As we endure record low temperatures here in Northeast Ohio, the thought of the upcoming golf season can bring some warm thoughts to mind. Here is some very early analysis of what we can expect from the 2025 girls golf season in Division 1.

Top of the Mountain

This past season Magnificat brought Northeast Ohio its first Division 1 State Championship since 2007. The Blue Streaks rose up when the stakes were the highest and held off perennial state power Dublin Jerome to bring the title to Rocky River. Magnificat will lose team leaders Cammy Reed and Maureen O’Leary to graduation but their depth as a program will still be on full display in 2025. Kristina Chill will be the impact senior followed by a very solid group of underclassmen, including sisters Kayla and Korinne Knaze and Calli Reed, hoping to build off her older sister’s legacy.

There was a lot of speculation that after losing Isabella Goyette and Paige McKendry that Highland was going to fall off in 2024. The one thing that the Hornets constantly remind everyone is that they are always going to be contenders. Elizabeth Coleman stepped up big time in her junior year and almost single handedly gave them exactly what they had come to expect from Goyette. Highland will lose both Kendall Sprutte and Avery Albright, so they will rely on some less experienced players to step up to fill those holes. Coleman will be a force her senior year and Highland always seems to have players waiting in the wings to make an impact.

After a short lull by their high standards, Walsh Jesuit had a dynamic 2024 run, capped off by back to back program defining rounds at Sectionals and Districts. The Warriors bring back their entire nucleus and will have huge expectations in 2025. Sarah Vojtko proved that she is the real deal throughout her freshman year. Yumi Kohara continues to get more consistent as she grows into a leadership role. Vivian Eich was a nice surprise last season and Coleen Stadler and Gianna Rodenhauser will add the needed depth in their senior year.

On the Rise

Turning the calendar to 2025 symbolizes the future turning into the present in northern Medina County. The Brunswick Blue Devils have been building for this moment and they are confident that the time is now to make a big run. Ellie Gonzalez-Ribble exceeded all expectations as a freshman and now will be joined by her sister Emma, who brings a similar amount of hype. The Blue Devils used 2024 to continue to develop some of their core pieces, especially Rylee Roth and Jess Buzinski, who both took huge steps forward. Brunswick is primed for success if they put in the needed work and come in with the attitude demonstrated by coach Chad Thompson.

In Canfield, it will be time for juniors Aubree Philibin and Alex Conley to take the reigns for the Cardinals. Canfield has continued to grow over the past several years and they are another team that is ready to take the next step. Behind Philibin and Conley are a solid group of seniors ready to contribute and a young group of players ready to make an impact. Once coach Dean Conley sorts out where everyone fits in the lineup, the Cardinals are another team to watch.

After sending two, nearly an unprecedented three individuals to Districts in 2024, Revere will turn the page to a young foundation of players that has patiently been waiting their turn. In pure Revere fashion, four juniors, all who shoot very similar scores, will give the team a balanced look with a high ceiling in 2025. Those juniors are Ryenne Harpley, who nearly qualified for Districts after being the odd one out in a four-for-three playoff at Fox Den last year, Amrita Deo and Kate Banning, who each bring two years of quality experience, and Maddy Addessi, who has been ready for the spotlight since her freshman year. Canfield will grow as a team and learn how to win as a team in 2025.

The emergence of Edisa Plants last year gave Massillon some hopes of jumping onto the radar of contending teams. The Tigers have been slowly improving but will have a lot of work ahead of them, but having a sophomore emerging star is a good place to be. The Lake Blue Streaks are in a similar position. Charlie Brophy established herself as the number one player in the lineup last season and she will get some help from experienced seniors Grace Swihart and Olivia Gant, while the team is also high on a few younger players currently on the roster and entering the program as freshmen. A final team that has quietly been building a solid team is the Lions from Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin. They don’t have the star power as some other programs but their lineup has become deeper over the past couple years to the point where they are fielding a competitive squad. Senior Ava Lewandowski will be joined by three juniors who have played a learned together over the past two seasons. NDCL will look to compete in the new North Coast Conference.

