LC.”