While the Monarchs still have not advanced to the state tournament, they are getting close.

On Oct. 13, Marysville shot a 351 to tie Gahanna for fourth, behind Watterson (340), Upper Arlington (346) and Dublin Coffman (349). The top two teams advanced to state.

"The coaches were discussing at the district tournament that one of eight teams could have made it to the state level," coach Sue Wyman said. "To have that many teams with a chance makes it a great division. It might not always be that way, but you never know."

Marysville expects to continue its district improvement next season. The Monarchs lose seniors Skye Howard, Cassie Vandall and Chelsey Wyman, but they expect to return their top two players -- sophomore Tess Fraser and junior Airaka Bernacchi.

Although the goal of reaching the state tournament was not achieved, Marysville did win the OCC-Capital Division. On Sept. 29, the Monarchs finished first (179) at Marysville Golf Club, ahead of Dublin Coffman (181), Olentangy Orange (184) and Thomas Worthington (230). After four rounds, Marysville won the school's first conference title in girls golf at 23-1, ahead of Coffman (21-3), Worthington Kilbourne (15-9), Westerville Central (13-11), Westerville North (6-18), Hilliard Bradley (5-19) and Westerville South (0-24).

Seven days later at the sectional tournament at Bent Tree, Marysville finished second (355) behind Dublin Jerome (352). Fraser led the Monarchs with a 77, followed by Bernacchi with an 88.

"Tess and Airaka will play quite a bit this summer," Wyman said. "They'll sharpen their games and continue to be focused."

Joining Bernacchi and Fraser as a returning player is sophomore Joanne Hyun.

"I was hoping this team would make it to state," Wyman said. "But the potential is still out there with Airaka, Tess and some of the new girls. This was a great season. The girls really played well all season long and we still believe this team can still get to the state level of competition."

•Oct. 6 turned out to be an eye-opening experience for the boys team. Marysville traveled to Granville Golf Club to compete in a Division I sectional tournament. Two of the district's top three seeded teams were also at Granville, top-seeded St. Charles and third-seeded Mount Vernon.

Marysville shot a 331 to finish fourth, behind St. Charles (302), Mount Vernon (318) and Watkins Memorial (323). The top three advanced to a district tournament.

"Going in we were seeded in the 20s," coach Bob Ludwin said. "The way the sectional went, from our perspective, we had the opportunity for an individual to qualify, too, if things went differently down the stretch. We were close. That type of situation provides some motivation."

During the regular season, Marysville finished seventh at 3-25 in the OCC-Cardinal Division behind champion Jerome (28-0), Olentangy Liberty (24-4), Westerville Central (19-9), Dublin Scioto (13-14-1), Olentangy (13-15) and Westerville North (10-17-1) and ahead of Westerville South (1-27).

"We didn't play as well as we felt we should of," Ludwin said. "The players feel the same way. We had some goals in mind that weren't unrealistic, but they didn't achieve those goals. It wasn't from a lack of effort. It just didn't happen. Golf can be a weird game."

Marysville will lose seniors Danny Kerr and Kurt Oakley. Oakley led the Monarchs at the sectional tournament with an 80.

Among those expected to return include junior Alex Miller and sophomore Sean Nelson. Nelson shot an 81 at the sectional tournament and Miller carded an 85.

"We've got others coming back, too, but those two have the best chance at going low," Ludwin said. "That's something we've been lacking the last couple of years."

In three of the four OCC-Cardinal rounds, Marysville was paired with the eventual conference champions, Jerome. The Monarchs saw what it takes to elevate a team to championship status.

"For some of the players, this was their first taste of competition," Ludwin said. "They got a better understanding what it takes and what a good player looks like. Now that they've been through it, they realize they need to spend more time on their games."