At the beginning of the 2023 season, the DSHA Varsity Golf team was ranked 4th by the Wisconsin Golf Coaches Association. With that in mind, the Dashers set what they thought would be a realistic goal for themselves—to finish within the top three teams at the WIAA State Championship tournament. Captain Kate Krueger, DSHA ’24, was thrilled when they came out on top as champions. She shared, “We were going up against the two-time defending state champions (Waunakee); we really thought that just getting to the top three would be a great accomplishment.”

The team defied odds as they moved through the season. On September 20, they earned the Greater Metro Conference (GMC) Championship for the first time in 12 years. They won the WIAA Regional Championship and moved on to secure the WIAA Sectional Championship on October 3 by a convincing 21 strokes over second-place Brookfield East. Ava Roesch, DSHA ’26, and Zoe Gryniewicz, DSHA ’27, tied for 4th individually during the tournament. Hannah Strachota, DSHA ’25, finished in 8th, Krueger in 9th, and Emma Bruckman, DSHA ’24, in 25th. Krueger expressed that they were seeing so much success because they were “playing for each other. When we focused on being the best teammates, we started to play really well.” She continued, “You have to take it one shot at a time and start over at each stroke. That resilience helped us.”

After an impressive sectional, the Dashers were ready to compete for the state title on October 9 and 10. The night before, the team attended Mass together at St. Charles in Hartland. Krueger shared, “Hannah’s mom (Eileen Strachota) couldn’t be at the Mass, but had gotten us ball marks to keep in our pockets. They had an inscription that read ‘with God all things are possible’ (from Mark 10:27). Faith has always been

an important part of our team dynamic, and the ball marks were special.”

During the state tournament, the Dashers were down by two strokes to Waunakee at the beginning of the 16th hole. Krueger remembers thinking, “We need a miracle here.” She took the ball mark out of her golf bag and placed it in her pocket. Immediately following, she shot a birdie on the 16th hole and a par on the 17th. This brought Dashers the advantage over Waunakee by just one stroke. Krueger then completed an eight-foot putt on the final hole to hit a birdie and secure the first WIAA Golf State Championship in DSHA history, defeating Waunakee by two strokes, 643 to 641.

“Nothing can top winning the first state title in school history,” Krueger shared. “I hope the team continues to work hard next year. They’re going to be the team to beat, and I know they’re capable of doing great things if they remember ‘with God all things are possible.’”