Kane County Chronicle 2025 boys golf previews

Aurora Christian

Coach: Andy Zorger

Top returners: Jacob Baumann, sr.; Niko Kaplanis, sr.; Wyatt Sifford, jr.

Top newcomers: Jack Pohlmann, sr.

Worth noting: The Eagles returned their entire roster from 2024 including Baumann, who was the only player to qualify for the 1A sectionals last season. They also added Pohlmann, an Oswego transfer, to solidify the scoring core behind Baumann and Kaplanis, who Zorger said should be holding the 1-2 spots throughout the season. ”We should have more depth in the 3-6 spots than we’ve had in years past," Zorger said.

Batavia

Coach: Tim DeBruycker

Top returners: Ryan Augustine, sr.; Mason Whitt, sr.; Noah Marshall, jr.

Worth noting: The Bulldogs are hoping that some experienced golfers will help lead the way for the team in 2025. Augustine returns after taking 79th with a 25-over 169 at the Class 3A state tournament last season, while Marshall managed to qualify for sectionals as an individual. “We will be more experienced this season and will look to make some noise in the DuKane Conference,” DeBruycker said. “Ryan will use his experience at state to motivate the rest of the team. We have a good mix of players at positions 4 through 12 that will compete to round out our tournament team.”

Burlington Central

Coach: Thomas Davies

Top returners: Tyler Samaan, sr.; Tommy Wyse, jr.; Matthew Zierk, jr.

Key newcomers: Colin Gritzman, jr.; Colin Kurz, so.

Worth noting: The Rockets made it to the Class 2A state tournament for the second year in a row and placed third for the best finish in school history. Samaan tied for 11th overall with an 80-70-150, Cam Sarallo tied for 33rd (80-76-156), Matthew Kowalik tied for 36th (76-81-157), Wyse tied for 54th (84-78-162), Ben Chesney tied for 57th (79-84-163), and Zierk tied for 84th (81-93-174). Sarallo, Kowalik and Chesney graduated. ... Central will compete in 3A this year. ... The Rockets won a sectional title on a fifth-score tiebreaker over Ottawa. ... Central won the FVC Tournament with a 299, three shots ahead of runner-up Jacobs. Samaan was first with a 68 and Wyse (78) was 16th. ... At the Class 2A La Salle-Peru Regional, Central had six of the top 11 scores, led by Samaan (73) in second and Zierk (74) in third. Wyse (78) tied for eighth. ... At the Kaneland Sectional, Samaan took fifth with a 75, and Zierk (77) tied for eighth. ... “We make the jump to 3A after back-to-back state final runs, so we’re excited to see how we measure up against some very talented competition,” Davies said.

- Joe Aguilar

Geneva

Coach: Eric Hactzel

Top returners: Matt Trimble, sr.; Logan Novay, sr.; Ben Clairmont, sr.; Nick Torrance, sr.; Blake Makowski, jr.

Top newcomers: Robbie Keller, jr.; Will Quisling, jr.

Worth noting: The Vikings qualified for the Class 3A state tournament for the second consecutive season and coming up with a sixth-place finish as a team. While they lost two big pieces in Brandon Burggraff and Ryan O’Rourke, they still maintain the other four players from that state team. Trimble tied for 27th (71-81-152) while Clairmont, Novay and Makowski all tied for 59th at 18-over 162. The team also got a win in the West Aurora regional and secured a second-place finish in the DuKAne Conference last season. “We graduated a few seniors this past season but are fortunate to have a good group of juniors coming in along with a few seniors that have put in some good work in the off season,” Hactzel said. “We look forward to getting the season going with conference play.”

Kaneland

Coach: Mark Davoust

Top returners: Nick Dziewala, sr., Jack Frey, sr., Dylan Pjesky, so., Marcus Simbol, sr.

Worth noting: Off-season growth from its top three seniors, sophomore Dylan Pjesky and others should have the Knights in a great place on the links this fall. “I think that the varsity will be a real powerhouse this year and we’ll need to be to take on conference rival Ottawa,” Kaneland coach Mark Davoust said. “We had great play from several freshmen last year, giving us a good foundation for this year.” Pjesky competed in the Junior PGA tour in the off-season, firing a 74 to tie for fourth place in his final event.

- Chris Walker

Marmion

Coach: Lou Solarte

Top returners: Luke Feltner, sr.; Milo Karner, sr.

Top newcomers: Matthew Hall, so.; Keith Piercy, fr.

Worth noting: The Cadets are coming off a fifth-place finish at the Class 2A state tournament last season, but will have quite the climb if they want to make it that far again. Marmion lost four of their top six from last season, which included two-time state champion Regan Konen, who’s now up at Marquette. Feltner is the only golfer remaining from that state team, as he finished in 86th after posting 37-over 179. “We bring back two of our top six from last season,” Solarte said. “We are a young but potentially very good team, and we expect to challenge for a state tournament bid.”

St. Charles East

Coach: Mark Finstein

Top returners: Anthony Solare, sr.; Ethan Crooke, sr.; Aarnav Patel, jr.

Worth noting: Coming off third-place finishes both in the DuKane Conference and at the Class 3A West Aurora regionals, the biggest question for the Saints is about their depth. Solare, Crooke and Patel were big providers on the team’s run last season, with Patel ending the season tied for 24th at the Class 3A state tournament. But behind those three, as well as senior Michael Schero, Finstein will be hoping for a good batch of sophomores and juniors to fill out the team as the season progresses. “Our top 3 in Aarnav, Anthony and Ethan are very good and will vie for Medalist honors every match,” Finstein said. “They all have the ability to go to State. As a team the big question is who will step up after them.”

West Aurora

Coach: John Proczko

Top returners: Jake Anderson, sr.; Logan Bacarella, sr.; Cameron Smith, jr.; Brady Heitzman, jr.

Worth noting: While the Blackhawks did lose their top seed from last season to graduation, they return a good chunk of experience to hopefully help them improve on their second-place finish in the Upstate Eight. Anderson, Bacarella and Smith were all All-Conference, while Heitzman was just two strokes off from reaching sectionals last year. “Without a home course this year, the team has adopted a Road Warrior mentality,” Proczko said. “I’m excited to see how the juniors and some new seniors step up to help the team reach our goals.”

St. Charles North did not respond when asked to provide information