Area Sports Roundup: St. Laurence golfers make history

By Jeff Vorva
Staff Writer

That didn’t take long.

The St. Laurence girls golf program is in only its second year of existence but last weekend celebrated a major accomplishment.

Coach Jim Tracy’s troops won the Providence Catholic Class 1A Regional by four strokes, logging a 372 to edge University High (Chicago), which finished with 376.

It was the program’s first regional title and the first postseason golf trophy at St. Laurence since the boys won a regional in 1991.

The Vikings’ Mary McGuire tied for second with an 81 and Madeline Davis was fifth with an 85. Eileen Solad added a 102, Anna Perez and Ava Nowacki each had scores of 104, and Sonia Perez had a 118.

Also at the regional, which was held Sept. 28 at Green Garden Country Club’s Blue course, Evergreen Park’s Charlie Burns claimed fourth with an 82.

Back-to-back champs

The Sandburg boys golf team won the Stagg Class 3A Regional on and the Eagles girls won the Shepard Class 2A Regional.

The boys won at Waters Edge in Worth on Sept. 28 with a 322. Marist took second with a 325 and Stagg was third at 340.

Sandburg’s Caleb Negley won the individual title with a 77 while teammate Quinn McElligott was tied for second with a 78. Kyle Kuchel was ninth with an 83 and Cole Vazzana was tied for 10^th with an 84.

The girls won with a 300 at Lincoln Oaks Golf Course in Crete on Sept. 29. Lyons was second with a 337 and Mother McAuley and Riverside-Brookfield tied for third with 355.

Sandburg’s Jillian Cosler dominated the field with a 68, eight strokes ahead of teammate Brooke Adams and Riverside-Brookfield’s Mayan Covarrubias, to take the individual crown. The Eagles’ Alyssia Jarquin was fourth with a 77 and teammate Katie Wehlus was fifth with a 78.

Sectionals were scheduled to be held Oct. 3 and the state finals are at various courses in central Illinois on Friday and Saturday.

Top boys finishers

Other top-10 finishers at the Stagg Regional were Stagg’s Caden Balcaitis (third for third with a 78), Richards’ Max Kawa (tied for fourth with a 79), Marist’s Will Schilling (tied for fourth with a 79), Marist’s James Hollowell (fifth with an 80), Richards’ Shane Gordon (tied for seventh with an 82) and Marist’s Kevin Cardinale (tied for seventh with an 82.

Lyons won the Payton Regional with a 297. Charlie Novak won the individual title with a 71, one shot ahead of teammate Jack Berry. Lyons’ Anderson Palm was sixth with a 76, and teammate Joe Steller and Riverside-Brookfield’s Joey Garvey each tied for seventh with 78. Lyons’ Kevin Larmon tied for ninth with a 79.

In Class 2A, Mount Carmel won the Marian Catholic Regional with a 339. St. Rita took second with a 346.

Brother Rice’s Phill Cipriani won the meet with a 73.

Other area standouts were Mount Carmel’s Tim Christie (second with an 80), Mount Carmel’s Michael O’Keefe (tied for third with an 81), Mount Carmel’s Ryan Walsh (fifth with an 82), St. Rita’s Richie Glenke (tied for sixth with an 84) and St. Rita’s Luke Mahar and Nathan Tracy (both tied for eighth with an 85).

St. Laurence finished third in the Crete-Monee Regional, with Matthew Sucheski earning the individual title with an 82. Viking Connor Marino tied for fifth with an 87.

In Class 1A, Chicago Christian took third in the Grant Park Regional. Edmond Fisher took second with an 80.

Top girls finishers

Girls golfers in the top 10 at the Shepard Regional were Stagg’s Kaeli Forde (sixth with an 80), Lyons’ Maeve McDougal (seventh with an 81), Lyons’ Addison Watanabe (eighth with an 83), Marist’s Kylie Collins (ninth with a 84) and Lyons’ Kiera Kessler (10^th with an 85).

In the Class 1A Rosary Regional, Nazareth finished second. Maryssa Zielinski claimed ninth with an 89.

Mighty national powers

Mother McAuley may have had a recent hiccup in a loss to rival Marist, but the Mighty Macs proved they still have one of the best teams in the nation after beating the field in its own Asics Challenge, which wrapped up Oct. 1.

McAuley beat Notre Dame (Kentucky), 25-21, 22-25, 25-13 after a tough 23-25, 26-24, 25-17 semifinal win over Skutt (Nebraska). Ellie White was named tournament MVP.

Marist finished fifth in the tournament, Nazareth took second place in the silver division and Sandburg placed fifth in bronze.

Huge milestone

De La Salle volleyball coach Anna Marassa hit the career 500-win mark on Sept. 27 with a victory over St. Ignatius.

According to the IHSA, 50 girls volleyball coaches have 503 or more victories.

Under Marassa’s watch, the Meteors have won eight regionals and four sectionals since 2002. The longtime coach was a 2007 inductee for volleyball in the DePaul University Hall of Fame.

The Meteors later in the week won their own tournament with a 23-25, 25-19, 15-8 victory over Providence. De La Salle’s Jennifer Falk was the tourney MVP and Dalani Gioia made the all-tournament first team.

Reavis’s Paulina Potok, Morton’s Nioble Azpilcueta  and Argo’s Annette Las made the second team.

Award for Stagg assistant

Stagg’s Chris Sandor was named the Illinois High School Tennis Coaches Association 2A Boys’ Assistant Coach of the Year.

“Receiving this award is not only an honor for Chris, but also a positive reflection on the players he has coached, the Stagg boys’ tennis Program and Amos Alonzo Stagg High School,” Stagg High School Principal Eric Olsen said in a statement. “The Stagg tennis program is a point of pride in our school and in our community, and his work as a coach helps make that happen.”