On May 12, the WHS girls golf team wrapped up a successful 2026 season with senior
co-captain Lily Patel competing at the NJSIAA Girls Tournament of Champions. After building off of last season’s momentum, the Blue Devils finished the season with a 10-4 record, qualified for the state sectional tournament for the second consecutive year and continued to establish themselves as a top competitor in the area.
Coming off a 7-3 season last year, Westfield entered this spring with higher expectations and a growing roster of younger players ready to contribute, led by Patel and senior co-captain Peyton Harrington. Head coach Kevin Everly intentionally scheduled more matches this season to give the entirety of the team more experience on the course. “We had 10 wins this year, which is the second most wins that the program’s ever had.”
The Blue Devils opened their season strong with victories over New Providence and Mount St. Dominic before facing some of their toughest competition against private schools such as Kent Place and Newark Academy. Although these matches ended with losses, Westfield remained competitive throughout the season and used those close matches as motivation to push forward. According to Patel, the team set a goal of reaching double-digit wins early in the year and was able to accomplish exactly that.
“We started our season off really strong,” Patel said. “Playing against private schools is always tough for us, but we came close to both Kent Place and Newark Academy, and our goal was to get 10 wins, so finishing 10-4 was really good.”
As the season progressed, several players emerged as key contributors behind Patel and Harrington’s leadership. Sophomore Amaya Isom developed into one of the team’s top scorers, while senior Chloe Martin locked her spot as no. 2 seed, despite dealing with a back injury for the majority of the season. Everly also credited sophomores Sydney Elmquist and junior Sadie Pitigala for stepping up in important tournaments throughout the spring.
One of the biggest moments of the season came at the Union County Championship, where Patel captured her fourth consecutive county title. The achievement cemented her place as one of the most accomplished golfers in WHS program history.
Despite the team’s success, challenges remained throughout the season. Early spring weather conditions often made matches difficult and many players were still adjusting to the endurance needed to compete in 18-hole tournaments.
“A lot of these girls don’t really play competitive tournaments outside of the season. Just the endurance of it all is a challenge,” Everly explained. “But, we do a bunch of them, just to prepare people for it and to practice it.”
Even though golf is an individual sport and does not typically rely on team effort, Harrington explained how everyone was extremely supportive during matches and tournaments. She said, “Golf can be such an individual sport, but our team really made it feel like we were competing together.”
Looking toward the future, Everly remarked on his goals going into the next season. “I want to really see people improve,” he said. “I always say that this is a game that you’re gonna play for the rest of your life. So, I think this is an opportunity where you can get better now, as it takes a while to get good at the game. You just have to embrace that this is a lifetime activity, and to get as good as you can.”
