The Bonney Lake High golfers are hoping for a breakout season under coaches J.D. Rushton and Sharon Lovinger.

The Panther girls’ success will hinge on the play of four returning seniors. Two of the seniors – Tracy Hare and Courtney Bartlett – reached the state tournament last season, while Ali Ronnfeldt and Brooke Winans just missed out on a state berth.

Lovinger believes Hare and Bartlett gained valuable experience at the state tournament which could help them in 2009.

“We should have a pretty good team and we’ll be competitive,” Lovinger said. “We have a good group of young players who are really working hard.”

Joining the senior foursome are six sophomores and a pair of freshmen. Sophomore players are Kellsey Bledsoe, Megan Charron, Ashley Coubra, Yoselyn Leos, Kaitlin Punkett and Emily Stephenson. The freshmen are Anna Babbitt and Whitney Wilcox.

The boys’ team lost four talented seniors to graduation.

“We going to be a young team and it’s a rebuilding year for us,” said Rushton, a two-time all-American golfer at Western Washington. “We’re going to have our struggles, but they love playing and they have enthusiasm for the game.”

Returning are seniors Bryan Duckett, Nick Bendon and Aaron Carr, along with junior Justin Ellis.

Rushton said Carr was a surprise because he filed for a hardship case after a year in China.

“I can count on those guys to get between 10 and 15 points each game for us,” Rushton said.

There is a group of underclassmen fighting for the last two varsity spots, he added.

Both Lovinger and Rushton believe Enumclaw and Peninsula are the South Puget Sound League 3A’s top contenders.

After the October district tournament, the golfers will have wait until May to compete in the 3A state tournament in Richland, Wash.

Bonney Lake opens its season against Clover Park Sept. 10 in Lakewood.