On the boys golf horizon
Fremd golfer Sean Jones battled the elements as well as a bevy of talented Mid-Suburban League rivals Monday en route to becoming MSL tourney medalist.
The junior's consistent round of 76 on Buffalo Grove's rain-soaked Arboretum golf course earned him the MSL individual crown and helped Fremd to a 1-stroke victory in the team competion.
But neither Jones nor his teammates will be able to rest on their laurels as the champs will face off against stiff competition as the IHSA playoffs kick off Tuesday.
Fremd opens with a regional test at Hilldale Golf Course in Hoffman Estates versus defending state champions St. Viator and a host of Mid-Suburban League squads.
"We like our chances," said Jones, who said he played the par-71, 6,432 yard Hilldale course "about 30 or 40 times" this summer.
"A lot of my teammates have played the course almost as many times as I have," said Jones. "Obviously Viator will be the team to beat, being the defending champions, but we've got a lot of momentum (after the MSL tourney win) and we're playing really well right now."
Jones was able to excel at the Arboretum despite the inclement conditions that caused a 3-hour delay after the seventh hole.
"It was tough," said Jones, "but it helped knowing everyone had to play in the same conditions that I was playing in.
"It was exciting. I didn't play my best, but my team and I got the win and that's all that matters."
Viator will begin the tourney as the favorites behind Danny Stringfellow, Matt Vitale, Brad Klune and Joey Carlson, but Hersey (10-1 in the Mid-Suburban League regular season) and Rolling Meadows could make things interesting.
Conant, Buffalo Grove, Hoffman Estates, Palatine and Schaumburg will round out the field at Hilldale, where the qualifying teams and individuals will move on to the Glenbrook South sectional, as will teams competiting in the Glenbrook North regional.
Prospect and Wheeling are the local teams that will tee off at Glenbrook North, where they'll face the likes of Loyola and New Trier at Sportsman Country Club.
Elk Grove hosts a regional at Fox Run Golf Links where the field includes Maine West and Leyden, and the advancing teams will also make the trip to the Glenbrook South sectional which will be played at Glenview Park Golf Club on October 13.
Barrington, meanwhile, will carry the Mid-Suburban League colors into the Prairie Ridge regional at Prairie Isle Golf Course.
The Broncos finished 10-1 in the MSL this year and lost out by one stroke to Fremd for the conference title.
Barrington, looking for another trip to the state finals in Bloomington behind Ross Frankenberg (2nd in state invidually last season) will face Jacobs and Lake Zurich among others, with the qualifying teams and individuals to advance to the Broncos sectional at their home course of Makray Memorial.