Boys golf: Lakes’ Cross wins playoff to claim sectional crown, St. Viator advances to state

Saint Viator coach Jon Dean says that his junior standout, Mac Dean, is a great golfer with a lot of mental resilience.

Being his dad, Jon should know better than anyone.

Mac Dean shot even par 72 Monday afternoon at the Class 2A Deerfield sectional at Deerfield Golf Course in Riverwoods, and his superior effort saw him tie for first along with three other golfers.

“Today’s round is just a snapshot of the kind of player he is,” said Jon Dean, who played college golf at Notre Dame. “He’s not the biggest kid, not the longest hitter, but he has one of the stronger mental games I’ve seen.”

Mac Dean fell just short of medalist honors, as Brady Cross from Lakes won the four-man playoff.

Mac Dean's strong showing, however, led the Lions to a second place team finish with a score of 303 and a spot in this weekend’s state finals at Weibring Golf Club in Normal.

It’s a dream scenario as a parent this season for coach Dean. Not only is Mac Dean excelling, his younger brother, freshman Declan Dean, is making his mark as well.

Declan shot 77 Monday to help his team advance. Lake Forest (first place, 297) and Lakes (319) were the other teams to move on.

“Our objective is always to win,” said Declan. “I wanted to come out here and have fun, and experience sectionals.”

Declan said it’s extremely helpful for his game to have his brother, Mac, as a mentor on the team.

“He’s got the experience,” Declan said, “and my dad has a lot of experience, so they’ve helped me a lot with my game.”

Declan added that his birdie on the 210-yard, par three eighth hole, gave him a ton of confidence the rest of the way.

“There was a little bit of wind,” the frosh said, “and I hit a hybrid within 30 yards of the hole, and made the putt.”

Lakes coach Kyle Baker said that his team started the day a little rough, but fought through that.

“I was really happy the way we battled against adversity,” said the Eagles coach. “The kids finished really well, and kept their spirits up, which was great."

Baker lauded the effort of Cross, a senior, who won the playoff on the 6,831-yard course. He parred the first playoff hole, the 401-yard tenth hole.

Baker said that Brady "hit a drive just off the fairway, had mud on his ball, but was able to hit it within 15 feet and two putted for par. The other three golfers bogeyed."x`

“He’s just an excellent golfer, and a really amazing kid,” said Baker of Cross. “That makes him really fun to coach. He stays level-headed and is very focused.

“I had several coaches come up to me today and said they were happy their golfers were playing with him, so they could learn from him.”

Other players contributing to Viator’s qualification were Drew Battaglia (76) and Hunter Lockefeer and Otis Meyers, who shot 78s.

In addition to Cross, Lakes golfers whose scores counted were Colin Deatherage (82), Nate Bailey (82), Finn McDowell (83), and Eli Caruso (83).

Advancing individuals to Weibring included Aden Lingad of Grayslake Central, Seamus Mors of Antioch, and Johnathan Doering from Montini.

Included among that group was junior Max Dwyer from Nazareth, who carded a 77.

“Max has improved dramatically this year,” said Roadrunners coach Dave Reed. “He’s just a terrific player. He works very, very hard on his game and has made great strides.

“He got it going here at the right time.”