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The 2013 IHSA Boys & Girls Golf State Final Tournaments will unfold in the Bloomington-Normal and Decatur areas, respectively, on Friday and Saturday, October 18-19.
GIRLS GOLF PREVIEW
 Red Tail Run Golf Course will serve as the host of the Class A State Finals, while the Class AA tourney will unfold at Hickory Pont Golf Club. The 2013 season marks the 39th annual IHSA Girls Golf State Finals and the seventh year of the two-class system, while Red Tail Run and Hickory Point are each in their third year of hosting.
CLASS A
Massac County and Rochester entered Saturday of the 2012 state tournament tied atop the team standings. Thus, it was ironic that after rain and lightning delays early on Saturday, with its location 10 miles north of Hickory Point, the course managed to dodge the storm cell that would end the Class AA tourney prematurely. Massac County managed to hold off Rochester that Saturday, using a four-shot advantage (665-669) to win its third state title since 2006. The 2013 edition should be closely contested once again, as four of the Top 5 finishers from last year are back again.
That list begins with the defending champs, who lost their top player from a year ago to graduation, but still return experienced golfers in senior Ali Eickholz and junior Paige Ellerbusch. Eichkholz tied for tenth individually a year ago with a score of 160, while Ellerbusch led the team in the Sectional this season with an 81.
Rochester returns the catalyst of its 2012 team in sophomore Morgan Savage, whose 165 at state last year was good for a Top 20 finish. Savage has added individual medalist honors at Regionals (74) and Sectionals (73) this season as well.
Fellow Top 5 finishers from a year ago, Nashville (4th, 683) and Eldorado (5th, 698) also return a wealth of talent and experience. Nashville’s top three scorers from last season are back, including senior Shawn Rennegarbe, who placed second in the state last year with a 145. Rennegarbe was a starter on the Hornettes 2013 state champion basketball team and will look to add team and individual state titles in golf this weekend. Meanwhile, Eldorado is paced by the twin sister act of Taylor and Ashton Goodley. Both placed in the Top 10 individually a year ago as sophomores, as Ashton’s 149 was good for third-place and Taylor finished sixth with a 156.
Sabrina Bonanno, a senior from Ridgewood, returns in 2013 as an individual qualifier to defend her state title. Bonanno carded a 142 (73-69) to win medalist honors last year and can become the seventh back-to-back individual champion and 11th player in state history to finish first individually twice in their career. Others who have their sights set on Bonanno’s prize include Sectional champion and Mt. Zion junior Ashley Miller (76), Monmouth United senior Justine Peel (74), Quincy Notre Dame senior Lucy Clark (80), F.W. Parker senior McKenzie Rome (81) and Cuba junior Lexi Petersen (82).
Class AA
New Trier added to its resume as the most successful girl’s program in the state since the turn of the century in 2012, as the Trevians won their third team title in three years and sixth since 2000. New Trier welcomes back two key contributors from a year ago, including junior Lois Suh, who led the Trevians in this year’s Sectional round (76).
Prospect finished five shots behind New Trier (387-392) to place second a year ago and is loaded for bear in 2013. The Knights return all six players from their state final roster, including seniors Noreen Caporusso and Ally Scaccia. Caporusso tied for ninth-place at the state tourney last year (77), while Scaccia paced the team in the Regional (70) and Sectional (73) rounds this season.
Sacred Heart Griffin was just nine shots off the pace when it placed third last year and the Cyclones could close that gap even further with four experienced players returning in 2013, including senior Hayley Reed, who tied for 23rd overall last year with a score of 80.
Hinsdale Central hopes to add its second state title to the trophy case this weekend. The Red Devils return three golfers from last year’s fourth-place finisher, but the bigger story is the emergence of a pair of freshman (Jessica Lee, Selina Zeng) who shot 75 or better at Sectionals.
The first- and second-place individual finishers in 2012 were both seniors, which opens the door for Neuqua Valley’s Jessica Yuen. Yuen carded a 72 to place third last year as a freshman and has qualified individually again this year, but will have a host of challengers, including Waubonsie Valley junior Bing Singhsumalee, who was 16th in the state in 2012 and edged Yuen by a stroke at Sectionals this week.
Loyola senior Isabella Kane (72), Sandburg junior Frankie Saban (69) and Edwardsville senior Emilee Flaugher (76) have all led their teams to the state finals, and will be individual contenders as well, after winning Sectional medalist honors this season. Zion-Benton senior Morgan Kukla and Pekin junior Madison Hill are other individual qualifiers to watch following Top 25 individual finishes in the state tournament in 2012.
BOYS GOLF PREVIEW
 The Prairie Vista Golf Course in Bloomington will serve as the Class 1A host, while Illinois State University’s Weibring Golf Club in Normal and Bloomington’s The Den At Fox Creek Golf Course welcome the Class 2A and Class 3A fields, respectively. Prairie Vista is serving as an IHSA state final host for the 21st time, The Den for the 16th year and Weibring for the seventh time. The 2013 season marks the 97th annual IHSA Boys Golf State Finals and the sixth year of the three-class system. The champions from all three classes were determined based upon Friday’s 18-hole rounds in 2012, as Saturday was unable to be completed due to storms in the area.
Class 1A
The team field was incredibly closely matched in 2012, as 39 strokes separated the first-place team from the 12th place team after 18 holes, and things could be even tighter in 2013 when eight of those 12 squads return.
Two-time defending state champion North Shore Country Day is among that group and can match Normal University (2A) as the second team to achieve a threepeat in the three-class area, as well as the first in Class 1A. Defending individual champion Nick McCall has graduated, but the Raiders do return junior Andrew Blechman, who shot an 80 at state last year and won individual honors in the Sectional round with a 74 in 2013.
