Boys golf: St. Charles North taking momentum into 2021 season

Mason Siegfried didn't exactly have the ideal summer for preparing for a golf season.

The junior at St. Charles North, who helped the North Stars win last year's DuKane Conference tournament by shooting a 78 at Bartlett Hills, also plays basketball.

And during summer camp at St. Charles North in June, Siegfried took a hard fall and broke a rib. After starting the summer playing in IJGA events and gearing up for a big junior golf season, Siegfried was sidelined for a month while his rib healed.

Siegfried is back now, looking forward to the season with the North Stars. A year ago they started the season 4-8 in duals yet gelled at the end by shooting a 309 to win the DuKane tourney.

"It wasn't until the end of the season that it really clicked," Siegfried said. "It's good to be back, playing with the guys without masks."

Siegfried said part of the reason for the team's slow start last year was adjusting to the pandemic, not riding the bus with teammates or seeing his coach in person.

Sophomore teammate Clay Heilman, another key player as a freshman last year, agreed.

"The slow start, I don't think we were in the right frame of mind dealing with COVID and all," Heilman said. "After we started to get used to our new normal if you can call it that, I think we started to get used it to it and got into a groove. It (winning the DKC tourney) really boosted our confidence."

Heilman had better luck than Siegfried this summer with no injuries. He played a lot of IJGA events including a victory in South Bend, Ind. where he shot 1-over two straight rounds and drained a 5-foot putt on the final hole to win by a stroke.

Making that clutch putt meant a lot to Heilman, who said the strength of his game is off the tee and his irons into greens.

Working on his short game, those chips and putts, has been a focus. He said his individual goal for the coming season is to consistently shoot around par or a stroke or two over.

After getting started in golf when he was 5 years old going to the driving range with his dad, Heilman credited coach Brian King with helping his game the last few years.

Now he's excited about what the North Stars can do in his second year with the squad.

"I think we can go pretty far," Heilman said. "A regional is looking pretty good for us because our team is solid. We have a good one, two, three, four, and we have a five and six that can sometimes sprinkle it in. We can really do some damage."

Before his rib injury, Siegfried said he was playing at Bowes Creek every day to get ready for his junior year.

He's the first in his family to play golf competitively, getting his start after hitting some Wiffle balls in the front yard and a neighbor telling him he should play.

"I like the mental aspect of golf, thinking every shot," Siegfried said. "We have mostly a younger core so next year we should be even better, but this year we should have a good five, six starting guys."

North Stars coach Justin Moriaty certainly is looking forward to coaching a group that also includes seniors Nick Francesconi and Aidan O'Connell.

"Clay and Mason are very good players that are among the top in the Tri-Cities area," Moriaty said. "We are looking forward to getting back and having an opportunity to compete against schools from around our area."