Oswego East Student Athlete of the Week-Lauren Zalud

Four years ago Oswego East determined there was enough interest to add girl's golf as a permanent sport. The program has steadily improved, highlighted by sending former standout Kiana Krahulik to the state tournament last season. Senior Lauren Zalud is part of the first class to play all four years, and her passion and improvement in the game are why she is this week's Oswego East student-athlete of the week.

Lauren's venture into golf started with from her relationship with her grandfather, who lives out of state. Despite not seeing him often, the two bonded over the game of golf, and Lauren has not looked back since. "[Lauren's grandfather] bought Lauren her very first set of golf clubs when she started playing with the team as a freshman," said Tracy Zalud, Lauren's mother. She goes on to add, "He makes special trips to visit specifically to watch her play golf with her team, and has become one of her biggest cheerleaders."

Anyone who has taken up the sport of golf understands just how difficult the sport can be for beginners. Having only picked up the sport going into her freshman year, Lauren averaged around 70 shots per nine holes her freshman year. However, her perseverance and willingness to seek help all year round have seen her improve her score to an average of 44 strokes per 9 holes. "It is tough for girls to drastically improve over the course of one high school season," says head coach Brian Chandler. He goes on to add, "We try to build the interest of golf with the girls and encourage them to go get additional work. Lauren definitely enjoyed playing and I think her inner drive to get better really pushed her to take lessons outside of the short fall season."

Lauren admits her outside swing coach helped keep things simple. "My swing coach and I worked on 5 different steps of the swing to try and keep things simple." Golf requires the highest demand for repeatability and consistently with your swing, which is the main reason Lauren has found success and has been able to improve so much since her freshman year.

While the outside swing coach was able to help Lauren with the physical part of the game, golf requires just as much, if not more, attention to the mental aspect. One poor shot can send even the best players into a funk, and Lauren credits coach Chandler with helping her work on the mental part. "Chandler is really good at giving pep talks and reminding me after bad shots to breathe and remember that it is only one shot," says Lauren. Chandler credits Lauren with her growth in this area, saying, "This year her goal for the season was to enjoy each round and not let a few bad shots have an effect on her round as a whole. You can see on the course how relaxed she is and how fun she is having."

It is easy to be relaxed when you are having success on the course, which is exactly what the Wolves have been doing. The team is currently 4-1 overall and 3-1 in conference. Lauren has had a qualifying score in every round she has participated in, and she and her partner got first place in an alternate shot tournament at a tournament in Sandwich.

As a senior, Lauren understands it is her last year to make history and is hoping her and her teammates place high in the conference and return to sectionals. Individually, Lauren would like to end the year with a 45 average score and place individually at the conference as well as make it to sectionals as an individual.

After graduation, Lauren is keeping her options open to schools, but plans on majoring in education. Lauren has always been giving of her time, especially with children. "One of Lauren's best qualities as a person is her internal motivation to not only succeed in all that she sets out to do but also in her service to others, especially children," says Tracy. She goes on to add, "[Lauren] has spent many hours volunteering at Churchill Elementary School working with students and tutoring elementary students during the school year and over the summer."

Lauren is undecided between teaching high school science or elementary education, but her passion and production in the classroom set her up to succeed in whichever avenue she chooses. "One of Lauren's best attributes are her organizational skills," says Connor Downs, Lauren's former Honors Earth and Space teacher. He goes on to add, "[Lauren] brought a lot of outside information to me in class & has a natural wonder of the world around her. Her general curiosity about the world will lead her to be very successful in the future regardless of her field."

After four years of activities, clubs, and sports, Lauren is hopeful her senior year will be the best yet for both her and the girl's golf team. Having helped pioneer the girl's team and thriving during her first 3 years, she offers advice to future Wolves', saying, "Get involved early with something that interests you." Hopefully her leadership, and that of the other seniors will help continue to see involvement and growth in the golf program and lead to future successes.