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SouthWest Suburban Conference
Bolingbrook
Coach: Jeff Allen (eighth season)
Last season’s record: 3-12
Top returners: Andy Stone, sr.; Ryan Johnson, jr.
Worth noting: Stone is a three-year varsity returner and the team’s captain. Allen believes Stone has all the physical tools to make a run at this year’s state tournament. Johnson also figures to lead Bolingbook.
Lincoln-Way Central
Coach: Ryan Pohlmann (22nd season)
Last season’s record: 9-2
Top returners: Juney Bai, sr.; Jacob Stoetzel, jr.; Jack Herget, jr.; Jimbo Tinman, sr.; Ben King, sr.
Key newcomers: Nolan Vrabec, jr.; Nolan Pickert, jr.
Worth noting: The Knights are loaded and should be one of the area’s top teams. Lincoln-Way Central won its sectional last year and was the conference champion. Bai was the regional champion. “We are excited about the season this year. We feel like that as a team we have had guys that put in a lot of work to improve this summer,” Pohlmann said. “Overall, as a team, I believe the depth in our lineup is even better than last season. They figure to be led by Curran, Bai, Tingley and Stoetzel and are looking for contributions from King and Tinman.
Lincoln-Way West
Coach: Dan Szablewski (third season)
Last season’s record: 10-1, 3-1 SWSC Red
Top returners: Aidan Healy, sr.; Dan Schaller, sr.; Jake Hamilton, sr.; Nate Lunde
Key newcomers: Will Pluskota, jr.; Max Mzhickteno, so.
Worth noting: Lincoln-Way West should again be part of the area’s elite teams. Healy returns as the SWSC Red individual champion. Schaller qualified for sectionals as an individual. Hamilton and Lunde also will be key cogs for the Warriors. Szablewski figures to get key contributions from newcomers Pluskota and Mzhickteno. “This team has put in a lot of work, more than they ever have before. We started a weight training program during the offseason in addition to plenty of work at the practice area and on the course, as well,” Szablewski said. “They are prepared. Hopefully, it pays dividends at the end of the year. If our posted scores one through four do not drop off too much from one score to the next, we should compete for conference and regional titles.”
Lockport
Coach: Matt Eber (10th season)
Last season’s record: 16-2, 4-2 SWSC Blue
Top returners: Brody McCarthy, sr.; Joey Sluzas, so.; Nathan Kwiatowski, so.; Nick Barry, jr.; Dylan Dorian, sr.
Key newcomers: Kyle Kuhn, jr.; Jacob Stoch, jr.; Logan Beisel, jr;, Joe Kutz, sr.
Worth noting: Lockport is consistently near the top of the area teams. McCarthy is a four-year returner from last year’s team, which won the regional and finished third at its sectional. Sluzas is outstanding, and returners Kwiatowski, Barry and Dorian will make for an excellent lineup. Eber has quite a bit of depth in Kuhn, Stoch, Beisel and Kutz.
Southwest Prairie Conference
Joliet Township
Coach: Ed Larson (15th season)
Last season’s record: 6-5
Top returners: Lincoln Chizmark, Casey Tyrell, Thomas Fellows, Parker Sloan, Brayden Walsh, Alejandro Montes, Jackson Ogrizovich, Sam Casey
Key newcomers: Owen Bartell
Worth noting: Joliet Township will be a young team with four starting sophomores. Despite being sophomores, they are in their second season at the varsity level. It won’t be all youth for Larson, however, as several upperclassmen figure to be key to the team’s conference and postseason success.
Minooka
Coach: Jeff Petrovic (16th season)
Top returners: Carter Stephenson, so.; Brett Widlowski, so.
Worth noting: Minooka made it to the sectional last year but lost the bulk of its starters. Petrovic will lead mostly underclassmen but is happy with the progress of Stephenson and Widlowski. The fresh faces will have to be at their best to compete in a loaded area this season.
Plainfield Central
Coach: Joe Young (12th season)
Last season’s record: 3-8, 3-7 SPC
Top returners: Kevin Smith, sr.; Nick Nawa, sr.; Brady Louck, jr.; Brent Cudal, jr.
Key newcomer: Josh Winterroth, fr.
