The direction is simple, clear and short. Very short.

Shot-by-shot. Hole-by-hole. Chip-by-chip.

The directives have come from local legendary coach and female sports pioneer Andria Edwards and the results have been enormous for Deer Valley High School's girls golf team.

Utilizing a consistent short game and unusual focus, the Wolverines just cruised to their third consecutive unbeaten Bay Valley Athletic League season and on Monday captured the league tournament at Brentwood Golf Club by 45 strokes.

Under calm but wet conditions, Deer Valley recorded four of the tournament's top nine scores led by 88s from senior Victoria Leon and junior Haley Edwards to finish with 458 strokes, followed by Freedom (503) and Heritage (505), which boasted individual champion Lauren Conder with a 3-over-par 75.

The Wolverines also got solid rounds from junior Melissa Wilkerson (89), senior Allison Isaacson (94) and freshman Taylor Coover (99).

Other players all season have been senior co-captains Tara Nelson and Amanda Scampini, along with senior Jillian Uy, sophomore Taylor Robinson and freshmen Christina Gonzalez and Andrea Moss.

"It's all about the next shot with these girls," coach Edwards said. "They're very cohesive and they all get along and work hard and bought into the short-game approach."

It's easy to buy in when the results are so rich.

The Wolverines have finished either first or second in league all

Advertisement
10 seasons Edwards has been the coach. Over the last 172 league matches, she said, Deer Valley has won 160.

Despite the success, Haley Edwards said, the team is largely overlooked on campus, a fact that the players have come to expect.

"We understand it's not that big of a sport," Haley Edwards said. "But it's big to us. We take it really serious and practice real hard. All our friends and family know that we've gone undefeated but others kind of forget about us. That's OK. We just keep winning."

Shot-by-shot.

Coach Edwards has kept female athletes focused since she started coaching in 1976, four years after Title IX was introduced. She was a standout athlete and graduate of Antioch High School in 1972 but never really got to prove her athletic prowess because girls sports basically didn't exist.

Beyond teaching sport, she's been a driving force in equal opportunity and funding for girls athletics.

"Honestly, when I was in high school I was excited to cheer on the boys," coach Edwards said. "I didn't realize what I missed until I started coaching. It's just very important that the girls be given the opportunity to excel in sports just like the boys."

She coached basketball, swimming and volleyball, but her big claim to local fame was leading Antioch's softball program to stardom in the 80s and 90s. In 10 years, her teams won three North Coast Section crowns and was runner-up four times.

Her approach then was "inning-by-inning," which she has carried over the last decade as golf coach. It's helped not only with the team but her daughters Alexis, who starred four years at BYU, and Ashley, the 2007 NCS champion now a sophomore playing at Oregon.

Her niece Brittany Edwards plays at Southern Utah.

"I think (coach Edwards) is so successful because she's always positive," Coover said. "She lifts us up after a bad shot or round instead of driving us down."

There's little to be down about this team, which travels to Baywood Country Club in Arcata for the NCS Tournament of Champions Nov. 2.

The top three teams and four individuals not on those teams will advance to the CIF Northern California Tournament Nov. 9 at Almaden Country Club in San Jose. The state championships are Nov. 19 at Pebble Beach.

Deer Valley has never placed higher than fifth at NCS TOC.

"Our goal is to get at least fourth or fifth," Haley Edwards said. "Most of us have never played the course so it's just a matter of staying focused and positive."

It's easy to be positive about this group, coach Edwards said. The team is balanced, though Leon was medalist 11 of the 15 league matches, including wins head-to-head three times over Conder. Leon is a year-round player and one of three Wolverines heavily involved in the First Tee program.

"She's the whole package," coach Edwards said of Leon.

Asked to pick Deer Valley's strongest player in each area, coach Edwards answered this way:

Longest hitter: "Haley (Edwards)." Best putter: "Victoria (Leon)." Best chipper: "Tara (Nelson) and (Leon)." Best temperament: "They all do a great job with that." Best course manager: "Allie (Isaacson)."

Coach Edwards summed up her top six players like this:

Leon: "She's not only a great player, but she's a great community and team leader. She's a tremendous person and really has worked well to lead the team."

Wilkerson: "She is completely self-driven but also too hard on herself. She's always working to make herself better. I was so happy to see her break into the 80s (on Monday)."

Haley Edwards: "She's the last in line of the Edwards girls so there's been some pressure to do well. She's a quiet and hard worker. She not real long but very consistent down the fairways."

Isaacson: "A four-year starter, she has a very pretty swing. She's not only a strong player and good student but she has a job as well. Allie can play at the college level."

Coover: "She's been medalist twice and a real nice addition. She fit in right away and is very quick to pick up new information. She has a very bright future.—

Nelson: "She's come a long way since her sophomore year. Another long, hard worker, Tara has been a joy to have in the program."