Golf: Hinsdale Central girls win Class 2A state championship

Elyssa Abdullah encountered an inopportune injury midway through the final round at the state golf tournament Oct. 8.

The Hinsdale Central sophomore, 3-under on her round through five holes, hurt her wrist on impact on a swing. She bogeyed three consecutive holes.

“I think I might have sprained it. It felt messed up after that,” Abdullah said. “I taped it up and kept playing. That was an obstacle to overcome.”

Abdullah, indeed, overcame it.

She played her final eight holes in 2-under to tie for second place individually, and Hinsdale Central won the Class 2A state championship at Hickory Point Golf Course in Decatur.

Hinsdale Central, which entered the final round one shot back of Stevenson, finished with a team score of 600 to beat out Stevenson’s 608.

It is Hinsdale Central’s third state championship, joining the back-to-back state titles won in 2014 and 2015.

The Red Devils enjoyed a dominant postseason, winning conference, regional, sectional and state titles.

“I’m pretty proud of my team. We all came together at the right time,” Abdullah said. “Our mindset was the same going into the final round. We weren’t really focused on shooting a really low number. We just wanted to do our best and whatever happens, happens. We knew we had to go low on Saturday to beat Stevenson. We tried to stay true to our process to get things done.”

Abdullah, who tied for fourth individually last year as a freshman, finished at 2-under par (142 score) over the two days, four shots back of Edwardsville’s Nicole Johnson. Hinsdale Central’s Sarah Thornton finished 18th at 6-over par and Benet’s Jenna Shilts was 21st, a shot back.

Thornton was the only senior among Hinsdale Central’s six girls to golf on Saturday at the state tournament.

“It’s really amazing, actually,” Thornton said. “Last year, I was in a pretty rough patch with my game. I couldn’t pull myself together on the course. I got over that hump over the summer. I learned that I’m really good at pulling through when it matters. I’m proud of myself and my team.”

Thornton felt her ball-striking was solid, as was her short game and putting over the course of the weekend. Most of all, she maintained her focus.

“For me, it was mostly mental,” Thornton said. “Right now, I feel I’m pretty mentally strong on the course. Especially during a high school tournament with five to six-hour rounds, it’s hard to stay focused all the time and easy to get distracted. I’m a lot better now at staying focused and hitting the shots I wanted to hit.”

Hinsdale Central, fourth at state last year, kept its celebration low-key.

“We went to Chipotle afterward, didn’t do anything big,” Abdullah said. “We tried to stay humble. Previous years we saw teams that won it, they were obviously happy, but they went all out kind of bragging. We didn’t really publicize it and make a huge deal out of it.”

Hinsdale Central nearly won two golf state titles Saturday.

The school’s boys team took second place, two shots back of New Trier, at the Class 3A boys state tournament at The Den at Fox Creek Golf Course in Bloomington. Hinsdale Central, 10 shots back of New Trier after Friday’s first round, finished at 605 to New Trier’s 603. Wheaton Warrenville South (641) was eighth and Glenbard West (642) took ninth.

Hinsdale Central’s Emil Riegger finished third individually at 3-over par, one shot back of New Trier champion Johnny Creamean. Glenbard West’s Grant Roscich was seventh at 4-over.

At the Class 2A boys tournament at Weibring Golf Club in Normal, Benet finished third and Lemont was fourth. St. Ignatius (603) took the team title. Benet shot a 620. Lemont shot a 628. Wheaton Academy’s Sam Dykema tied for ninth at 6-over par. Benet’s Ryan Danegger was 12th at 8-over.

At the Class 1A boys tournament at Prairie Vista, IC Catholic Prep took third. The Knights shot 630, trailing Effingman St. Anthony (618) and Latin (623). IC Catholic junior Zazz Atendido tied for fourth individually at 6-over par, two shots back of St. Anthony champion Joey Trupiano.