25th Mid-Atlantic Girls’ Challenge Matches Maryland members (L-R): Malaya Johnson, Caitlyn Navaleza, Madeline Navaleza, Claire Son
Lutherville, Md. – The 25th Mid-Atlantic Girls’ Challenge Matches, an annual competition where the top juniors from Maryland and Virginia take on the best junior girls from North Carolina and South Carolina, is gearing up to take place at Golden Horseshoe Golf Club in Williamsburg, Va., from August 7-9.
The competition will take place across two days, beginning with four-ball match play and concluding with singles matches. Each match offers an opportunity to earn points, with a total of twelve points available over the course of the tournament.
The team is invite-only, and all participating junior girls must be aged 18 or younger and have not yet begun college to remain eligible to compete. The Maryland State Golf Association is sending four girls to represent the Association at the 25th rendition of the challenge: Malaya Johnson of Youth on Course Maryland, Caitlyn Navaleza of Hayfields Country Club, Madeline Navaleza of Hayfields Country Club, and Claire Son of the MSGA eClub.
Malaya Johnson has been playing golf for the past 10 years, after her first round, while living in Geneva, Switzerland. Currently preparing to make her Mid-Atlantic Girls’ Challenge debut, Johnson currently plays on her high school’s varsity golf team, where she continues to improve her game and compete at state and district levels.
Caitlyn Navaleza has played competitive golf for the past 11 years and is a recent graduate of Bryn Mawr School. During her time at Bryn Mawr, she served as captain of the varsity golf team and captured both the individual conference title and the team championship. Navaleza is heading into her second and final appearance at the MAC Challenge, just after winning the First Flight bracket at the 105th Maryland Women’s Amateur. She will begin the next chapter of her golf career at Hamilton College this fall.
Madeline Navaleza has been playing golf since the age of six and is gearing up to make her Mid-Atlantic Girls’ Challenge debut this year. A standout member of her high school’s varsity golf team, she has earned All-Conference honors and helped lead her team to conference championships during both her freshman and sophomore seasons. Most recently, Navaleza advanced to the Round of 16 at the Maryland Women’s Amateur.
Claire Son has been playing golf since the age of nine and has consistently competed in tournaments hosted by the American Junior Golf Association, Middle Atlantic PGA Section, and the MSGA. This fall, she will begin her senior year at Urbana High School, where she has been a three-year member of the varsity golf team. Throughout her high school career, Son has earned Player of the Year honors, won the Frederick County Girls’ Championship and the 3A-4A District 1 Girls’ Championship, and finished fourth at the state championship.
MSGA Mission
To serve, grow, and advance the game of golf in Maryland and the District of Columbia.
