Elizabeth Sedlak is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Arizona Lutheran Academy for AZPreps365.com

Arizona Lutheran Academy’s golf team has been struggling this season after two years of not winning any golf matches.

With their head coach, Tom Bernthal, stepping down from his position and passing the torch to Ben Priebe, the Coyotes have been dealing with inexperienced underclassmen on their team.

The Coyotes, however, are staying focused on improving by focusing on their team practices, their team values and team camaraderie.

With the help and leadership of Priebe and his assistant coach, Andrew Miller, ALA is determined to work harder, be optimistic about the future and to have fun.

The ALA golf team has a both boys and girls squad, with one junior, three sophomores, and seven freshmen student athletes.

Priebe had been coaching the golf team for a year since Bernthal’s resignation. While Priebe had to balance being the new coach along with being ALA’s Christian Leadership Director and also a religion instructor, he thought the idea of being the new coach as an opportunity to connect with students in a sport that means so much to him.

“Nine out of our 11 students have never ever played competitive golf before,” said Priebe. “It’s really enjoyable to watch them ‘get it’ as they continue to work on their various skills and the difficult shots that Mr. Miller’s teaching them.”

Ella Miller, who is one of the sophomores on the golf team, serves as the team captain.

Despite her status, Ella Miller and the rest of the underclassmen on the team have struggled after a few of their former players graduated, leaving their team to be a younger team and having the freshmen and sophomores “step up”.

However, Ella Miller and the Coyotes are working together to strengthen their bonds despite playing a sport that has more emphasis on individuality. They focus on “feeding off each other’s competitiveness” and “giving small words of encouragement” whenever the team is warming up.

“Because we are playing as individuals out there, it is hard to come together as a sport,” said Ella Miller. “But doing things before our round, like bonding and warming up definitely helps to draw us closer and practice.”

Furthermore, Andrew Miller, who is the father of Ella and the assistant coach of the baseball team, said how the team is very encouraging to each other and treats each other like a strong community.

“At Arizona Lutheran Academy, we teach ‘Faith, Family, and Future’, and we’re all a tight family,” said Andrew Miller.

A minor issue the team has been dealing with over the past two years was the lack of proper golfing equipment, as most of the underclassmen have been reusing “outdated and worn” equipment, especially clubs. Thankfully, the Coyotes have had past donors making fundraisers to improve their equipment such as their golf bags and sports uniforms.

While it may be a slow process for the Coyotes to get back on track, the golf team is striving to make good improvements nevertheless.

“We learn little, we learn incrementally, and we focus on one thing and continue to make slow steps,” said Andrew Miller.