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The 2017 IHSA Girls & Boys Golf State Finals will unfold on Friday and Saturday, October 13-14, in Decatur and Bloomington-Normal respectively, with each competitor playing 18 holes each day.
A brief preview on each tournament is provided below:
BOYS CLASS 1A
Not only will Class 1A have a new state champ in 2017, but all three trophy teams from a year ago won’t be back, making the field even more wide-open. That group of contenders starts with Hillsboro and Monticello, who tied for fourth a year ago. Hillsboro welcomes back a Top 10 individual player in sophomore Alex Eickhoff (T7th, 154 at 2016 state finals), while the Sages are led by senior Noah Wright (T17, 160). Bismarck-Henning-Rossville-Alvin (6th) and Putnam County (7th) both could be poised to improve on last year’s Top 10 team finishes and enter the trophy conservation this weekend. Both teams welcome back their top finisher from last season, with senior Sectional medalist Hunter Keith (T23rd, 162) pacing BHRA and sophomore Ian Roach (T39th, 169) leading Putnam County. Led by senior Sectional champ Blake Golden (72), Mt. Carmel captured its team Sectional title with a score of 310. Golden tied for 13th individually (156) in 2016. Riverdale tallied the best team Sectional score in Class 1A this year, as the Rams scored an even 300 behind Top 10 2016 finishers Tyler Bussert (2nd, 148) and Anthony Ruthey (T9th, 155). Illiana Christian (308) and Cambridge (326) captured the remaining team Sectional titles. Cambridge features freshman Thomas Bumann (76), while Illiana has the junior triplet trio of Lawton (73), Seth (76), and Kade Bouwer (78) leading the way. Winnebago sophomore Marcus Smith (68) and Beardstown junior Chase Piehler (72) were both individual Sectional winners this season, as Smith placed sixth at state last year with a 153. Fellow Top 10 finishers Jason Miller of Peoria Christian (T7th, 154) and Alex Staver (T9, 155) of Stockton will also be names to follow on the individual leaderboard once again.
BOYS CLASS 2A
The Class 2A field was extremely tight in 2016, as just 15 strokes separated state champ Normal UHIGH from fifth-place Morton. UHIGH captured its 10th state title a year ago by six strokes, and the chance to repeat exists with the return of seniors Dallas Koth (T2, 148 at 2016 state finals) and Tony Palumbo (T21, 155), who both finished in Top 25 in the state in 2016. The Pioneers will once again be pushed by Vernon Hills (3rd in 2016), who is led by senior Brian Favia, and Morton (5th in 2016). Morton features senior Tommy Kuhl (T4th, 149), who was a key kog on the Potters back-to-back title teams in 2014 and 2015. Neither Charleston (307) nor Prairie Ridge (318) has ever won a state trophy in boys’ golf, but both enter the weekend with the momentum of Sectional team titles. Junior Keegan Gowin (72) and senior Cameron Karney (74) paced the Trojans and Wolves, respectively, in Sectional play. Conference foes JCA and St. Viator are both in the team field, and both feature a Top 10 individual returnee from last year’s state tourney. St. Viator junior Timmy Crawford was seventh last year (150), while Hilltopper senior Jake Pluth tied for 8th (152). Wheaton St. Francis features defending individual state champion Luke Ambrust (147), who shot a 69 in Sectional play to help the Spartans to the best Sectional team score in the class (298). Champaign Central sophomore Justin McCoy scored a 67 at Sectionals this season to win medalist honors, while also helping the Maroons to the team crown with a score of 302. Three names expected to be on the individual leaderboard again are Bloomington Central Catholic junior Parker Wisdom (T4th, 149), Centralia senior Caleb Urshan (T11th, 153) and Mattoon senior Nicholas Nguyen (T11th, 153). Mt. Vernon senior Zach Williams (70) and Sterling senior Nick Ceruzzi (71) rounded out the individual Sectional champs in 2A.
BOYS CLASS 3A
Hinsdale Central continued its historic run a year ago, capturing its fifth consecutive Class 3A team state title. The Red Devils now look to match Monmouth’s run of six titles in a row from 1985-90 (in Class A) and a step closer to Normal UHIGH’s seven straight from 2003-09 (multiple classes). They have the firepower to do so with the return of junior Josh Lundmark (11th with 151 at 2016 state finals), who helped Hinsdale Central to a Sectional team title this week (297). Many familiar names will be chasing the Red Devils, starting with New Trier, Loyola Academy and Edwardsville. New Trier has been runner-up the past four seasons, but the senior tandem of Will Nummy (T21st, 154) and Michael Tanaka (T23rd, 155), both Top 25 finishers last year, hope to hoist the big trophy in 2017. Fifth a year ago, the Ramblers are searching for their first state title since 2001, but recorded the state’s best team Sectional score (291) in the class this year, thanks in part to senior Ben Scheman’s Sectional medalist performance (71). Meanwhile, Edwardsville (tied for 6th in 2016) hopes to jump intro trophy contention behind its one-two senior punch of Ben Tyrrell (T7th, 144) and Tanner White (11th, 151), who both have Top 10 aspirations.
