For the first time, the Riverhawks golf team has two female members.
Ela Simpson, a second-year law enforcement and criminal justice student, and first-year transfer studies student Addison Piechowiak joined the team’s roster in February.
“Someone’s got to start it and I have an opportunity,” Simpson said. “Hopefully with people seeing me go out and play, we can get more women in golfing at this school and any other school out there.”
The team, whose roster also will name approximately six male golfers this spring, has not included women in the past, although Athletic Director Duane Herr said they have always been welcome to try out.
“I think women are a big part of the growth in popularity of golf in the last couple of years,” golf coach Dave O’Donnell said. “You know, I think we would be remiss if we didn’t address that and offer an opportunity for young women to play for the Riverhawks.”
At most colleges with co-ed golf teams, women practice and compete in the same tournaments as the male players, but their rankings are separate.
O’Donnell said female golfers have contributed to golf’s recent boom in popularity and that AACC wants to offer opportunities towomen golfers.
The National Golf Foundation estimates that women make up 25% of on-course golfers, including competitive and recreational players, a 14% increase since 2019.
Herr said golf is not just a men’s sport and that he would like to see regular women’s competition.
“It’s typically listed under men’s golf, but it’s certainly a co-ed sport,” Herr said. “We … certainly welcome that opportunity [to] have female golfers compete and hope that that would happen regularly.”
Herr said the Riverhawks had not had a female golfer on the team since he joined AACC Athletics 13 years ago.
AACC’s male golfers said they would like to see more women join the team.
“I definitely think there should be more put out for the women because it would help not only with the men, but it would also help with just golf in general,” Ethan Baron, a first-year education student who plays for the golf team, said. “I think seeing the competition between both sides together, playing together, doing everything like that, it would be more beneficial for the sport.”