BUFFALO TWP — In one respect, the 2011 season was a successful one for the Freeport golf team.

The Yellowjackets finished 11-3 in their section and 14-4 overall, but there was something missing — a spot in the WPIAL Division II team playoffs.

Placing third in the section behind West Shamokin and Burrell, Freeport was left out of the postseason.

“It was a great year, but it was tough not making the playoffs,” said third-year coach Joe Sprumont. “The kids are as motivated as they can be. They all played a lot of golf this summer.”

Reasons for optimism include a core of seven returning golfers, including seniors Robbie Miller, Richard VanDruff, Luke Mariotti, Steve Vento, Ryley Cowan, Greg Newman and junior Cole Hepler.

Miller has the best returning average at 40.65, but Sprumont sees promise throughout the entire program.

“We have 14 kids within five strokes of each other,” he said. “We're going to have incredible competition for the top spots.”

Freeport will begin play in Section 3, which includes Winchester Thurston, Deer Lakes, Summit Academy, St. Joseph, Northgate and Riverview.

“We don't know much about most of the teams, though Summit was in our section last year,” said Sprumont. “Our kids want to make the most of this opportunity.”

Following are preview capsules of the 14 area high school golf teams.

A-C ValleyCoach: Dave Sherman, 11th seasonHome Course: Foxburg Country Club2011 finish: The Falcons were above .500Top players back: seniors Landon Delisio, Ryan Bartley, Jackson Shook and Justice SeekerIn the mix: sophomore Ian Seaton and freshman Noah MorganSherman says: “Our numbers are a bit down this year and I don't know where things are going to play out for us.”

Butler (boys) Coach: Travis Shingleton, first seasonHome Course: Butler Country Club2011 finish: The Golden Tornado were above .500Top players back: seniors Gino Baroffio and Connor Gray; juniors Tommy Dimun and Jake CampbellIn the mix: senior Sam Weston; junior Corey Pizor; sophomore Gabe BaroffioShingleton says: “There's good camaraderie and work ethic on this team. All the potential is there, it's just a matter of putting scores together.”

Butler (girls)Coach: Sarah Zediker, seventh seasonHome Course: Hiland Golf Course2011 finish: Butler won a share of its section titleTop players back: senior Tori Hesidence; sophomore Abby DumbaughIn the mix: senior Ava Bonetti; junior Edith Anderson; sophomore Shelby Polliard; freshmen Josie Wells and Deidra AnthonyZediker says: “We graduated seven seniors, so we have a very young team. But we're optimistic that we can be competitive in our section.”

Freeport Coach: Joe Sprumont, third seasonHome Course: Buffalo Golf Course2011 finish: The Yellowjackets were 14-4 overall, but missed the playoffsTop players back: seniors Robbie Miller, Richard VanDruff, Luke Mariotti, Steve Vento, Ryley Cowan and Greg Newman; junior Cole HeplerIn the mix: freshman Audrey ClawsonSprumont says: “Our top seniors all contributed as sophomores at one point or another, so we have a lot of experience.”

Grove CityCoach: Pat Forese, 13th seasonHome Course: Grove City Country Club2011 finish: The Eagles placed in the top half of their region.Top players back: senior Ben Lucas; junior Matt GordonIn the mix: seniors Dylan Osborne, Collin Lawson and Ed Hetrick; junior Jake Cline; sophomore Jordan AndersonForese says: “If everybody plays to their potential, we have a very good shot at competing for a region title. We're in a new region this year with Slippery Rock, Oil City, Meadville and Warren.”

Karns CityCoach: Pat Preston, 12th seasonHome Course: St. Jude Golf Club2011 finish: The Gremlins were 6-5Top players back: juniors Mike Riley, Ashton McGinnis and Brad BowserIn the mix: junior Nathan Weckerly; sophomores Matt Yough and Justin Beham; freshmen Nick Dodds and Holden MartinPreston says: “We have a lot of competitive kids, but a lot of them haven't played much golf. Hopefully, we'll be better at the end of the season than at the beginning.”

KnochCoach: Rob Voltz, first season of second stintHome Course: Saxon Golf Course2011 finish: N/ATop players back: senior Stefan Carlsson; juniors Chris Kier and Austin CampbellIn the mix: senior Bill Patrick; junior Austin Miller; freshman Ben ThomaVoltz says: “I hope that our guys play to their potential and that we are competitive against the teams in our section.”

Mars (boys)Coach: Tim Tyler, 11th seasonHome Course: Rittswood Golf Course2011 finish: Mars placed second in its section and made the WPIAL Division I playoffsTop players back: seniors Alex Locher, Scott Welsh, Christian Knapp; juniors Josh Bartley and Ben Mullins; sophomore Nick HardtTyler says: “Josh (Bartley) has our top-returning average at 40. We only lost one senior from last year's team and these kids play a lot of golf.”

Mars (girls)Coach: Bill Pettigrew, ninth seasonHome Course: Rittswood Golf Course2011 finish: The Planets were second in their section and made the WPIAL playoffsTop players back: seniors Olivia Laughlin and Alexa HitchenIn the mix: freshman Bridget MertenAssistant coach Ralph Jockel says: “We moved to the other division, which includes North Allegheny, Butler, North Hills ... We're not sure how we're going to do this year.”

MoniteauCoach: Sean Morrow, fourth seasonHome Course: Shamrock Golf Course2011 finish: The Warriors did not win a matchTop players back: seniors Matt Marterella and Jared SayIn the mix: senior Aleisha Fowler and sophomore Marcus FryMorrow says: “My hope is to build the team back up to where it was a few years ago.”

Seneca Valley (boys)Coach: Steve Mayes, 24th seasonHome Course: Cranberry Highlands Golf Course2011 finish: The Raiders were third in their section and missed the playoffsTop players back: seniors Blake Miller, Mike Trotta and Brennan BenchIn the mix: sophomores Evan Hangliter and Ryan SenkaMayes says: “Our number one goal is to make the playoffs, but it's going to be a challenge. Pine-Richland and North Allegheny are always strong and they moved Central Catholic into our section this year.”

Seneca Valley (girls)Coach: Lynn Wagner, 13th seasonHome Course: Connoquenessing Country Club2011 finish: SV was below .500Top players back: senior Carrie Dillon; juniors Alex Steighner, Jessica Howard and Catie DillonIn the mix: freshmen Jessica Farra, Courtney Wahlstrom, Megan Dillon and Sarah JohanknechtWagner says: “If the girls end up being as good of golfers as they are people, they'll be really good. It's such a nice group. I think we'll get better every single match.”

Slippery RockCoach: Merle Whitmer, 28th yearHome Course: Oakview Golf Club2011 finish: The Rockets won their region for the fourth straight yearTop players back: seniors Brett Rinker, Bob Paczkowski and Levi Leonberg; junior Matt BadgerIn the mix: junior Mitchell May; sophomore Zac McCue; freshmen Sam Isacco and Collin HyattWhitmer says: “With Rinker (72.5 average) being one of the top returning players in District 10 and Paczkowski much improved over the summer, we expect to be in the discussion as a team to watch.”

UnionCoach: Ken Corle, second seasonHome Course: Clarion Oaks Golf Course2011 finish: The Golden Knights went 3-9Top players back: senior Derek Priester; juniors Trevor Corle and Shane Murphy; sophomore Zack HeplerIn the mix: freshman Hank MurphyCorle says: “Derek (Priester) is our only senior, so we have a lot of youth. But you can see that the skill level is there.”