Sangamon Sun

The Illinois College women's golf team is set to begin the SLIAC season with a seasoned group of returnees. Last year, the team secured fourth place in the conference championship and aims to improve its standing this season by retaining four of the five players from last year's squad. Senior Kate Burr, who was named SLIAC Second Team All-Conference after finishing 14th in the previous tournament, will lead the team. Joining her are Katie Mae Milhiser, Hannah Harpster, and sophomore Shelby Seiler. The team will be under the guidance of first-year head coach Jay Rowell.

As SLIAC embarks on its 8th season, teams will commence play for the 2024-25 season over Labor Day weekend. The conference includes programs from 12 schools, with five affiliate members. The 2024 SLIAC Women's Golf Championship is scheduled to take place at Metamora Fields in Metamora, Illinois from October 6-8.

Grinnell College aims for its sixth consecutive conference title with seven returning All-Conference golfers, including Meilin Hoshino and Kavya Keshav, champions from 2023 and 2022 respectively. Hoshino set a conference record last fall with a three-round score of 212 and held a conference-low average of 74.8 strokes per round. Keshav averaged 79.3 strokes per round last year. Emily Lackershire and Vidushi Keni also had averages under 80 last fall. Additional returning All-Conference performers include Saya Geisendorfer, Sara Meneses, Mary Li, and Amy Nguyen. Freshman Waverly Yang joins Grinnell's lineup as they open their season at the Kohawk Classic in Cedar Falls, Iowa on August 31.

Eureka College seeks consistency by returning all six golfers from last year’s roster. Junior Ashlyn Voyles leads with an average of 89.8 strokes per round and finished as her team's top golfer in all six events last season. Newcomer KeyLee Scarbrough joins Sofie Bressner, Alexis Charlton, Gabby Penberthy, and Brooklyn Shell in rounding out Eureka's lineup.

Lake Forest College returns four starters following a second-place finish in SLIAC last year. Gabrielle Krebs (81.9 average) and Sydney Foulon (85.8 average) come off All-Conference performances while Ashlyn Bhatia and Alijah Campbell had strong sophomore seasons contributing to a program championship record by 27 strokes. New additions Amanda Adley, Libby Hearst, Savannah Matta, and Madelyn Conklin join Lake Forest as they start their season on August 30 at the Carthage Classic.

Lyon College placed sixth in its inaugural year with SLIAC but faces challenges replacing lone All-Conference golfer Sydney Czantkowski. Emma Johnson (93.1 average) and Madison Robb (99.1 average) aim to step up alongside newcomer Keylee Lyons as Lyon begins their season on September 9 at the Williams Baptist Invitational.

MUW finished fifth at last year's championship but graduated four players from that team; however, Sara Grace Ramey (94.1 average) and Ashley Estabrook (92.1 average) bring experience into this season’s lineup along with newcomers Hallee Sumner and Reagan Hammack starting their campaign on September 9 at Tempest Intercollegiate.

Spalding University anticipates another strong performance led by seniors Jordan Harris (82.6 average) and Alexis Seay (83.9 average), both named All-Conference last year along with Bailey Birdsell and Madison Harding who contributed to Spalding's third-place finish last year’s championship opening their season at Players Club Invitational on September 6.

Westminster College welcomes first-year head coach Alex Kueker who inherits a lineup featuring returners Annette Ramirez and Caragan Lockard alongside newcomer Allison Auer.