Becky Quinby came to Iowa with less golf experience than fellow senior Tyrette Metzendorf. But as four years have passed, the two are vying for Iowa’s top spot and getting ready to pass on the pearls.

With the Big Ten championships looming this weekend, each realizes the growth they have experienced through being a Hawkeye golfer.

“[Becky] has continued to improve her game every year, and I am proud of her for that,” Metzendorf said. “We’ve been really good friends since freshman year and just want everyone on the team to play her best.”

The two met through a current roommate freshman year, although their dynamics are quite different. Assistant coach Adam Kaufman said Metzendorf has always been “quiet and gone about her business,” and Quinby is a “chatterbox,” lightening up the mood with her humor.

“We live together, so we do typical roommate activities,” Metzendorf said. “The competition between us is friendly.”

Both Kaufman and head coach Kelly Crawford have been amazed by the growth of Quinby — with Metzendorf right at her side to be a leader and mentor — although the two are vying for the team’s top spot.

“I have always believed in Becky’s ability. She just needed to believe in herself,” Crawford said after Quinby placed first for the Hawkeyes at the Indiana University Invitational on April 7. “I am so happy for her that she is playing her best golf her senior year.”

Metzendorf has been a consistent star for the Iowa women’s golf team, competing in more than 100 rounds of golf as a Hawkeye. Quinby, on the other hand, struggled with consistency last season and back in the fall, but she has since found her stroke.

At the Eagle Landing Invitational on March 10, Metzendorf led Iowa to a 12th-place finish.

“It was really cool that we both got it as seniors on the same week,” Quinby said. “It was rewarding and shows how much we’ve grown as golfers over our time at Iowa.”

Two weeks later at the Indiana Invitational, Quinby broke out and finished tied for 14th individually — tops for Iowa. However, Metzendorf bounced back to finish in Iowa’s top spot at the Lady Buckeye Spring Invitational this past weekend.

While the two have improved, they have also been a large part of the team’s growth, albeit for only one year for some.

“I’d like to take the leadership they’ve taught us and apply it next year for the incoming freshmen,” freshman Chelsea Harris said. “The incoming freshmen are talented, but we could never replace Tyrette and Becky.”

Not only has it been the example the two have set off the links, but their drive for a positive work ethic has left a mark.

“They show the drive to be the best they can,” sophomore Laura Cilek said. “We all have seen from them the work ethic it takes to work your way to the top spots on the team.”

The seniors have lived together for the past three years, enjoying programs like “Gossip Girl,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” and “Private Practice.” As their friendship and performing abilities have grown through the team, Quinby knows their experience together has been special and they don’t plan on that changing.

“Be it at a football game, alumni activities, or on the beach in Florida, our paths will cross throughout life,” Quinby said.