Mike Kraft/MDN Minot North senior Emersyn Kopp hits an approach shot during practice at Souris Valley Golf Course in preparation for the start of the season. Kopp is the defending West Region tournament champion.

The Minot High girls golf team has accomplished quite a number of firsts in the short time that they have been a varsity program.

The Sentinels competed in their first tournament on Aug. 12, 2022, when they took part in the Watford City Invite. They posted their first team score in their third tournament when they placed 10th at the Bismarck High Invite on Aug. 19, 2022.

The following year saw Minot North earn its first top-five finish, taking third at the Williston Invite on Aug. 18, 2023. The Sentinels took an even bigger step last year, cementing themselves as a serious contender in the West Region. Emersyn Kopp became Minot North’s first medalist in a tournament, winning the Minot Invite on Sept. 13 with a career round of 76. She would also become the program’s first West Region individual champion, claiming the crown with a 78.

What began as a program that didn’t have enough individual scores to be eligible to place as a team finished last season just a stroke away from winning the West Region crown. The Sentinels finished second behind Mandan by the slimmest of margins, 350 to 351.

“The excitement level is really high for us this year,” Minot North coach Michael DeLorme said. “We’re coming off a really strong finish last year. We finished second at the WDA tournament and we return a lot of that same core. There’s that excitement, there’s that belief that we can be one of those top teams in the West Region this year.”

Minot North returns five of its top six scorers from last year, led by Kopp and fellow senior Kinzy Welstad. Kopp and Welstad were both All-West Region selections last year and Kopp was named to the All-State team as well. Welstad is a two-time All-West Region player, earning the accolade for the first time in 2023. Both lead a class of four seniors, two sophomores and one freshman. The Sentinels will look to fill the scoring vacancy left by their lone graduate from a year ago, Carlie Brown. Sophomore Kate Bast factored into the team scoring in nine tournaments last year, shooting a season-best 84 at the Bismarck High Invite. Senior Ally Larson posted a top-four team score twice, including at the state tournament.

The Sentinels have accomplished many firsts thus far, but the one thing that is missing is an actual first-place finish, something the team believes can be a reality this season with the amount of talent that is on the roster.

“Experience is a huge factor for us,” DeLorme said. “When I look at our core group of our varsity this year, everyone of them has played two or three years of varsity for us. Returning that experience, we’ve all been there. We’ve put ourselves in positions. So now, it’s getting over that hump. We’ve put ourselves down the stretch a number of times last year with a chance to win a tournament and we just didn’t quite get the job done, but hopefully now we’ve gained enough experience through that last year that we can get over that hump a few times.”

That experience is led by Kopp and Welstad, who have been there since the beginning. Both have been the top two players for Minot North since they were freshmen and both have improved year over year. Kopp isn’t feeling the pressure despite her successful junior campaign and instead has changed her mindset to be more loose when on the golf course.

“As a team we just want to have fun,” Kopp said. “We have four seniors this year and it’s our last ride as we’ve built this program. We want to have fun and we want to compete. Maybe we can win a tournament. That’s definitely in the cards. And for me, my goals have changed. Before it’s been very analytical and now I just want to have fun and do my best and feel good about every tournament that I compete in. Sometimes it’s just not as serious as you think it is. It’s just a game and I want to take everything a little lightly and to not put too much of myself into a swing.”

Kopp carded an 84 in her first career varsity round her freshman year, which turned out to be her best round of the season. She would go on to average a 91.5 that year. She brought her average down to an 88.2 her sophomore season, establishing a new career best when she shot an 81 at the Mandan Invite. She’d add some hardware to her career as a junior, winning two tournaments and establishing herself as one of the top golfers in the West Region. She averaged an 82.9 and had the top individual score for her team in eight tournaments.

Kopp said she’s worked to lower her scores even further during the offseason, traveling to tournaments in Bismarck and Fargo and also playing on the weekends with her dad, who has offered some helpful advice she keeps in the back of her mind.

“My dad always says not to follow up a bad shot with a dumb shot and try to keep everything in play and the high numbers out of play,” Kopp said.

Any coach would be happy to have one No. 1 golfer, but DeLorme has two. Welstad’s production has been equivalent to Kopp’s during her first three years with the team. Coincidentally, she and Kopp posted the exact same round in their first career tournament.

“Emersyn’s been in that role for us the last few years and I think she’s realizing just how good she can really be,” DeLorme said. “I’m really lucky. Kinzy Welstad is right up there with her. I call them 1A, 1B all the time. To have both of those two leading the program, we’re pretty lucky to have special kids like that.”

The two-time All-West Region golfer has also seen her average round improve after each season. She averaged a 91.3 her freshman year and an 86.6 her sophomore year, leading Minot North both years. She took two strokes off her average round as a junior, posting an 84.6, including a career-best 78 at the Legacy Invite. She led the team in scoring in four tournaments last year.

The Sentinels will be one of the favorites to compete for the West Region crown, attempting to dethrone Mandan, which has won the West Region regular season and tournament titles each of the last two seasons, as well as the state title in 2023. Bismarck St. Mary’s had the best showing for the West Region at the state tournament last year, placing third.

“There’s going to be some competitive golf played,” DeLorme said. “Mandan might be the top team. They return their top four or five from last year. We return three of our top four. I think a lot of times it’s going to be us two neck and neck, but nothing is for sure. It’s golf. Any given day, anyone can go out there and shoot a number, but we have to go out and go play.”

If the Sentinels play the way they are capable of, Kopp believes they will be right there in the mix competing for the top spot.

“If we compete even better than we did last year, we’ll hopefully be one of the top two, top three teams,” Kopp said. “The WDA has a lot of strong girls. We have a lot of seniors this year and even underclassmen who are competing strong, so we’ll see. It’ll be interesting. I think each tournament is up for grabs.”

The Sentinels season tees off on Friday, Aug. 8, when they compete in the Turtle Mountain Invite at Carrington Cross Roads Golf Course.