Ceres High’s and Central Valley’s girls golf programs are moving forward with new-look starting lineups this fall.

The Bulldogs and Hawks lost a combined eight players, including six to graduation.

“It’s a learning year,” Ceres High head coach Ron Edwards said. “We have three new starters. I don’t really have expectations for them. I just want them to get experience.”

“We hope to have a couple (players) qualify (for Divisionals) but tough to tell,” Central Valley leader Kelly Wheelock said. “There are many good golfers in the league.”

The Bulldogs return two players from a season ago, including Brooke Trio (Jr.) and Allison Lewis (Jr.).

Trio and Lewis are third-year competitors.

“They’ve both improved since last year,” Edwards said.

Ceres High has three newcomers in Brooke Kiser (So.), Kyleigh Robinson (So.) and Makelle Selby (So.).

“I don’t know how they’re going to do,” Edwards said. “All three of them are first-year players. I don’t think they’ve touched a club in their lives. I appreciate them coming out so we could have a full team.”

Hailey Tsurui (Jr.) opted not to compete this season to play girls flag football.

Alysabeth Marquez and Jayda Bryant graduated.

Marquez made program history last fall by becoming the first player to earn Western Athletic Conference MVP honors three times.

Trio was named to the WAC First Team.

Tsurui and Lewis were both second-team honorees.

Marquez posted the second-best score at the WAC Championships.

She led the Bulldogs with an 87.

Trio, Tsurui and Lewis shot 114, 116 and 117, respectively, at the conference finals.

Marquez, Tsurui, Trio and Lewis all earned individual berths to the Sac-Joaquin Section Division-IV Tournament.

“It’s a big loss,” Edwards said while talking about Marquez. “But we just have to move on. She was a good captain for the team. She knew how to help the other girls.”

Central Valley returns three players from a season ago, including Kalaieda Bernal (Jr.), Elia Hernandez (So.) and Emily Mariani (So.).

The Hawks have three newcomers in Kendall Fleeman (Sr.), Annalyse Perry (Sr.) and Dayanara Rosales (Sr.).

Kaylee Almanza, Lucia Bernal, Evelyn Guizar and Micaela Martinez graduated.

Almanza and Lucia Bernal both earned Central California Conference recognition last fall.

Almanza was an honorable-mention pick.

Bernal was the CCC’s Sportsmanship Award winner.

Almanza joined rare company as only a handful of players from Central Valley have qualified for Divisionals.

Kalaieda Bernal posted a personal-best score of 141 at the 2022 CCC Championships. She missed qualifying for the Division-III Tournament by one spot.

Ceres High will compete against Beyer, Grace Davis, Johansen, Lathrop, Mountain House, Los Banos and Pacheco during WAC play.

Central Valley’s CCC schedule includes matches versus Patterson, Atwater, Buhach Colony, Merced, Golden Valley and El Capitan.

The Bulldogs and Hawks failed to post team scores at their respective league championships in 2022 due to thin lineups.

Ceres High and Central Valley both finished in sixth place in the WAC and CCC overall standings.

“We should be about middle of the pack,” Wheelock said.

“A realistic goal would be to finish close to .500,” Edwards stated. “I think we can finish in the middle of the pack.”

Central Valley will compete against Ceres High next fall when it relocates to the WAC as part of the section’s conference realignment plan.

The new-look league will feature Ceres High, Central Valley, Livingston, Beyer, Grace Davis, Johansen, Lathrop and Pacheco.

Los Banos and Mountain House will relocate to the CCC and Valley Oak League, respectively.

“We’ll be more competitive,” Edwards said.

“As far as the WAC next year, it will be nice that we have closer matches and will be playing more schools at our skill level,” Wheelock added.