Piper Stenzel began the 2025 high school golf season with a new and demanding challenge, choosing – like her older sister Rylee before her – to hit the links with the Seneca boys team, golfing against young men instead of other young women.

The longer distances and physically stronger male competition negated one of the greatest strengths of Piper’s game, her ability off the tee box. That made it difficult for the junior to consistently post counting scores for the Fighting Irish boys.

It also, she believes, made her better when she rejoined her female teammates with the season already underway.

“Once I switched back, I realized [playing with the boys team to start the season] really helped me play better,” said Stenzel, now a two-time Times Girls Golfer of the Year, winning the award in both 2023 and 2025.

As good as her driver proved to be – a constant, game-changing advantage – upon her return to the closer tees of the girls game, it’s not what she would define as the strongest part of her skill set out on the course.

“Most people will say certain clubs, but what makes me good is my mentality,” Stenzel said. “If I have a bad mentality, I’ll play bad, but if it’s good, I know I’m going to play well that day. ...

“When I’m competitive, I feel like it pushes me to be better. And when I do get beat by other girls, it makes me really emotional. I feel it a lot, and I kind of carry that into my next match. I shouldn’t, but I do anyway, and I feel like that makes me even more competitive and wanting to do even better in my next match.”

Seneca coach Bryan Erickson has noticed.

“She’s a competitor for sure,” he said. “She wants to beat people. She wants to win – win conference, win regionals. She’s just a competitor ... and I would love to see her be the first one [in Seneca High School history] to medal down at state."

It seems the logical next step and a fitting end to what has already been a decorated prep career for Stenzel.

She finished tied for 56th at this past fall’s IHSA Class 1A State Finals with an 88-90—178 after a third-place showing at the 1A Pontiac Sectional. Prior to that, she and teammate Camryn Stecken – who ably filled the ace role while Stenzel was on the boys team and was a welcome close competitor on the female Fighting Irish scorecard when she returned – tied after 18 holes for the Tri-County Conference championship.

While “tied for 56th” wasn’t exactly the junior-year finale Stenzel was hoping for, it should be mentioned that just by making it to the IHSA State Finals, she extended a school record she already held. It’s one she’ll look to take to the maximum next fall.

“You know, before her, anyone [at Seneca High School] who had qualified for state had only ever qualified one time,” Erickson said. “She did it a second and now a third time, and she’s got a really good chance to do it a fourth time and really shatter that record. She seems to get things together at the right time and start playing well at the end of the year, just like you need to. ...

“We’ve never had an individual medal down at state. I would hope that’s on her radar.”

“It feels great,” Stenzel said of being 3-for-3 qualifying for the final weekend of Illinois high school golf. “It makes me feel really confident going into next year, and it puts a little pressure on me to make it there the fourth year. But I’m pretty confident I can do it.”

To get there – and to realize her hopes of moving on to play the game at a high level collegiately – Stenzel has a full offseason planned that includes private lessons, winter tournaments and camps and a pair of goals to strive toward.

“Get my average lower. I know this year I had an average of 43-something, and I want to get that to 41 or under,” she said. “And I definitely want to have a better placing at state next year.”