Girls golf: Naperville North finishes run to DVC championship
Phillips Park has been assaulted by elite players in recent years.
Waubonsie Valley great Bing Singsumalee once memorably fired a bogey-free 64 at the par-72 Aurora layout, and Lauren Beaudreau was masterful for Benet last fall at the regional en route to the Class 2A girls golf championship with a 66.
"I love playing (tournaments) here," Naperville North coach Greta Williams. "I think it's a very fair course."
Several of Williams' players voiced similar feelings after the Huskies placed four girls in the top nine to capture the DuPage Valley Conference championship with a 310-319 victory over Neuqua Valley on Tuesday afternoon.
In defending its league title Naperville North had an impeccable season with eight consecutive dual-meet wins to augment the tournament championship.
"I didn't feel I had the need to expect anything, as long as I had the mindset of me playing well," said Naperville North senior Emma Lin, who was runner-up with a 74. "That's what golf is. The (regular-season) points buffered us into winning the title. As long as I played well against the girls I was paired with, it was a good predictor of what was going to happen."
Emma Kirvan fired a sixth-place 76 to bolster the Huskies' cause.
"I didn't have to worry about what I would shoot," Kirvan said. "There would be no pressure on my score."
State veterans Hannah Martin and Emily Nay authored respective rounds of 79 and 81 to round out the Huskies' contributing scores.
The collective Naperville North performance reached its apex when unheralded sophomore Ashlyn Bhatia captured the JV tournament with a 79.
"The one thing I think is great about this team is that when someone struggles a little bit, there is someone to pick them up," Williams said. "That's what makes - I told the girls - a good team into a great team."
Neuqua Valley had three players in the top 10 to frame its low tournament score.
Sarah Zheng settled for third in a scorecard playoff with her 74; Isabelle Wu and Lanette Choi were seventh and 10th with a 77 and 82.
"There wasn't anything that was really bad or really great (to my play)," Zheng said. "I thought it was a solid round."
One year after losing in a playoff, Emma Lim took medalist honors. Her eagle on the par-5 16th hole was parlayed into a 1-under 71.
"My putting was definitely helpful," Lim said. "I try not to use my driver off the tee; it's been very inconsistent."
Neha Vinesh was fifth with a 76 for Naperville Central, third at 325.
Emily Skowronski shot the lone 75 to finish fourth for Waubonsie Valley, fourth overall (337).
"I have played this course many times, so I knew what to expect," Skowronski said. "I tied my season low."
Metea Valley was fifth at 383.