Girls golf: Minooka captures regional title at Inwood, Lincoln-Way Central 2nd, L-Way West 3rd

JOLIET – Going into the Class 2A Joliet Central Girls Golf Regional at Inwood on Thursday, Lincoln-Way West junior Kaylee Dwyer was familiar with the course, having played several rounds there throughout her career.

That familiarity helped, as Dwyer fired a 2-under-par 69 to claim the individual title and help her team finish third and advance to Monday’s O’Fallon Sectional at Fair Oaks Golf Club in Caseyville.

“I shot under par last year in the regional,” Dwyer said. “And I played a couple of practice rounds here, and I played here a lot when I was younger. I am pretty familiar with the course, and that makes it a little easier.

“I would say my driver was my best club today, but I saved a lot of shots with my putter, too. My short game was kind of a mess.”

The only blip on Dwyer’s scorecard was a double-bogey 7 on the 470-yard par-5 13th hole, but she rebounded to birdie four of the final five holes, including the last three in a row, and finish with a 32 on the back nine. Her total of 69 was five better than runner-up Jamie Daniels of Joliet Township, who shot a 1-under 35 on the front nine.

Minooka, meanwhile, got a round of 76 from senior Anna Maurice and claimed the team championship with a score 330. Lincoln-Way Central (333) finished second and Lincoln-Way West (335) third. All three teams advance to the sectional, along with the top 10 finishers that were not members of the top three teams.

Maurice shot a 38 on both the front and back nine.

“We thought we had a good chance to finish in the top three and advance,” Maurice said. “We won the [Southwest Prairie] Conference tournament last week, so we felt pretty good.

“I wasn’t nervous. This is my senior year and it is my last regional, so I just went out there to have fun and enjoy it. My putting was very good today. It helped me make up for some of my shots that weren’t so good.

“It’s exciting. We have had some girls advance individually, but this is the first time in a few years that we have advanced as a team.”

Following Maurice for Minooka were senior Katelyn Bucciarelli (80), junior Lauren McPhillips-Newcomb (87), sophomore Leona Trevino (87), senior Taylor Chiappetta (87) and senior Gillian Harrington (96).

“It’s been a little while since we have advanced a team to sectional,” Minooka coach Frank Yudzentis said. “On this team, and this is nothing against any of our girls, we don’t have a real No. 1 or No. 2. We have six No. 3 or No. 4s. Last week at the conference meet, Lauren McPhillips-Newcomb had a big day for us. Today, it was Anna Maurice. That’s the way these girls have been all year.

“It is neat to see. The experience from last year really paid off, especially for the seniors. They have learned to just let a bad shot go and move on from it. I am so proud of these girls. They have put a lot of work in, and it’s a great accomplishment for them.”

Lincoln-Way Central was led by junior Sarah Arsich, who shot 78. She was followed by junior Sophia Thorne (79), sophomore Gabriella Bush (85), sophomore Allison Garofalo (91), freshman Kristin Kroll (95) and sophomore Elizabeth Signorelli (96).

“It’s pretty exciting for us to advance,” Arsich said. “We lost three seniors from last year’s team, and it was kind of a rough year for us. But to know we are going to sectionals as a team feels great.

“This was probably one of my best rounds of the year. I hit some good drives and some not so good, but it all evened out.”

Following Dwyer for Lincoln-Way West were senior Maggie Schwerha (87), sophomore Peyton White (87), junior Olivia Kavaliunas (92), senior Ava Bruno (97), and freshman Sydney Pohlmann (99).

The ten individual qualifers were Daniels, Gabby Hubbs of Bradley-Bourbonnais (78), Hannah Duggan of Ottawa (82), McKenna Anderson of Joliet Township (83), Avah Moriarty of LaSalle-Peru (85), Caroline Cooney of Ottawa (87), Allie Thome of LaSalle-Peru (89), Kate Cailteux of Bradley-Bourbonnais (89), Autumn Allen of Joliet Township (92) and Nina Mayfield of Joliet Township (92).

“I am very excited to go to the sectional,” Duggan said. “It’s my senior year, so I just wanted to go out there and have fun. Now that I am going to the sectional, I get to enjoy it for a little longer.

“It’s not my lowest round. I shot an 82 at the Deer Park Invitational, but I am happy with how I played today. My short game and putting were very good, and I got of the tee pretty well. My dad and I worked on that this week, and it did well today.”