Dunsire's dominance propels Naperville Central past Lake Park
It was the equivalent of a waltz in the park for Tommy Dunsire on Tuesday afternoon at Indian Lakes in Bloomingdale.
Hitting almost every green in regulation, needing only one par save in excess of 5 feet and making birdie on a pair of holes, the Naperville Central sophomore had his sun-splashed boys golf dual-match translate into a 2-under medalist performance.
With able backing from Ryan Hay, Brian Wirtz and matching fourth scores from Cole Longley and Hayden Williams, Dunsire and his Redhawks teammates earned a 153-164 triumph over Lake Park in DuPage Valley Conference action.
"He's one of the best players in the state," Naperville Central coach Barry Baldwin said of Dunsire.
The Redhawks' top-rated player framed his bogey-free round with birdies at the par-3 fourth and par-4 seventh holes.
"I just played really well today," Dunsire said. "Going into today's round, I felt really confident. I made a lot of putts. The greens were pretty fast. I didn't want to hit (my putts) too fast."
With the conference tournament looming, Naperville Central (3-4 overall and in the league) needs a big final week of regular-season play to make a run at Bartlett Hills in eight days.
"I think this gives us some momentum," Baldwin said. "We're starting to put up some really good numbers. We're playing our best golf of the year."
Lake Park, led by sophomore Jake Dianovsky, fell to 7-5, 1-5.
Hay took a very similar approach to Dunsire in firing a 3-over 39.
The senior hit enough fairways and greens in regulation to not only record a birdie but also steady his round with a number of pars.
"I just trying to hit a lot of greens and play consistent golf," Hay said. "I tried to make a lot of 2-putts. No 3-putts (on the day)."
Wirtz was the third Redhawk to eclipse the 40 barrier, doing so by a stroke to further the Naperville Central double-digit victory.
Juniors Longley and Williams had 42s to round out the Redhawks' scoring.
The Lancers' top-two players, Hunter Triber and Phil Duncan, could not keep pace with Dunsire in the lead foursome.
The two seniors had scores of 40 and 41, respectively.
Lake Park had a glimmer of hope with Dianovsky posting a 39 from one of the last pairings, but the Blake Hansen 43 the Lancers accepted left the team well behind the Naperville Central pace.
"You know you're going to go to battle every time in the DVC," Lake Park coach Dan Batka said. "Thirty-four by Dunsire helps (Naperville Central) in a big way. We were slightly above our season averages. But that's the way golf is."