It isn’t common at the collegiate level of golf to have players that are injured or unavailable to play due to competing around the world, but the Sacramento State women’s golf team defied those odds this season.

The women competed in three of their four tournaments without two of their eight players, due to injury and travel.

Women’s golf coach David Sutherland acknowledged they had a unique predicament last year and is confident those players will translate over to having a competitive season.

“I’m glad it looks like we’re going to have all of our gals,” Sutherland said. “Astha [Madan] will not be traveling, Natalie [Bodnar] looks like she will be able to play in her second term. It’s very unusual in golf not having everybody. We’re not a sport that’s used to injuries and people being gone.”

Junior Natalie Bodnar was absent from their lineup due to fracturing her left ankle over the summer, and freshman Astha Madan was competing for her native country of India in the Asian Games.

Madan was made available for the women’s final tournament in the fall, the Rainbow Wahine Invitational in Oahu, Hawaii, where she shot the lowest individual score for the Hornets. The freshman tied for 22nd place as she carded rounds of 76-79-74-229 in her first collegiate appearance.

Senior Sagee Palavivatana said she was impressed with her younger teammate’s abilities to contribute and shoot low scores for the team in the fall.

“Even though we lost two seniors last year, who were very talented and contributed a lot to the team, I feel the freshmen [Katie Dunaway and Madan] bring the same stuff to the team,” Palavivatana said. “I’m fairly confident in myself and the team. I know this semester we’ll have a better year because we’re a strong team.”

Dunaway has the lowest stroke average on the team through four tournaments at 77.50. Junior Rockelle Sande is right behind the freshman with a 77.75 average and sophomore Chloe Bartek rounded out third with a 78.42.

“Our best players last semester were some of our younger players,” Sutherland said. “We’re hoping to see them continue to play well, but we’d like to see and have some of our older players and seniors become a little more out in front in terms of scoring.”

Palavivatana didn’t feel she lived up to her best capabilities and is using this second half of the season to lower her scoring average in hopes of chasing her dream to compete professionally.

“I set up a couple of goals [this spring],” Palavivatana said. “I definitely want to get my scoring average lower. I want to play the best that I can, contribute to the team and also win a tournament [as a team]. That would be the ultimate goal.”

In the fall, Palavivatana finished with a stroke average of 79.42 through 12 rounds of play and qualified for every tournament. She averaged 78.83 last season in 24 rounds.

Sutherland said he has great admiration for the senior women and the roles they’ve played in their careers at Sac State. Also, he remained positive about their performances and said they will be in the mix to make the traveling team for their upcoming tournaments.

“All three [Nicolette Bondura, Lexie Hall and Palavivatana] of them are capable of being really good players in our top five,” Sutherland said. “At this point, it’s going to be a performance situation with all of them. It’s the reality of it. There’s no more experience for them to gain.”

Nicolette Bondura, one of three seniors, said she doesn’t feel any added pressure to perform as she enters her final year of eligibility. She wants to remain competitive and has personal goals set for herself this spring.

“I know I’m going to have to focus a little more and work a little harder because we have more girls competing for those five travel spots,” Bondura said. “Competitively, I haven’t played as well as I hoped. I want to play in at least two more tournaments. Definitely the home tournament and I’d really like to go to conference this year.”

Bondura competed in three tournaments in the fall, which matches her career-high appearances in a season for Sac State. Her best finish came in the Fresno State Classic, where she placed 27th and averaged 83.99 in nine rounds.

The team had their first spring practice on Jan. 26 and will start their qualifier this week for the Matador Invitational, which takes place on Feb. 9-10 in Simi Valley, California.