When Haley Rotchford was a sophomore at Lakeland High in Rathdrum, she was going to walk away from high school golf because none of her close friends were playing the sport alongside her.

Then - with a little help from Lakeland coach Mario Maddy - the recruiting of Megan Cysewski began.

The rest, well, is history.

Cysewski, who at the time played club volleyball during the spring, didn't have time for varsity spring sports.

"It kind of took a lot of convincing," Cysewski said. "I really didn't want to play golf. I was still playing club volleyball and just really busy with school at that time. But she and coach Maddy said that if you don't like it, you don't have to play."

Rotchford - now a senior and a four-year varsity player - planned to quit.

"I wasn't going to play because I didn't have anyone else on the team," Rotchford said. "Just because she's my best friend, I didn't want to play if she wasn't going to play. We really had to pressure her into it, but she ended up enjoying it and liking it."

"I started to feel bad and didn't want her to quit," said Cysewski, a senior. "But then I started to like golfing."

"At that point, we were just trying to get numbers," Maddy said. "We had a few seniors, but really didn't have the depth that we have now. Once we got those two ladies, it almost became contagious to golf. Now we've got nine kids that can play at a varsity level. It was just the start of when we were getting girls interested in golfing here."

Following graduation, both Cysewski and Rotchford will continue their playing careers at the Community Colleges of Spokane after signing with the school in January.

It wasn't until the end of that first season that Cysewski started to enjoy the sport.

"We made it to state at the end of our sophomore year," Cysewski said. "When we did that, I was like, 'wow.' But in each tournament before that I was in tears because I was finishing last. Districts rolled around, and we got first, and I thought, 'maybe this can be fun.'"

Rotchford added she's glad that she didn't quit.

"I've been on varsity all four years now and definitely since we're going to college to play it now, I'm glad I didn't give up on it," Rotchford said. "Now I've got an in to college with a scholarship. If someone would have told me that it was possible for me to get a golf scholarship, I probably would have laughed in their face."

While they've know each other since middle school, they didn't become best friends until their freshman year of high school when they started playing volleyball.

"We'd played a lot of sports with each other in high school," Cysewski said. "But our friendship kind of changed and we merged into the same groups in school as freshmen and have been inseparable ever since."

Cysewski was also interested in attending the University of Great Falls, but wanted to remain close to home.

"I talked to a few other schools, but financial wise, Spokane was the best decision money-wise," Cysewski said. "I was thinking about going to Great Falls, and thought about going there for a year for $40,000 or to Spokane at $2,000 and it made more sense to stay here."

"I was talking to Multnomah University in (Portland) Oregon, but it was kind of the same thing for me," Rotchford said. "They weren't offering much money, and it was super expensive to go there, and I really didn't want to do that. I talked to someone from a school in Montana also, but they weren't offering much either, and I'd like to get out of school debt free."

And both will head where they're wanted - Spokane.

"(Community Colleges of Spokane coach) Christie (Dalsanders) really wanted us to come there," Rotchford said. "She really wasn't going to take no for an answer and let us go."

Cysewski will attend Spokane Community College, while Rotchford will do her studies at Spokane Falls. Students from both schools combine for one athletic program.

"I'm going to get my associates degrees and take some intro classes in stuff I like where it goes from there," Cysewski said.

"I'm trying to get into the sonography program, which is doing ultrasounds," Rotchford said. "I'm really interested in stuff like that and hopefully get my A.A. degree. If I don't get into the program, I'll just finish my A.A. and move on to another program."

To improve her game, Cysewski has taken lessons from Darrell Hull, head professional at The Links Golf Course in Post Falls.

"She's probably the quickest learner of the game I've had in my 30 years of teaching," Hull said. "When she started, she was shooting in the 150s, and now she's down to an 89, with 45 putts (per round). An average player is going to have 30. If she cut those down, she'd be an unbelievable player. It's impressive and she's like a sponge. You start teaching her and she wants more, more and more."

Hull also has seen the same in Rotchford.

"She's a natural talent," Hull said of Rotchford. "She doesn't have to work at it as hard, but is as good at what she does. She doesn't make bad decisions. Spokane is getting two very quality people - and golfers as well."

In addition to golf, both played on the Lakeland volleyball team. Cysewski was also a manager for the football team, and Rotchford played basketball.

"I had some interest to go play volleyball in Utah, but it wasn't something I was going to pursue," Rotchford said. "When you golf, you can do it when you're older. And with golf, you can go out and play anytime and go play with your family."

For Rotchford, playing the game is a joy.

"I love the mentality of golf," Rotchford said. "It kind of makes your mental game improve because it's all on you. It's a game where you either do good, or don't. It's a brain game, and really challenging, but I like it a lot. Some days you're on, and some days you're off."

"It's really all on you out there," Cysewski said. "If the person next to you shanks a pass during volleyball, it's their fault. But if you shank a ball, it's all your fault. It's all on you."

Lakeland returned three seniors - Rotchford, Cysewski and Sierra Tingey - along with sophomore Monica Higbee, from last year's team that finished sixth at the state 4A tournament at Twin Falls Municipal Golf Course.

"Our depth is crazy," Cysewski said. "We've got the three seniors that have been putting in the work together, along with Hanna (Gagnier) and Monica, and JV players pushing for those spots. It's going to make our program good for years to come."

Tingey is also receiving college interest, Maddy added.

Rotchford and Cysewski said they've learned how to lead from former Lakeland High standout Chelsea Bayley, now a junior on the golf team at Whitworth.

"I was kind of afraid of her at first because she was so good," Rotchford said. "But she was really nice to us and helped us a lot and told us what we needed to do to be successful."

Cysewski works with Bayley at The Links during the summer.

"I get to play a lot of golf with her during the summer," Cysewski said. "She's always there for me, always encouraging me. Even though she was way better than me, she'd keep playing with me. Now, I can actually keep up with her and I'm not that far behind her. Being around them (Chelsea and her brother Derek Bayley, who is a freshman on the golf team at Washington State), and them knowing so much about the game, you can learn a lot just being around them."

Rotchford and Cysewski both said they want to get into coaching when the time is right.

Cysewski said she has learned a lot from Hull about the game of golf in just a short time.

"I get to sit in a lot of lessons he does," Cysewski said. "Just the way he teaches kids and older people, it's amazing. I hope to someday get that kind of experience."

One final experience they're hoping to share is advancing to the state tournament.

Even better, the state 4A tourney will be played at The Links - Lakeland's home course.

"I think that, personally, it lifts a huge weight off my shoulders because I play that course all the time," Cysewski said. "Hopefully if and when we make it, I won't be as nervous and my emotions will be low so I can focus on playing at my best."

"We play that course each day," Rotchford said. "Not having to travel, it's a different feeling when you step out on a familiar course. We'd be in a place we're comfortable with and hopefully we'll have some people that will come out and watch."