Nothing bugging victorious Patriots
The most popular person at the Lake Bluff Golf Club on Wednesday was Stevenson coach Andrew Conneen.
Why?
Because he was the one handing out the bug spray on a day when everyone's patience was tested by the omnipresent insects.
If the Stevenson girls continue to perform the way they did against Lake Forest, perhaps OFF will petition the IHSA to sign the team to an endorsement contract.
Stevenson (174) did not count a score higher than 45 to top Lake Forest (182) by 8 strokes in a North Suburban Conference match. Conneen believed this was the first time in school history the Patriots (8-0) topped the Scouts (5-1).
"We didn't talk a lot about it, but we wanted to measure ourselves against Lake Forest," Conneen said.
The Patriots were able to win without counting the score of No. 1 player Jennifer Gorman.
"We have six girls who can consistently shoot in the low (to mid) 40s," Conneen said.
Although Alex Kessler's 50 did not go toward the team total, she still supplied the individual highlight of the day. At the par-4 eighth, she holed her 6-iron approach for her first career eagle.
Kessler actually struck the ball a bit thin. It landed before the green, rolled on to the surface and into the cup.
"At first I didn't believe it was really an eagle," she said. "I had been putting poorly so I was glad I didn't have to make a putt."
Lake Forest senior Hailey Koschmann fired a 1-under 35 to earn medalist honors by 6 strokes over Stevenson junior Angelina Kim.
Koschmann made pars on eight holes and tapped in for birdie at the par-5 fifth hole. Her eagle putt came up a couple rotations short of the hole.
Several times she paused over a shot to swat away mosquitos.
"They were really annoying," Koschmann said. "I must have had 20 mosquito bites."
Kim closed her round on a positive note when she drained a 10-footer for bogey.
"That putt helped me out a lot," she said.
The Patriots received a 43 from Kaitlin Garske and matching 45s from Erin Moreau and Whitney Paul.
Paul managed a solid score despite continuing to struggle off the tee.
"I (scrambled) pretty well," she said. "I grinded it out."