New Look

A number of perennial powerhouse programs will be going through some extensive changes while still looking to stay competitive in the top tier of teams in Northeast Ohio. These teams have typically been able to reload when losing key pieces but they all find themselves in different positions heading into 2025.

The Hoover Vikings have a lot to replace but they are still poised to be the team to beat in the Federal League and make another run toward the State Tournament. They will be led once again by superstar junior Ellie Hutzler, who will be joined by freshman sister Frankie along with several returning potential contributors.

With the Gianna Reginelli era over at St. Joseph Academy, the Jaguars will turn to senior Emerson Glending to step into the team leader role. Glending had a solid season and she will have a lot of help returning, including seniors Tess Gibel, Ellen Mingus, and junior Vera Swartz.

The Hudson Explorers had a roller coaster season in 2024 and have lost mainstay performers Emmy Burling and Julia Van Bokkelen. They will rely on junior Elena Varga, who will be joined by junior McKenna Kiewatt and a young group of players looking to build experience.

In Jackson Township, the Polar Bears are always a factor in the Stark County golf landscape. Even without Cara Murphy, Jackson will continue to bring out a quality lineup and will be a difficult team to beat. Junior Kennedy Farrell and senior Charlotte Raketich will take the top two spots for the Polar Bears.

Julia Gulla will likely be regarded as the best player to ever play at Nordonia High School, making an impact and leaving a legacy that will never be forgotten. Replacing her is impossible, but Nordonia still will be a team that gets the most out of their players. The Knights will have a senior laden lineup led by Natalie Barnes, Carly Sutton, and Maddie Eisner, while also receiving contributions by junior Polly Loney.

Looking to call upon the success of the teams of the mid 2010s, the Green Bulldogs are hoping to reestablish themselves as a Federal League contender. Junior Leah Dang will spearhead the campaign and be joined by seniors Brooke Shocklee and Reese Genet, along with several other experienced upperclassmen.

Athleticism and talent always seem to find their way into the hallways at Kent Roosevelt High School. While they will not be sending out household names like Ashlyn Leavery, Kent still has a group of quality players to keep an eye on. Senior Adrianna Mineo and Coco Golden will be two players to watch for the Rough Riders.

Without the pure left-handed swing of Dixon Hill, Hathaway Brown will be seeking a new team identity in 2025. Saijal Jawa will look to go from unknown in the area golf landscape at the beginning of last year to the face of the Hathaway Brown program this season. The Blazers saw significant improvement from both Adelyn Ehlers and Lily Andrews throughout last season and they will be important contributors in 2025.

Aurora will be another team that sees a complete changing of the guard in 2025. Last season served multiple purposes for the Greenmen, both fielding a highly competitive team and also developing young talent. Aurora will be very young this season, with sophomores Bennett DeLuca and Kelly Macsurak both being key contributors. Senior Courtney Zeid will need to take a leadership role as the young players continue to grow.

Along the western lakeshore, coach Jeffrey Hammond of the Rocky River Pirates will see some changes at the top of his lineup. As Mia Ginnetti moves on to the next level, Rocky River will rely on Ginnetti’s supporting cast from last year to become the main players. This includes seniors Addie Crane and Rylie Quaiser.

Keeping it Steady

These are teams that have a good base to build off and have been strong programs over the past several years. They all return a majority of their players from last season and look to have similar or much better results in 2025.

North Royalton has enough depth to compete in the Suburban League National Division, especially with the division losing a lot of its most talented players. The Bears will need someone to step up and become their superstar in 2025. They will also be competing with the Brecksville Bees, who are building around senior Alice Cho and are in a similar position as North Royalton. Medina had to redefine their program in 2024 after bringing in a new coach and a completely new starting lineup. They have all their contributors back for their senior year, including Corinne Christeon and Lily Zimmerman, and look to make a big step forward. Mayfield also brings back all their important pieces, including junior Julie Paradise and senior Lucy Moran, who will both only get better as the season goes on. The Kenston Bombers are not as balanced as Mayfield but they have two quality players at the top of their lineup, juniors Ava Solak and Stefania Mighton. Solak and Mighton will look to continue Kenston’s reign in the Western Reserve Conference for one final year. Down in Stark County, the Louisville Leopards are working to get back to the dominance they had earlier this decade. The majority of the workload will fall on senior Natalie Warner, who will lead a supporting cast who are gaining more and more experience.