Worth noting: Young has 11 upperclassmen and is expecting to be much improved over last season. Smith, Nawa, Louck and Cudal are returning all-conference golfers. Winterroth figures to be a potential building block for the program.
Plainfield East
Coach: Darren Kobliska (15th season)
Last season’s record: 3-8
Top returners: Jason Rosner, sr.; Garrett Sigler, sr.; Chris Suchoski, sr.; Michael Totosz, sr.
Key newcomers: Gavin Eddy, jr.
Worth noting: Totosz is a returning all-conference golfer for Plainfield East. Kobliska also will get contributions from Rosner, Sigler and Suchoski. Eddy also should be a significant part of the mix for Kobliska’s bunch. “Our top four players this year are all seniors and four-year members of the program,” Kobliska said. “They’ve made a tremendous amount of progress over the past few years, and I’m excited to see just how successful they, along with the rest of our team, can be.”
Plainfield North
Coach: Mike Kneip (seventh season)
Last year: 14-7, 10-0 SPC
Top returners: Tanner Daugherty, jr.; Drew Czarnik, jr.; Cooper Irvin, sr.
Key newcomers: Ryan Nelson, jr.; Jackson Floros, so.
Worth noting: Daugherty, Czarnik and Irvin return from the SPC and regional championship team. Kneip knows the team will be inexperienced but is looking for growth. Nelson and Floros will be important newcomers for Plainfield North.
Plainfield South
Coach: Tim Boe (18th season)
Last season’s record: 1-10
Top returners: Aiden O’Sullivan, so.; Zander Tubbs, sr.; Alex Nawracaj, sr.
Key newcomers: Aiden Abshire, sr.
Worth noting: The Cougars are a young roster, having lost six seniors last season. Sophomore Aiden O’Sullivan looks to follow up a strong start to his high school career.
Romeoville
Coach: Jeff Bambule (seventh season)
Last season’s record: 0-9-1
Top returners: Lance Laushot, sr.; Joey Crowley, jr.; Logan Repetowski, jr.; Danny Myers, so.
Worth noting: Romeoville continues to improve and returns four starters. Laushot, Crowley, Myers and Repetowski figure to help the team improve this season.
East Suburban Catholic Conference
Joliet Catholic
Coach: David Mondrella (fourth season)
Last season’s record: 5-5, 1-3 ESCC
Top returners: Alex Gonzalez, jr.; Dwayne Killian, jr.; Justin Budz, sr.
Key newcomers: Quinn Swienton, fr.
Worth noting: Gonzalez, Killian and Budz figure to lead the Hilltoppers. The trio, along with freshman Swienton, give the Hilltoppers a solid core. “This is a young group that is close and pushes each other to compete,” Mondrella said. “It will make for an interesting season.”
Chicago Catholic League
Providence
Coach: John Platt (19th season)
Last season’s record: 6-2
Top returners: Drew Brasky, sr.
Key newcomers: Tyler Young, sr.; Dylan Mott, so.; Tyler Mott, so.; Joe Brasky, so.
Worth noting: Providence is a successful program and this year will rely on youngsters. Brasky is the team’s top returner, and he will lead newcomers Young, Dylan Mott, Tyler Mott and Joe Brasky. The team will play in the Ping National High School Invitational on Sept. 3 and 4 in Scottsdale, Arizona.
South Suburban Conference
Lemont
Coach: Mark Hollatz (27th season)
Last season’s record: 9-0
Top returners: Paulius Malcius, sr.; Eddie Scott, so.; Ryan Tracy, sr.; Austin Belsen, sr.
Key newcomers: Jack Crispo, jr.
Worth noting: Lemont had an excellent season last year and should do so again. Malcius leads the way for the Indians, as he was a state qualifier in his freshman and sophomore seasons. Malcius finished fifth his sophomore season. Scott was a state qualifier. Tracy, Belsen and Crispo will add great depth for Lemont. The Indians are looking to earn some hardware at this year’s state tournament.
Illinois Central Eight
Coal City
Coach: Harlan Kennell, (sixth season)
Last season’s record: 6-5, 3-3 ICE
Top returners: Aidan Hansen, sr.; Ryne Phelan, jr.; Dylan Brown, so.
