Telling them apart on the golf course isn’t hard. Ava is right- handed while Ella plays from the left side, but the talents they possess are nearly identical. “They’re both obviously very good and they go about things the right way,” Walker said of the twins. “They know how to practice, they know how to pre- pare, and they know the pres- sure is going to be on them.” Walker says the twins will need to get comfortable as leaders inside the program. “I’m very interested to see what it looks like with them in a leadership role,” he said.
“They’ll be who everyone looks to and I think they’re ready for that.” Who fills those other four spots on the varsity roster will be the biggest question Walker will need to answer in early April. He knows senior Abigail Thompson, who was arguably the seventh-best player in the Raccoon River Conference be- hind her six varsity teammates a season ago, will be in the mix. Her younger sister, freshman Elisabeth Thompson, will be right there too. Norah Martens, a sophomore, has gotten se- rious about her game, the coach says, and he also thinks Bergen Roske and Sydney
Zeigler, both juniors, will contend for varsity time.
“There are going to be some bumps along the way, but we’re still going to be really compet- itive,” he said. “It we go out and play well this year and we’re fortunate enough to make it to the state tournament and for- tunate enough to be there in the end, it will probably be the best coaching job I’ve ever done.” The rest of the 3A power- houses — programs like Wahlert, Cedar Rapids Xavier, and West Delaware — will cer- tainly expect Gilbert to be a state contender. All of the pro- grams return some key pieces from a season ago, but like Gil- bert, they all have voids to fill, too. In addition to the Lohrbach twins, Xavier junior Mehar Julka is one of the state’s top players and she’ll be a contender for in- dividual gold. Walker says Wahlert and Xa- vier will always be competitive on a statewide level, and he’s ready to see what kind of chal- lenge they present in 2025. “I’ll be paying attention to those two teams because of their ability to turn around and get good players again,” he said. “After that, we’ll have to see how the season plays out.” Gilbert isn’t the near lock it was a season ago, but don’t count out the Tigers. You never know what might happen.
“I’m really excited to see how all of this comes together, and we’ve got several other fresh- men who I know play as well,” Walker said. “I’m excited to just get out there and figure out who is going to fill those spots. It will be fun.” The team that does step onto the course will have all eyes upon it, fair or unfair, which is why Walker knows it will be up to him to navigate the ship throughout sometimes rough seas, and it will probably re- quire the best coaching per- formance of his career.
MONDAY, APRIL 7: ADM Information: At River Valley Golf Course, Adel, 4 p.m. start time
MONDAY, MAY 12: RACCOON RIVER CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT Information: At Ballard Golf and Country Club, Huxley, 9 a.m. start time
THURSDAY, APRIL 10: GREENE COUNTY INVITE Information: At The Hill Golf Course, Jefferson, 4 p.m. start time
TUESDAY, MAY 13: GILBERT INVITE Information: At Ames Golf and Country Club, 4 p.m. start
MONDAY, APRIL 14: ANKENY CENTENNIAL INVITE Information: At Briarwood Golf Club, Ankeny, 12 p.m. start time
WEDNESDAY, MAY 21: CLASS 3A REGIONAL TOURNAMENT Information: At TBA, Time TBA
FRIDAY, APRIL 18: NORTH POLK (ALSO NEVADA) Information: At Ames Golf and Country Club, 4 p.m. start time
THURSDAY, MAY 29-FRIDAY, MAY 30: CLASS 3A STATE TOURNAMENT Information: At Saddleback Ridge Golf Course, Solon, Time TBA
TUESDAY, APRIL 22: OGDEN (ALSO VAN METER) Information: At Ames Golf and Country Club, 4 p.m. start time
VARSITY
JUNIOR VARSITY
THURSDAY, APRIL 24: ROLAND-STORY INVITE Information: At River Bend Golf Course, Story City, 1 p.m. start time
Name
Gr Sr. Sr. Sr.
Name
Gr Jr. So. So. So. So. So. So. So. Fr. Fr. Fr. Fr.
Abigail Thompson Rachel Clouse Abigail Randall Ava Lohrbach
Grace Brosamle London Hibbing Madelyn Korrect Carly Saienga Ellie Wahlman Genevieve Lamm Violeta Flower Reese Kaptur Ruby Roberge Ava Witek Avery Waite Reagan Crawford
MONDAY, APRIL 28: WITMER-DUNPHY INVITE Information: At Perry Golf and Country Club, 4 p.m. start time
Jr. Jr. Jr. Jr. Jr.
Ella Lohrbach Eloise Lepper Bergen Roske Sydney Zeigler Norah Martens Addie Winter
TUESDAY, APRIL 29: TURK BOWMAN INVITE Information: At Veenker Memorial Golf Course, Ames, 10 a.m. start time
So. So. Fr.
THURSDAY, MAY 1: PCM INVITE Information: At Gateway Rec. Golf Course, Monroe, 1 p.m. start time
Elisabeth Thompson
THURSDAY, MAY 8: SOUTHEAST POLK INVITE Information: At Copper Creek Golf Club, Pleasant Hill, 9 a.m. start time
Over the past six seasons, Gilbert has crowned five individual 3A state champions and also had the runner-up. Britta Snyder sat atop the leaderboard in 2018 and 2019, followed by Eden Lohrbach’s first title in 2021. Lohrbach lost in a playoff to finish second in 2022, and then followed it up with back-to-back individual crowns in 2023 and 2024.
DID YOU KNOW? Gilbert Girls Golf Edition
SPRING 2025 | GAME ON 23
22 GAME ON | SPRING 2025
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