El Paso-Gridley finished 11 shots behind Country Day a year ago to place second and will be a threat for the crown again with its top three players from 2012 returning. That trio includes twin brothers Branden and Michael Mounce, who fired identical 73’s to pace their squad to the Sectional team title.
Last year’s third-place finisher Byron has no lack of experience either, as the Tigers are led by junior Dennis Reedy, one of four Byron golfers who shot in the 70’s during Sectional play this week. Nashville, who was sixth in 2012, could be poised to break into the Top 5 this season, as senior Jordan Harre (78 at Sectionals) paces a group that has four returnees with state final experience.
Hamilton County junior Landon Vaughan is the top individual returnee, as he placed second a year ago with a 71 and collected an individual Sectional (74) crown this week. Carterville sophomore Jacob Eklund and Eureka junior Trevor Gold both return as well after tying for fourth last year with scores of 74, while Bismarck-Henning senior Andy Bott (71, Sectional champ) has guided his team to the tourney in 2013.
Class 2A
The Class 2A team field has the rare distinction of having just one of twelve qualifying teams from a year ago returning to the tournament in 2013. That squad, Glenbard South (6th in 2012), is young and talented again with sophomores Russell Matos (74, Sectional champ) and Christopher Dufort (68, Regional champ) leading the way.
No Class 2A team in the state shot a better Sectional round (305) in 2013 than Dunlap and senior Matt Lavery, who tied for second individually at state a year ago with an 18-hole score of 73. The Eagles had four players shoot in the 70’s in the Sectional round, but were matched by Pontiac, who equaled that total behind a senior laden group that includes Trent Smith (75 at Sectionals).
Boylan Catholic and Centralia are also teams to watch entering the weekend after the Titans and Orphans captured their respective Regional and Sectional team titles earlier this month. Centralia is paced by sophomore Jace Swartzlander (72 at Sectionals), while Boylan’s top player at Sectionals was junior Kyle Slattery (74).
Not surprisingly, the slew of new teams in Class 2A equates to most of the individual leaderboard from 2012 turning over as well. Aside from Lavery, Murphysboro senior Kody Rendlemen (T12th with 77) and Pontiac senior Eric Raube (T17 with 78) are the lone Top 20 finishers returning from last season. A trio of individual qualifiers enter with the momentum of winning medalist honors at their respective Sectionals, as Lanphier junior Nick Patton (70), Dixon senior Ryan Dixon (71) and Limestone senior Dan Bredernitz (72) are expected to contend for medalist honors this weekend.
Class 3A
Four of the top six teams from a year ago will be back competing for the Class 3A team title again in 2013, including defending champion Hinsdale Central, who won its fourth overall championship and first since 1960 (then Hinsdale Township) last year. The Red Devils have plenty of talent returning, as junior Brian Dolehide, the team’s top scorer at the state finals in 2012 (T5th, 74), is one of three scoring players returning from the title team.
Perhaps no team poises a greater threat to Hinsdale Central’s repeat hopes than Glenbrook North and Quincy, who placed fifth and sixth, respectively, last season. Glenbrook North is led by the senior combination of Brian Ohr and Nick Hardy, who both fired 75’s on Friday at state last season. This season, Hardy tallied a 65 at Regionals and a 66 at Sectionals, both of which were the best scores in the state for each round for all classes this year.
Quincy features a senior-laden group that has five players with state final experience, including three of its top four scorers from a year ago. Leading that group is senior Zach Burry, who tied for fifth individually last season with a score of 74. Deerfield will also be a factor in the team race behind the return of senior Ian Kelsey, who tied with New Trier senior Jack Junge for individual medalist honors a year ago after both carded 71 on Friday.
Individual qualifier Conor Dore, a senior at Whitney Young, also returns after finishing in a tie for ninth-place on the individual leaderboard last year with a score of 75. Providence freshman Ricky Costello (73 at Sectionals) enters with momentum after winning an individual Sectional crown last week, as do Prospect senior Josh Johnson (71) and Wheaton Warrenville South junior Will Kelly (70), whose performances helped propel their teams to the state finals.
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SITES
Girls Golf
Class A-Red Tail Run Golf Course (Decatur)
Par 72 (36-36)
Red Tees
5,394 yards
Class AA-Hickory Point Golf Club (Decatur)
Par 72 (36-36)
Red Tees
5,799 yards
Boys Golf
Class 1A-Prairie Vista Golf Club (Bloomington)
Par 72 (36-36)
Blue Tees
6,737 yards
Class 2A-Illinois State University's Weibring Golf Club (Normal)
Par 71 (36-35)
White Tees
6,447 yards
Class 3A-The Den At Fox Creek Golf Course (Bloomington)
Par 72 (36-36)
Blue Tees
6,422 yards
SCHEDULE
Tee times begin at 8:30 a.m. on Friday & Saturday for all courses and classes.
Girls Tee Times
Boys Tee Times
LIVE LEADERBOARD
Boys & Girls Leaderboard
TICKETS
There is no charge for admission at this event
BROADCAST
A highlight package from each course will be posted on www.IHSA.tv in the days that follow the tournaments.
MEDIA
Twitter Coverage: @IHSAState #IHSA
Boys Facebook Page
Girls Facebook Page
Photos
Video Highlights
HISTORY & RECORDS
Girls 2013 State Series
Girls Record Book & Past Champions
Boys 2013 State Series
Boys Record Book & Past Champions
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