Prospect wins fourth straight MSL title
How appropriate it was that senior Christine Garmoe shot an eagle on hole No. 13 at the Bonnie Dundee Golf Club on Tuesday.
After all, she and her Prospect teammates were flying high at the Mid-Suburban League girls golf meet in Carpentersville all day.
The Knights won their fourth straight crown but shattered each of their winning scores from the past three years by shooting a 309. Their previous best was a year ago (329).
The next-closest team to Prospect was Barrington (323) while Fremd took third with a 348.
Just like Prospect, no one was very close to the individual champion either.
Despite a near-constant rain for the 18 holes, unfazed Barrington freshman Julia Calbi claimed the top prize with an even-par 71.
The poised rookie, who handled the soggy conditions as if she played in them on a regular basis, was followed by Garmoe (75), Prospect sophomore Noreen Caporusso (75), Barrington sophomore Heather Ciskowski (76), Buffalo Grove junior Grace Kil (76), Prospect senior Allison Walsh (78), Prospect sophomore Kiley Walsh (81) and Fremd junior Angie Kim (83).
“I have been following Julia since she was in sixth grade and every time I watched her in the summer I realized what a remarkable player she was,” said Barrington coach Jodi Schoeck. “She is so mentally tough for a freshman. She makes logical choices and never gives up.”
Calbi started out with a birdie on the par-4 No. 1 hole and never looked back.
“That was kind of a huge confidence boost,” Calbi said. “Because then it started pouring and that made the course even longer. It was rain-soaked so you didn’t get any roll. Everything just stuck.”
Garmoe stuck a 12-foot putt for her eagle on the par-5 533-yard 13th hole after her 170-approach shot.
“It was a weird day,” said Garmoe, who carded 3 birdies. “Sometimes it would be dry but then it would start pouring. It was hard to deal with an umbrella and trying to keep your grips dry. But I think our whole team did a good job staying focused.”
Caporusso’s 75 tied her best high school round. She had birdies on No. 13 and 15.
“I just tried to stay dry,” Caporusso said. “And make sure I didn’t chunk the ball. It was hard out there but we were prepared.”
The Knights have been prepared all season, winning their fifth invite on Tuesday along with a pair of seconds.
Garmoe played on her fourth straight MSL championship team.
“It’s unbelievable,” she said. “I don’t know any other word to describe it.”
Prospect coach Jim Hamann described it as one of the team’s best showings in school history. It was only 1 stroke off the school-record 308 set earlier this season against Loyola.
“To shoot our best conference round in these conditions, it’s unreal,” he said. “We knew we were prepared for the course. Our 100-yards-and-in game is starting to heat up.
“We really started playing well the last eight holes. Christine had her eagle then we had pars and birdies.”
Calbi was even-par on the front (35) and back (36), including 3 birdies and 3 bogeys.
“I really worked on my putting over the weekend,” said Calbi, who began playing the game in the sixth grade. “Because that’s what had been driving my scores down. The girls I played with in my group (Allison Walsh, Angie Kim and Grace Kil) were amazing and that helps my game.”
Kim’s score of 83 helped Fremd notch third place. Her teammates Jennifer Kim and Christiana Kim each shot 88s to tie for 12th place. None of the Kims are related.
“It was pretty tough, but I enjoy playing in the rain,” said Angie Kim, who fired a 38 on the back nine. “It makes you focus more. I’m really proud of our team.”
Other top 20 medalists were Hersey senior Nikki Gierman (85), Prospect senior Sarah Scaccia (86), Barrington senior Sammy Carman (87), Barrington sophomore Kelly Umphred (89), Buffalo Grove sophomore Courtney Meyer (89), Conant freshman Carly Bryeans (89), Fremd senior Madison Zyer (89), Wheeling senior Cassie Rothbart (90), Barrington senior Lindsey Martindale (91) and Rolling Meadows senior Lauren Cerza (91).
“Barrington and Bonnie Dundee did a great job as the host,” Hamann said. “It was really fun for the girls and we are grateful to them.”
Considering the weather, the course held up well.
Calbi was confident she could win it all. He best high school round came earlier in the season when she shot a 68 in the Barrington Invite, also at Bonnie Dundee.
“I knew I could do it (win the MSL),” she said. “But I didn’t know if I could presrevere through the whole season and do it. So I am kind of happy about that.
“This is probably the best I’ve played in these conditions,” added Calbi, whose family moved to Barrington from Virginia when she was in the third grade. “It really tested you and you had to keep your focus.”
Prospect hopes to keep it focus.
“We’ll enjoy this one but we start focusing on the regional (today),” Hamann said. “This was our first goal, now we’ll go after No. 2.
“The postseason is the time to step it up and that’s what these kids want to do.”