While many Blue Devil athletes finish off their time at WHS with a single highlight season as a senior, senior co-captain of the girls golf team Lily Patel has been making her mark on WHS golf since day one.
On April 14, Patel secured first place in the Union County Championship with a score of 79. This was her fourth consecutive title as the Union County Champion, and continued her streak as the tournament’s sole victor since its inception in 2022.
Patel’s accomplishment as a senior is impressive, but head coach Kevin Everly noted that achieving the same title all four years is even more striking. He said, “Being able to do it as a freshman coming in, and against seniors and juniors, it was pretty impressive that she did it that early on.”
Her experience as a four-year member of the varsity girls golf team and captain both her junior and senior years is what allows her to remain calm during high-pressure matches, including the Union County tournament. Patel said, “I’ve gained an incredible amount of experience over the years. With this tournament being played at Suburban [Golf Club] every year, I’ve grown more familiar with the layout, so going into this round, I was confident in my strategy and knew where I could and could not miss the ball.”
This level of preparation helped Patel to secure the win, but she also focused on staying present leading up to the tournament, as the game of golf can be unpredictable. Different courses require different strategies, and Patel recognized what she needed to do to minimize her score. She said, “Putting was difficult, especially with the greens being aerated, so it was tough to gauge the speed of putts. Suburban is a tight, tree-lined course as well, so I think my placement off the tee was good. I couldn’t take driver off most of the holes, so it was important to find the fairway when I was taking clubs less than driver.”
Patel’s strategy clearly worked, and her success is drawing attention to the girls golf program. For Patel, this win not only signifies a personal accomplishment, but it will also leave a lasting impact on the team when she graduates this June. “It means a lot to be able to get my name up there four years in a row. Girls golf is still a growing program at WHS, but I think each year the team continues to make history, continuing to draw more and more attention to the sport,” Patel said.
For the program, Everly says that Patel will leave an impact and inspire future Blue Devil golfers. He said, “It’ll always be, this is what Lily did, so it’s gonna raise the standard for some of the girls coming in. She set the bar pretty high.”
Echoing Everly, senior Chloe Martin noted how Patel’s success has helped foster a competitive team environment. Martin said, “She’s such a role model for everyone on the team, and I think a lot of girls on the team look up to her. She definitely creates a competitive culture, and she pushes people to be their best, perform their best and just work hard at practice.”
Even with her outstanding four-peat, Patel is looking ahead to the rest of the season, where she has already outlined goals for herself. As defending conference champion, she is hoping to defend that title also to nicely finish off her career golfing as a Blue Devil.
Her success in the sport is not stopping once she walks across the graduation stage. Next year, Patel will attend the Matt DeJohn Golf Academy in Palm City, FL, a highly regarded golf institution, with the ultimate goal of playing golf at the collegiate level. “The coaches down there are amazing, and I absolutely love the program, so I am excited to see the opportunities that next year brings,” Patel said.
