-and-
“We’re looking for an immediate impact from both of them.”
~Women’s Golf Head Coach Danny Bowen
Source: NMSU Athletics
By Michael Navarrette
Photo: Courtesy
LAS CRUCES, N.M. – Head Women’s Golf Coach Danny Bowen announced the addition of two golfers who are set to join the program ahead of next year. This winter, Rylee Salome and Frederika Rychtarikova signed with the Aggies and will be incoming freshman in the fall of 2025.
“I think together, these two ladies will come in and boost the lineup,” said Coach Bowen. “We’re looking for an immediate impact from both of them.”
Rylee Salome
Salome comes to the Aggies by way of Tome, N.M., where she was a three-time 4A New Mexico state champion at Belen High School. As one of the top golfers in the history of the state, Salome received interest from Kansas, Illinois, Colorado State, San Diego State, UTEP and Nevada.
Currently, Salome is the No. 1 ranked high school player in the state of New Mexico according to the PGA’s National High School Golf Association player rankings. She is also listed as the 236thranked golfer among the more than 4,000 girls in the country. In May, Salome will look to become just the third female golfer in the state’s history to win four straight state high school individual titles.
Across Salome’s first three years at Belen, she has won 29 of 32 high school tournaments in New Mexico, including all 10 she competed in as a junior. As a junior, Salome posted a bogey free final round of 68 to contribute to her two-day total of 144 (76-68) – leading to a nine-stroke victory over the next-closest competitor. In 2024, she also finished third at the Notah Begay III Girls Junior National Championship qualifier.
Salome previously won the state championship by 10 strokes during her sophomore campaign as she shot four under (71-69-140) to be the lone golfer in the field to come in under par. She also won by 10 strokes as a freshman by posting a two-round total score of 145 (75-70). Salome is also currently maintaining a 4.0 GPA and plans to major in Business at New Mexico State. Her uncle Anton Salome also played collegiate golf at NM State.
Awards
Three-time NMAA 4A State Champion
Three-time National Girls Junior PGA Qualifier
USGA Girls Qualifier
Three-time Notah Begay III Girls Junior National Championship Qualifier
Three-time Albuquerque Journal Metro Player of the Year
Four-time NMAA District 5-4A Champion and player of the year
2022 New Mexico/West Texas Women’s AM Champion
Four-time Girls Junior America’s Cup Qualifier
Two-time Sun Country Women’s Player of the Year
Head Coach Danny Bowen on Salome
“We’ve known that Rylee has been an Aggie deep down for a while now. So, when she made her commitment to play for us, it was an unbelievable day. Having the top in-state talent on our roster is always a goal of ours and we’re proud that she wants to continue to represent our state and the crimson and white. We can’t wait to get to work with her here and watch her grow and compete.”
Frederika Rychtarikova
Rychtarikova will join the long list of impressive international golfers to don the Crimson and White as she makes her way to the Land of Enchantment from Sverepec, Slovakia. The Slovakian standout has recorded 19 top 10 finishes across 31 events as a junior competitor, including three individual titles.
Most recently, she secured a first-place finish at the APS Junior Tour where she shot 71-73-77 to win the event by four strokes. Earlier this year, she battled her way to a third-place finish at the Slovak Amateur Championship as she shot a three-round score of 214 to finish near the top among the 22 qualifiers.
In 2023, Rychtarikova became the Junior World Vice Champion at the Champion of Champions Tournament. In 2024, she defended her title as the Junior World Vice Champion in Spain at an event organized by the DP World Tour.
In addition to playing golf, Rychtarikova also has experience playing tennis and soccer while also participating in dancing, horse riding and skiing. She first started playing golf when she was 12 years old.
Achievements
2024 – Slovak Amateur Championship – 2nd place
2024 – Slovak Junior Championship – 1st place
2024 – World Junior Golf Championship – 2nd place
2024 – SKGA Junior Tour I – 1st place
2024 – SKGA Tour I – 2nd place
2024 – SKGA Tour II – 7th place
2024 – Slovak Clubs Championship – 4th place individual/2nd place team
2023 – Champion of Champions/World Junior Championship/Northern Ireland – 2nd
Head Coach Danny Bowen on Rychtarikova
“I’m excited to bring Frederika to NMSU. She is an emerging star on the Slovakian National Team with international experience. I know she’s going to fit in well, with her fun personality and hard-working nature. Once we get her to NM with our 300-plus days of sun, her game is going to really take off. Frederika is going to be a great Aggie.”
For complete coverage of NM State Women’s Golf, follow us on Twitter (@NMStateWGolf), Instagram (@NMStateWGolf) and Facebook (NM State Women’s Golf). You can also follow along with Aggie Women’s Golf via NMStateSports.com.
