Messenger photo by Britt Kudla Fort Dodge’s returning letterwinner for girls golf is Maddy Major.

Fort Dodge’s Dave Louk has a small but willing group of players ready to hit the links for the 2019 girls golf season.

Sophomore Maddy Major is the lone returning letterwinner back for the Dodgers this spring, but Louk has been pleased with the makeup of the seven athletes he has on his roster in his third season at the helm.

“These kids are working very hard,” Louk said. “Some of them are having to learn a lot about the game in a very short period of time, but I see a lot of potential and some good, competitive spirit.

“We’ll continue to focus on getting better every day and go from there. That has to be the main focus when five of the seven you have are new to the sport at this level in the CIML.”

Major was a regular in the lineup last spring. She’ll be flanked by three juniors and three freshmen for Fort Dodge, which opens its campaign with a dual on Tuesday at Mason City.

The early wild card is Anne Treep, a foreign exchange student from the Netherlands. Treep, a junior alongside classmates Brooklynn Bailey and Taylor Smith, “came to the States with her clubs and was ready to go” last August.

“Anne hits the ball well and has a lot of potential,” Louk said. “She’s not new at all to tournament play, but it may take her a while to get familiar with the courses we’ll see (in conference action).

“She’s still adjusting from meters to yards and everything that comes with being a (high school golfer in America), but we’re excited to see what she can do once things get settled in. Our juniors are competitive and athletic.”

Freshmen Alexis Kenney, Makayla Newsom and Estella Moffitt round out the scorecard.

“We’ve been on the course five or six times now (after the slow spring weather-wise),” Louk said. “We have a stretch of four 18-hole tournaments in two weeks, which is going to be very challenging given our (lack of overall experience), but the attitudes have been great and I think we’ll keep making progress.”

The Dodgers’ home invitational is May 10 at the Fort Dodge Country Club.

2019 FORT DODGE GIRLS GOLF

Roster

Juniors — Brooklynn Bailey, Anne Treep, Taylor Smith.

Sophomore — Maddy Major.

Freshmen — Alexis Kenney, Makayla Newsom, Estella Moffitt.

Schedule

April 9 — at Mason City; 15 — at West Des Moines Valley Invitational; 16 — at Waukee; 18 — at Ankeny; 22 — at Ames Invitational; 25 — at Marshalltown Invitational; 26 — West Des Moines Valley; 30 — at Marshalltown.

May 2 — Humboldt; 7 — SE Polk; 10 — Fort Dodge Invitational; 15 — CIML Iowa Conference meet at Mason City; 20 — regional meet (TBA).