NEWBERG, Ore. --- Four fall tournaments, four top-two finishes, three first places, four different leading scorers...the George Fox women's golf team, for years a dominant force in the Northwest Conference, may be primed for its best season yet in 2021-22!

The Bruins' team stroke average in the fall was 291.14 or a little above 3-over par. That not only trumps Carnegie Mellon and Methodist, two Division III schools ranked above them in the most recent Women's Golf Coaches' Association poll, but compares very favorably to top teams in higher divisions of college golf. In fact, the George Fox team stroke average is better than both defending Division II champion Dallas Baptist and defending DI champ Ole Miss! The Stanford women's golf team, ranked No. 1 in Division I by the WGCA, shot a 288 average this fall, just three strokes better than GFU.

The Bruins went into the 2021-22 season with very high expectations and, if anything, they have exceeded those expectations so far. The Bruins placed third at nationals in the spring and then-freshman Makensie Toole ran away with the 2021 Division III individual title with a 14 stroke victory at Forest Akers Golf Course in East Lansing, Michigan back in May.

In just one example of this team's remarkable depth, Toole is the only player in the usual scoring four who did not win a tournament medal this fall. Still, the consistent sophomore, who went under par in five of her eight rounds this fall, led the Bruins with a 72.0 average, debuting with a 2-under-par 70 in a scrimmage against Portland State at the beginning of September. Toole followed that performance with a second place finish at the CA State Intercollegiate Tournament in Ventura to lead the first-place Bruins contingent with a four-under 240. 

Along with her other younger teammates, the newcomer Toole entered the spring national tournament in 2021 very much under the radar, due to COVID-19 restrictions that limited the Bruins ability to travel. That very same pandemic that limited her national exposure also led the Australian teen to be recruited by McCloskey.

"She had seen an article about us and emailed me expressing her interest. I get so many emails from interested players and if it hadn't been for Zoom, it would have been hard to connect with her and I don't know that I would have. After three minutes on the call, I said 'You need to come to George Fox. You will be perfect for us!"

In fall 2020, Toole, who was born in the U.S. but grew up in Newcastle, about 100 miles north of Sydney on the Australian East Coast, began classes via George Fox Digital and did Zoom calls with the team before arriving stateside in January. Toole made her Bruin debut in February 2021 at the Pacific Invitational at Quail Valley Golf Course in Banks, medaling with a two-round total of 154 as the Bruins took the team title. 

"I think it might not completely show on paper yet, but she has improved," said McCloskey. "I know she didn't win a tournament, but she knows her game better and I feel like she is getting stronger every day. There is no stopping her."

The Bruins set a team record in the opening round at Olivas Links Golf Course with a 285 and won their first tournament with a two-day total of 574. That first full round of team competition set a trend for the fall. Every round of golf the Bruins played ranks in the all-time top 15 in program history!

The only event the Bruins did not win this fall was the Division III National Preview in Texas. Featuring five of the top 10 teams in the Women's Golf Coaches' Association DIII poll playing at the site of this spring's Division III championships--Bay Oaks Golf Course in Houston's Clear Lake neighborhood--the tournament was not completed due to dangerous weather conditions. The Bruins were in position to challenge for the trophy, tied for second only a stroke off the lead when play was ultimately halted. At that time, Alison Takamiya--the reigning NWC individual champion and an All-American as a freshman in spring--was the top individual on the leaderboard at 2-under. 

"She officially won the tournament because the day two scores did not count," said McCloskey, "but she was still on top of the leaderboard when play was suspended. She had it going and was on a mission that second day. I wish we could have completed that second round."

Nicknamed "A-Money" by her teammates, the steady, unflashy Takamiya is at her best on the putting green.

"You never know when she's going to dunk a 35-40 foot putt," said McCloskey. "She is very consistent, down the middle, then on the green. All of the girls are becoming great putters, but many have told her they'd like to have her on their scramble team, because if you need a long putt she will make it. She is absolutely focused."

The team made three separate treks out to the Bay Oaks course on the final day to try to finish their round, but thunderstorms continued to halt play. The tournament organizers even provided carts to try to speed things up in the rare breaks in the weather, but with teams from throughout the nation and flights to catch, time ran out as the Texas storms refused to relent. Still, the Bruins got vital experience on the course that will host the national championship this spring.

"I think we handled the course really well and learned so much," said McCloskey. "We were able to get a full round, a practice round, plus about five more holes on the second day. The players now know what it's going to take on that course and we will be ready. 

"We've actually played there three other times and one of them was in 2017 when we just missed the top of the podium by two strokes for the national championship. That course owes us!"

Takamiya--who finished sixth at nationals in May--and Toole were each First Team All-Americans as freshmen. The top Bruin finishers at their four fall tournaments were two sophomores, a frosh and a junior. 

Less than a week after the Houston trip, the Bruins were back on the course in Canby hosting their own Culturame Classic. They shot under par as a team on the second day, setting a tournament record with a 287 final round score and 587 total. Junior Avery Kageyama earned her first collegiate medal with a one-over 145. The improvement the Honolulu native has made from sophomore to junior year could be one of the keys in George Fox making a run at a national title this spring.

"I couldn't have been more thrilled for her," said McCloskey. "Her first time in the lineup was at the national preview and she just did phenomenally well. I was always on the lookout for her and once she figured out her putting a little bit more and got a little tougher as a player, she's definitely showing what she has now. It's really exciting." 

Along with four NWC rivals and two regional opponents from different divisions, the Culturame Classic featured one of the top Division III teams from the West in Pomona-Pitzer. The Sagehens led by three after the opening round, but the Bruins caught and then beat Pomona-Pitzer by 11 strokes.

