WASHINGTON, Pa. – The Washington & Jefferson College women's golf team returns for the 2025-26 season after coming up just shy of a Presidents' Athletic Conference Championship. Continuing their streak of finishing as the runner-up since the 2018-19 season, W&J will look to compete again for their first conference championship since 2016.
 
The fall season opens on September 6 at the Thiel Fall Invitational in Sharon, Pa.
 
Head Coach Matt Kluck spoke on the consistent success the women's golf program has showed over his tenure: "The team has had a lot of success in winning tournaments and individual titles. The one thing that keeps alluding us is the conference championship which is the ultimate goal. The woman that comprise the team do not need a lot of motivation to excel at a high level. They bring that with them when they come to Washington & Jefferson College."
 
2024-25 Season Review: W&J got off to a hot start through the opening invitationals, finishing top four as a team in all of their fall regular season invitationals at the Thiel Fall Invitational (2^nd of 8), the Guy and Jeanne Kuhn Invitational (3^rd of 9) and the JCU Fall Invitational (4^th of 11).
 
At the fall portion of the PAC Championships, W&J placed three golfers in the top eight and held second place as a team (683). The Presidents were led by Julia Barthelemy (Crescent, Pa./Moon Area) who finished first place with a total two-day score of 163. Barthelemy is the first W&J golfer to be in the top spot on the Fall leaderboard since Kaitlyn Vogel in the fall of 2017. Megan Joyce (Uniontown, Pa./Laurel Highlands) was the Presidents' second-best finisher after the fall rounds with a total score of 167 to finish fourth. MacKenzie Schmeltz (Edwardsburg, Mich./Saint Joseph) wrapped the fall rounds in a tie for eighth place, posting a total score of 174.
 
"Julia has a terrific game, specially around the greens. She chips the ball well and is a terrific putter," said Kluck. "Her golf swing produces really good golf shots and some work on her metal game will really work wonders for more consistent scoring."
 
The Presidents got back to action in the spring with a third-place team finish at the Pioneer Classic hosted by Marietta. Following the spring opener, W&J went on to win two straight invitationals at the Pennsylvania Classic (1^st of 10) hosted at Division I Penn State Main Campus and at the Presidents annual home Peter C. Rossin Memorial Invitational (1^st of 7).
 
At the close of the spring portion of the PAC Championships, W&J fell just short of another PAC Championship, finishing as the runner up. The Presidents still managed an impressive showing, placing three of their six golfers in the top five.
 
Megan Joyce (Uniontown, Pa./Laurel Highlands) finished as the runner up for the second consecutive season with a total score of 330 followed by MacKenzie Schmeltz (Edwardsburg, Mich./Saint Joseph) who finished just behind her teammate in third with a score of 334. Both attained All-PAC First Team Honors.
 
"MacKenzie has really started to shine as a player," replied Kluck. "She won a tournament and has consistently been in the top 10. I think she has improved more over the last three years anyone else on the team during that time."
 
Barthelemy slid in a tie for fourth place after her standout fall performance with a score of 336 to earn All-PAC First Team honors as well. Dinah Bailey (Baden, Pa./Ambridge) and Antolena Damico (Irwin, Pa./Penn Trafford) finished 11^th and in a tie for 12^th, respectively. Both golfers rounded out W&J's All-PAC representation with Honorable Mention selections.
 
"The team placed three of the top five on the all-conference team during the conference championship. The team will need to have better performance from the fourth and fifth spots in the lineup in order to claim the conference championship," said Kluck. "The ability for the team to score during crunch time was tested many times last season which resulted in a couple of tournament wins. The addition of a seasoned tournament competitor coming in as a freshman will promote more competition through the entire year and push the team to play better."
 
Returners: Megan Joyce (Uniontown, Pa./Laurel Highlands), MacKenzie Schmeltz (Edwardsburg, Mich./Saint Joseph) and Lauren Tekely (Glendale, W.Va./John Marshall) all return for their senior seasons for the Presidents. Each look to continue building upon their past seasons as consistent members and contributors in the lineup.
 
"I think Megan would reiterate this statement. I think she won't settle for anything less than winning the championship," replied Kluck. "The biggest challenge will be to have everyone's game hitting on all cylinders going into the tournament."
 
The Presidents will also welcome back two juniors and one sophomore. Julia Barthelemy (Crescent, Pa./Moon Area) and Abby Tikey return to the lineup looking to continue their contributions to the lineup.
 
"Julia had to take a year off from competition due to injuries. Getting back into competition and being able to handle the rigors of being in the lead, needs to be experienced often to succeed," said Kluck. "Now that Julia has that year of competition under her belt, I believe she will be able to handle success and perform at higher level. She most definitely has the ability to put forth better scores."
 
Antolena Damico (Irwin, Pa./Penn Trafford) returns as the sole sophomore this fall in hopes to make another appearance in the conference tournament.
 
"Antolena has a terrific amount of upside potential. I believe that she will realize a lot of that potential after getting her freshman year on her belt," stated Kluck. "It is very difficult to balance the student-athlete aspect of college golf due to so much time being involved when you practice the most time-consuming sport in the NCAA."
 
Newcomers: W&J welcomes one new freshman into the fold this coming season in Brooke Vowcheck (Peters Township, Pa./Peters Township).
 
"Brooke Vowcheck (Peters Township, Pa./Peters Township) is a very accomplished competitive golfer," stated Kluck. "Her high school background includes high finishes individually in the PA state championships as well as PIAA team championships at Peter's Township. It was a surprise me to see Brooke be the conference newcomer of the year."
 
Looking At The Schedule: Three competitions are on the horizon this fall on the road to the PAC Championships in Warren, Ohio on October 13-14. W&J will kick off their 2025-26 season at the Thiel Fall Invitational on Saturday (Sept. 6).
 
The Presidents will then travel to the following contests: Heidelberg Invitational (Sept. 12-13), Franciscan Fall Invitational (Sept. 27) and the Beaver Fall Classic (Oct. 4-5) in preparation for the PAC Championships.
 
Final Words from Kluck: " I am looking forward to a great year with the women's team. I think they can play at a higher level than any team that has ever been a part of WJ golf. I would like for every one of them to be able to say they are part of a conference championship team on their resume."