Boys golf: Hemminger, Hersey ace MSL tournament for first title in 18 years
Tucker Hemminger put quite an exclamation point on a memorable day for the Hersey boys golf program.
Hemminger fired a 3-under par 68 at the Mid-Suburban League tournament Thursday at Schaumburg Golf Club, leading Hersey to a 288 winning total and the school’s first MSL championship since 2007.
And then the fun really began.
That 68 was good for a tie for first place with Fremd sophomore Jack Bell. The two went to a playoff to determine the champion, and started on No. 17, a 185-yard par 3.
Hemminger went first, and hit an absolutely perfect 7-iron that missed going in the hole by inches. The large crowd that had gathered to watch the playoff erupted in cheers.
“With how they reacted I thought it was in at first,” Hemminger said. “Shot of my life, 100 percent, not even close. It came off (the club) perfectly, right where I aimed, wind got it, kept going left and right on it (the flag).”
With his ball less than a foot from the cup, that put all the pressure on Bell. His tee shot missed the green to the right, forcing Bell to hole his chip to keep the playoff going.
Bell, whose only bogey in his round of 68 came the first time he played No. 17 when he also missed the green right, gave his chip a good run but watched it go about six feet past.
Hemminger tapped in for birdie to set off even more high fives from his Huskies teammates who already were celebrating their team championship.
“You want these good guys to get the girl, get the trophy, and the good guy really got it today,” Hersey coach Dan Caporusso said. “He’s a great kid.”
It’s quite a climb to the top of the MSL for the senior Hemminger, whose first tryout as a freshman saw him shoot 66 on 9 holes. Caporusso called him a sponge, soaking up any and every golf tip his coaches, teammates and former players offered.
“It’s a message to all golfers that improvement is possible with the right mentality,” Caporusso said.
Huskies sophomore Davis Lockwood followed with a 71, junior Henry Esposito shot 74 and Owen Spokas and Michael Szabo both had 75s to give Hersey the team championship — the eighth in school history joining the 1972, 1978, 1997, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2007 teams.
“Long time coming,” Caporusso said. “What a conference this is, what a great conference we have. I’m such a proud coach to be part of this MSL and to win this conference is such an achievement. I’m so happy, so happy to beat the mighty (Barrington) Broncos, I could count on one hand the times we’ve done that. And Prospect, Fremd, these are great programs.”
Prospect finished right behind Hersey with a 290, followed by Fremd’s 296, Barrington at 303, Conant at 317 and Rolling Meadows and Palatine both shot 318s.
Juniors Ryan Murray and Luke Ginsberg and sophomore Luca Stathakis led Prospect with a 70, 71 and 72, respectively.
Bell’s 68 paced Fremd, a round that included birdies on No. 2, No. 4, No. 13 and No. 14 that put him at 4-under for a 2-shot lead late in the tournament.
Then came the bogey at 17 while Hemminger birdied 16, leaving both at 3-under and setting the stage for the playoff and Hemminger’s near hole-in-one to win it.
“Hard act to follow when you are teeing off second,“ Fremd coach Ryan Moreau said. ”Fun to watch. Jack has nothing to be too upset about. Jack should be really proud of his round.“
Rayden Tee added a 74 for Fremd, and Moreau was excited about Rishi Kompala’s 75.
“Really fun to see him (Kompala) come into our last regular season tournament and succeed like we knew he could all along,” Moreau said. “We knew this number was hiding in him somewhere. And he does it when it counts.”
Barrington, which had won eight of the last 10 MSL titles, was led by Sam Uutala’s 73. Schaumburg’s Brody Hinkle tied for ninth with a 74.
Buffalo Grove senior Cori Lee tied for fourth with an even-par 71 despite playing with an injured hip.
Lee also won MSL Player of the Year, an award based on his play Thursday and also all the MSL matches throughout the fall. Lee will play college golf next year at Loyola.
“I had a very sharp pain in the hip, hard to turn and get through the swing,” Lee said. “I tried my best and kept going. In my head I started to ignore it and kept trying and kept going. I had more adrenaline and it helped.”
Bison coach Peter Duffer credited Lee for showing grit and resilience Thursday.
“He just battled,” said Duffer, adding Lee also has been a big help to every other golfer in his program.
“He made our team better which is not always the case with top players. He made everyone better.”