Key newcomers: Ryland Megyeri, so.; Culen Lindemuth, fr.; Blaine Doss, fr.
Worth noting: Coal City has a mix of leadership and youth. Hansen, Phelan and Brown are all key returners and should help Megyeri, Lindemuth and Doss grow as varsity contributors. “We have three experienced upperclassmen that have worked on their game all summer and improved tremendously,” Kennell said. “I look for Aiden Hansen and Ryne Phelan to lead our varsity golfers this year in most matches.”
Peotone
Coach: Bill Sander (third season)
Last season’s record: 7-4, 4-2
Top returners: Connor Janik, sr.; Matt Derkacy, sr.; Miles Heflin, jr.; Dominick Esquivel, sr.; Michael O’Connor, so.; Michael Bettenhausen, so.
Key newcomers: Donavan Esquivel, fr.; Mason Early, fr.; Travis Bush, so.; Katie Spivak, fr.; Kylie Spivak, fr.; Josh Barta, fr.; Joe Hasse, fr.
Worth noting: Peotone figures to be competitive with a plethora of returners and newcomers. Sander expects excellent seasons out of Heflin and Hasse. If things go well, the Blue Devils have an excellent chance to make a postseason run.
Reed-Custer
Coach: Nick Arndt
Last season’s record: 3-6-1, 2-2-1
Top returners: Eli Schaefer, Makayla Wilkins, Aiden Lantka
Key newcomers: Spencer Newbrough, Colin Esparza, Ben Lepper, Quinn Walsh
Worth noting: Arndt has a young but potentially solid team. There are only two seniors, but they should be good leaders for the team’s younger players. Wilkins is a returning all-conference golfer.
Wilmington
Coach: Mike Wilson
Top returners: Patrick Robbins, sr.; Aaron Burkey, so.
Worth noting: Robbins and Burkey return for the Wildcats. The rest of the roster will be made up of newcomers. The key to the team’s success will lie in how they develop.
Interstate 8 Conference
Morris
Coach: Mike Muntz (third season)
Last season’s record: 7-5, 4-3 I-8
Top returners: Brennan Johnson, sr.; Nathan Hock, sr.; Joseph Lanahan, so.
Key newcomers: Liam Eber, fr.; Tyler Terrell, fr.
Worth noting: The Redskins finished second in the Interstate 8 Conference Tournament and are looking for similar success this season. Hock was a sectional qualifier in 2019 before taking a year off. Johnson and Lanahan all return and will carry the load for Morris. Muntz will look to Eber and Terrell to take big leaps as newcomers. If all goes well, Morris will be right in the mix come postseason. “Last year, we had a senior-led varsity team, and this year, we will only be returning two members from that squad,” Muntz said. “I still expect us to compete in our conference this year but will be looking at some of the younger golfers to step up into some varsity roles.”
Tri-County Conference
Seneca
Coach: Bryan Erickson
Last season’s record: 12-4, 5-1 TCC
Key returners: Noah Quigley, sr.; Owen Quigley, sr.; Noah Cade, sr.; Jake Gerding, sr.
Key newcomers: Kaleb Powell, jr.; Keegan Murphy, fr.; Grant Siegel, fr.
Worth noting: Seneca had three key players graduate last year, but the show goes on, and the Irish are looking to be successful. Noah Quigley was an all-conference player, and he figures to lead the charge. Owen Quigley, Noah Cade and Jake Gerding also provide experience to the roster. Powell, Murphy and Siegel will provide excellent depth as newcomers. If all goes well, Seneca will make some noise in the postseason.
Sangamon Valley Conference
Dwight
Coach: Joe Bloxam (12th season)
Last season’s record: 8-12
Top returners: Jack Groves, Dane Halpin, Will Trainor, Dawson Carr, Jack Denker
Key newcomers: Jayce Gall, Andrew Gartke, Tracer Brown, Dillon Sarff
Worth noting: Dwight was under .500 last year but returns five of the team’s top seven golfers. Groves and Halpin were the team’s top golfers last season. Combine them with the volume of returners increases expectations for the Trojans, who figure to get contributions from Gall, Gartke, Brown and Sarff.