Rebuilding

The race for supremacy in the Greater Cleveland Conference in 2024 was epic. Strongsville and Brunswick battled back and forth the entire season and Strongsville managed to play their best golf at the end of the season to come out on top. The Mustangs will need to replace 80 percent of their lineup this fall, with junior Kanishka Badri as their only returning contributor. Strongsville will use 2025 as an opportunity to establish a new direction for a new group of players under veteran coach Kevin Weir.

Avon Lake is in a similar place as Strongsville, having won the Southwestern Conference in 2024 for the third consecutive year despite starting their own version of a rebuild. They will lose Olivia Tobin but they have several young players coming up, all of who could make an impact. The Shoregals were pleasantly surprised with the performance of freshman Lily Dorsey last year and she will be thrust into a leadership role as a sophomore. They will be opposed once again by the Avon Eagles, who will also be rotating in some new players into the lineup. Seniors Reese Thomas and Emma Fitch return and the Eagles will look deeper into their program to find young players willing to step up. Staying in the Southwestern Conference, North Ridgeville will have to get used to life without Gianna Betonte, who was a stabilizing force in the program for her entire career. The Rangers have a large roster and they will see what players will emerge as their starters this coming season.

Speaking of Rangers in rebuild mode, Eastlake North will be facing a difficult road forward as they will have to find a way to compete without superstar Lauren Iannetta, who ended a spectacular career at the District Tournament last October. North will rely on Iannetta’s supporting cast from last year to step into the spotlight this season.

Led By the Star

Northeast Ohio, from Cleveland to Akron to Canton to Youngstown and everywhere in between, is a hotbed for talent on the links. There are a few programs that heavily rely on one superstar to carry their team. These players are natural leaders and instrumental to the success of their teams. No player epitomizes a quality player and leader by example as much as Serena Wu from Solon High School. Her dedication permeates through her teammates and the Comets are a better team because of it. Solon’s supporting cast will be vastly improved in 2025 and the Comets will compete in a very difficult conference because of it.

Olivia Berlingieri had a breakout season playing in the number 1 position for Stow last season. The senior will continue in that role as she mentors a squad comprised of mainly juniors, some with varsity experience. The Bulldogs still expect to be a factor in the Suburban league led by Berlingieri.

Another breakout player in 2024 was Cloverleaf sophomore Quinn Malarkey. She was thrust into the number 1 spot in their lineup very early and she made the most of the opportunity. The Colts are a young team looking to continue to dominate the Metro Conference and bring back some of their past glory.

After going to the Division 2 State Tournament two seasons ago, St. Vincent-St. Mary was not able to replace their graduated seniors and had to send their players to tournaments as individuals last season. They are looking to come back as a team in 2025 and have a solid one-two punch that will lead the team. Seniors Caitrin Coyle and Rylee Hoover are quality players who give the Irish a rock solid foundation to build from.

New and Almost New

Behind juniors Sydney Barker and Kaylee Naymik, the Riverside Beavers successfully completed their first season as a team in 2024. Riverside brings back their entire lineup, which also includes junior Kaylee Kirk, senior Madi Tas, and sophomore Isabella Gigliotti. Riverside was competitive last year and will be even more competitive returning all their talent in 2025.

In Medina, the Buckeye Bucks are hoping to be able to field a team of at least four players in 2025. Buckeye has never had a girls program but senior Grace Palermo and sophomore Angelina Vannello are pushing for this year to be the first. Buckeye would be an excellent addition to the Lake Erie Girls Golf Association and would bring even more quality to Northeast Ohio Golf.