George Fox wrapped up the fall campaign on an incredible note at the NWC Fall Classic at Quail Valley on Oct. 10: five Bruins in the top five spots on the leaderboard, and a pair of tournament record-low scoring rounds. The team shot a 284 on the final day and a two-day tournament-record low score of 576. On a team that returned two All-Americans and four First Team All-NWC performers from last spring's third-place national finish, it was the newest member of the squad that finished the final event of the fall atop the leaderboard. Freshman Liana Brown shot one-under for the tournament to earn her first college medal, firing the best single round of the fall with a 69 on the final day. 

"A couple of coaches were like, 'Are you kidding me!?'" said McCloskey. "She is just a great player. She has great spirit and attitude, loves the game and loves to compete." 

A shotgun tournament for the final round, the Los Angeles native finished on the 12th hole, one of the toughest greens at the Banks course.

"I knew she had a good round going," said McCloskey. "I thought if I could get there in time, I can make sure she has a good handle on the read. It's a real fast-breaking green if you are above the hole. I didn't have a chance to get there in time and found out she actually birdied the hole on a 15-foot putt on one of the trickiest greens!"

Remarkably, in eight complete rounds of golf this fall, there was only one round over 80 by any of the Bruins' leading five players. The separation from number one to number four was fewer than two strokes on average, with Toole leading the way at 72.0. Brown ranked second (73.25), followed by Takamiya (73.5) and Kageyama (73.75). For context, the number three scorers for both Carnegie Mellon and Methodist averaged 75 and 75.5 respectively this fall. 

There is more depth and experience beyond this talented young quartet. Senior team captain Kaitlyn Tonai was a First Team All-NWC selection and finished in the top half of the national tournament field last spring. A high school teammate of Kageyama and Takamiya at Barack Obama's alma mater, Punahou School in Honolulu, Tonai's 76.1 stroke average this fall would easily place her in the scoring group of any other top Division III program. She shot her best collegiate round on the opening day of the Culturame Classic this fall with a two-under 70 at Willamette Valley Country Club.

"Kaitlyn is such a team player and is motivated by the team improving and just the overall chemistry on the team," said McCloskey. "She helps us all come together."

Allie Slingsby is a graduate MBA student who has three All-NWC seasons on her resume at Whitworth and George Fox. Last fall's NWC Classic medalist, Slingsby played at the national championship in May and put in a solid performance with a 77 at this season's championship venue.

"She is right there too," said McCloskey. "Allie is very committed and driven."

Giselle Flint, an All-Sunset League golfer for a two-time league champion at Los Alamitos High School in Orange County, California, is gaining valuable experience as a sophomore with freshman athletic eligibility. 

"Giselle is a work in progress and she made some great strides this fall," said McCloskey. "Against Portland State, she had one of the best scores. She is really just coming into her game. She just doesn't have the experience of some of the other players. She shot 76 versus PSU and in the second round at the Culturame shot a 78. She is going to be a player in the future."

An embarrassment of riches, you say? A team already loaded with championship-level talent added another piece before the spring campaign. Toole's younger sister, Kiana, was the Mountain East Conference Player Of The Year at Division II West Virginia Wesleyan College in 2020-21 and shot a 247 this fall at the MEC Fall Championship to tie for fifth. After finishing her fall semester, the younger Toole now joins the Bruins for the spring portion of their season. Both she and her sister, Makensie, will have three seasons of eligibility overlap together

"Kiana went to a different school to stay out of Makensie's shadow," said McCloskey, "but she visited the campus and Makensie in the summer and met a biology professor and feels like she would like to be back here. Neither girl can go home until May, so it will be a year and a half before they can see their parents. She got a golf scholarship to the Division II school and likes it there, but she really believes in the Christian atmosphere here and is looking for a warmer climate. She definitely has been in transfer mode."

Currently ranked third in the nation by the WGCA and fifth by golfstat.com, there is little doubt that the Bruins are once again a contender for a Division III national championship, if not the frontrunner. So what goes into offseason preparation for a team with such lofty goals?

"At the end of the season, we talk about what each player needs to work on," said McCloskey. "Everyone has kind of a different plan. The emphasis is on strength and endurance training in the offseason. As we move into spring and play in warmer weather and with the national championship in Houston where it is hot and humid and with a practice round you play five days in a row, it's about getting stronger and physically ready as well. We are really lucky to have an indoor center and will put time in there."

McCloskey has experienced plenty of success at George Fox since originating the program in 2006 and the Bruins have been the gold standard in the NWC for more than a decade now under her leadership as the school's Director of Golf. Three times in the past, the Bruins have been ranked No. 1 in the nation and they have challenged for a national title multiple times. But never in her 20-plus years as a college head coach has McCloskey had a different top scorer in four consecutive tournaments, an exceedingly rare feat for a championship-caliber squad.

"As we get better, other teams out there are getting better too. No doubt in my mind that this is an unbelievably deep team. Three different players won medals in four events. Hard work is everything, but to win a national championship a little luck has to come with it. But luck comes from hard work."

The Bruins have won or shared 11 consecutive NWC championships in women's golf and have been a contender on the national scene during that span with five top-5 placements at the Division III National Tournament, including a runner-up finish in 2017. Never before, though, have they had the depth of talent that was on display this fall.

"Our motto is 'Keep Climbing Higher'," said Bruins head coach MaryJo McCloskey. "Keep getting stronger every day. I would say there are at least ten teams in Division III that are going after it, have depth and are really strong. You just have to build for the final championship. We can't worry about how we compare to others, we just have to keep improving. We are not there yet. Every player on our team would say we can keep getting better."

The Bruins will open the spring half of their season on Mar. 5 at the Willamette Bearcats' Spring Challenge, played on the OGA course in Woodburn, Ore., before traveling to host their annual Westbrook Invitational in Peoria, Ariz.