Lake Forest and Stevenson tied (296) for the team crown at their Sectional, with Scout senior Scott Frevert (73) and Patriot junior Jackson Bussell (69) leading their respective teams. Lincoln-Way Central grabbed the final Sectional team crown (309) as senior EJ Charles paced the Knights (74). Geneva returns to the team field with one of the state’s top individuals, as Sectional champ Tyler Isenhart should contend for medalist honors after tying for third (148) at last year’s state tourney as a sophomore. Jacobs junior Garrett Tighe (69) and Sandburg sophomore Max Farley (72) each won individual Sectional honors this week and will be names to watch on the individual leaderboard.
GIRLS CLASS 1A
A great deal of experience returns in the Class 1A field, where six of the Top 10 teams from a year ago have qualified again. Defending state champ Charleston is included in that mix. The Trojans graduated historic three-time individual state champ Lauren Chappell, but senior Haley Walker (82 at Sectionals) is one of three regulars who gained valuable experience the past few seasons. Nashville finished just eight shots back in 2016 from capturing its second team title (2013) and returns its top two players from last season in seniors Hope Rueter (T22nd, 168) and Rachael Kell (T29th, 169), who both had Top 30 state finishes. Rockford Lutheran won its first girls golf trophy last year when it placed 3rd, and is one of the favorites in 2017 with its Top 5 players returning. That group is led by junior Natalie Hooper, who won Sectional honors this week (74) after placing 4th in the state last year (154). Perennial power Massac County, winner of three state titles (2006, 2009, 2012) and seven total trophies since 2006, also welcomes back most of its scoring players from last season, led by juniors Mady Blair and Millie Lawson. Lawson won the team’s 2017 Sectional individual honors with a 75, but the tandem tied for 22nd at state last year (168). Bloomington Central Catholic, led by freshman Katie Steinman (77), is another team to keep an eye on after the Saints posted the top team Sectional score in Class 1A (324). St. Thomas More wasn’t too far off that pace, as senior Kait Asklund (84) and company posted a 352 to win a team Sectional crown. Four individual qualifiers to keep an eye on for medalist honors include Macon Meridian senior Grace Miller, Kewanee sophomore Riley Hansen, Pontiac junior Ali Schrock and Waverly Coop senior Kalee Rhodes. Schrock (67) and Rhodes (80) each won individual Sectional honors earlier this week, while Miller (6th, 160) and Hansen (T8th, 163 ) both posted Top 10 individual state finishes a year ago.
GIRLS CLASS 2A
With a new team champion set to be crowned in Class 2A this weekend, New Trier and Barrington set the tone by winning their Sectionals this week with team scores of 300 and 305, respectively. New Trier was fifth a season ago, and hopes to win the school’s seventh state title this weekend behind by junior Penelope Tir, who tied for fourth in the state last year (145). Barrington’s runner-up finish in 2016 was the best in school history. If the Fillies hoist their first team title this weekend, it will likely come behind big efforts from junior Nicole Ciskowski (2017 Sectional champ with a 73) and sophomore Caroline Smith (T14th, 151 at 2016 state finals). O’Fallon (321), led by senior Brooke Boatman (76), and Lincoln-Way Central (323) captured the remaining Class 2A Sectional team titles. Lincoln-Way Central features defending individual state champion Grace Curran (141), as well as another Top 10 player in fellow junior Brianne Bolden (T10th, 149). Hinsdale Central, who won state crowns in 2015 and 2016 before finishing third last year, features an individual Sectional champ in senior Roshannah Gaur (74). St. Charles North returns a Top 10 player from 2016 in junior Megan Furtney (9th, 148) from a squad that placed fourth as a team. Guilford’s Madasyn Pettersen didn’t play in Illinois last year, but is back in Rockford for her senior season after winning the Class 2A individual state title with a 36-hole score of 144 as a sophomore in 2015. Defending team state champ Wheaton Warrenville didn’t qualify for the team field this season, but the Tigers will be represented on the individual leaderboard by a pair of seniors who were in the Top 15 last year in Sarah Hauenstein (T6th, 146) and Hadley Moritz (T14th, 151). Other individual qualifiers to watch include a pair of super sophomores in Crystal Lake Central Coop’s Elyse Emerzian (3rd, 144) and Mattoon’s Kira Wolf (T6th, 146). Wolf won Sectional medalist honors earlier this week with a 75, while Lake Park senior Nicole Hansen earned her individual Sectional crown with a 70.
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TOURNAMENT HISTORY
101st annual Boys State Series
43rd annual Girls State Series
HOST
Boys:
Bloomington-Normal CVB
BN Sports Commission
Unit 5 School District
Girls:
Decatur Area CVB
Decatur Park District
WEATHER
Updates/delays posted on Twitter at @IHSAWeather
SITES
Girls Golf
Class A-Red Tail Run Golf Course (Decatur)
Par 72 (36-36)
Red Tees
5,392 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
6,407 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
No broadcasts currently scheduled for this event
SOCIAL MEDIA
#IHSA on Twitter
Twitter - @IHSAstate
Instagram - @IHSA_IL
Facebook.com/IHSA.IL
Classic IHSA YouTube Video
OFFICIAL STATE FINAL
Gear from Minerva
Photos from VIP
Balls from Wilson
STATE SUPPORTERS
Country Financial
Wilson Sporting Goods
Gatorade
MaxPreps
STUDENT SAFETY
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HISTORY & RECORDS
Girls 2017 State Series
Girls Record Book & Past Champions
Boys 2017 State Series
Boys Record Book & Past Champions
100 YEARS OF IHSA GOLF
Special series of stories on Centennial Anniversary
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