Girls golf: Wheeling's Rohwedder steps up; Prospect wins dual

Adrienne Rohwedder might be a new face to the high school girls golf world, but those in the summer circuit arena have been aware of the Wheeling sophomore for some time.

While running the PGA's Challenge League a few summers ago, Mt. Prospect Golf Club head pro Jeff Langguth recalls watching Rohwedder and her sister Samantha, now a freshman for the Wildcats.

"It's pretty cool knowing about them before they were in high school and then to see them out here today," Langguth said.

And what he saw from Adrienne on Thursday was quite special.

She turned in the best round of her budding high school career with a sizzling par-35 at the Mt. Prospect Golf Club (front nine) in the dual meet won by host Prospect 171-201.

"Thirty five is very impressive," said Prospect coach Jim Hamann. "She's very solid and you can tell she's played in a lot of tournaments. I think Adrienne has a bright future and her score is something to be proud of."

Adrienne's round included a birdie on No. 3 and bogey on No. 4, followed by five straight pars. After mis-hitting her 40 yard approach on No. 9, Adrienne saved par with a 12-foot putt.

How impressive was her round in the not-so-friendly wind conditions?

"To shoot even par on this renovated course is like shooting 3-under on our old course because the greens (more severe undulation) are so much tougher than the old ones," Langguth said.

Adrienne is taking it all in stride and enjoying her high school experience after being home schooled with her sister, who shot a 43 on Thursday.

"I'm having fun playing with my teammates," said Adrienne, who began the sport at the age of 6, following in her brother Max's footsteps. "It's not too different from playing in the summer.

"Our coach (former Arlington standout athlete Peggy Ellsworth) gives us advice on what to do on the course and what to work on."

Ellsworth said the sisters are making a positive impact for the program.

"They have been an inspiration for our newer girls to get better and work harder," said Ellsworth, who picked up golf after high school and played collegiately at Southern Illinois.

"It's nice to have competitive golfers at the start of a season instead of stressing about their growth throughout the year. It's been tough when you start each season with a meet and the girls really haven't played the sport long enough to be ready so fast."

Kelly Kavanagh is off to a fast start for Prospect.

A year ago she was starting eighth grade at South Middle School.

On Thursday, the freshman turned in her team's best score with a 40 that included birdies on holes No. 3 and 7. She had 5 1-putt holes while bettering her previous career best of 42 at Palatine Hills against Barrington and Palatine.

"Kelly was 6-over on 3 holes and 1-under on the other six," Hamann said. "So she played well. Kelly is one of the hardest workers in the conference. She really puts in the time and it will pay off for her."

In the conference, the Knights are 2-1, with their only loss to defending league champion Barrington which shot a school-record 145 in that meet to the Knights' 155.

Completing Prospect's score card on Thursday were senior Alyssa Sharp (43), senior Kate Ponzi (43), senior Sabrina Accardi (45) and sophomore Emily Fleming (45).

"We've had a really good couple of weeks of practice," Hamann said. "I could not be prouder of the effort the girls are giving. The work will pay off and we'll get all the girls playing right on the same day."

The final two scores for Wheeling came from sophomore Elena Falkiner (59) and senior Renata Olvera (64).

The Wildcats are 2-5 in the MSL.

"It's fun not to be just grinding away at the start of the season," Ellsworth said. "All of the girls are excited and out there watching each other on the course."

And many eyes were on Adrienne Rohwedder's performance.

"That was the best I've seen her play," Ellsworth said. "She's been a little off with her drives but she's always been solid with her irons. She put it all together today. Her swing is so pure, it's amazing."

"I could have been a little better with my approach shots," Adrienne said. "But it was a good round."

Barrington d. Elk Grove: Defending MSL champion Barrington (5-0) won 157-210 as senior Allie Quinn and freshman Caroline Smith each shot 38s to lead the Fillies at Fox Run.

Teammate Shivani Majmudar was a stroke back with a 39 and Akshara Ramakrishnan added a 42.

Senior Amy Carpenter led the host Grens with a 47.