New year, new memory for Benet's Feldman

Austin Feldman couldn't get last year's Vern McGonagle Memorial Championship out of his mind.

He won't soon forget this year's invitational either, but for a better reason.

The Benet junior shot a 75 to win the tournament at Naperville Country Club on Tuesday, giving himself a more enjoyable memory to savor for next year.

“It was great to come back from last year,” Feldman said. “Last year I came out here and shot 85, so this was some good redemption. It felt pretty good honestly.

“That was my motivation coming into this. I was just trying to break 80 and ended up with the victory thankfully. ”

Feldman said his putting “really saved me.

“I started out bogey, bogey, bogey, and that really hurt. But I came back, made a few putts. I made a great one on 4 from 50 feet about, and that helped me a lot.”

Neuqua Valley won the boys team title with a 319. Benet took second at 328, with Metea third at 337. Naperville North (346), Naperville Central (355) and Waubonsie Valley (356) rounded out the field.

Senior Nick Walker shot a 76 and junior Thomas Huang a 78 to pace Neuqua's title run.

“Those two guys played a great round,” Neuqua Valley coach Bart Carbonneau said. “And I told them going in, if we can get a couple of scores in the 70s, a couple of guys in the 80s, we should be good.”

Carbonneau said going into the season he wasn't sure who would be his No. 1 player. Now he knows.

“Nick has been playing some great golf so far for us already,” the coach said.

The victory gives the Wildcats much-needed confidence for their first season in the DuPage Valley Conference.

“It's a tough conference,” Carbonneau said. “It's a great start.”

Benet won the girls team championship with a 347 led by freshman Lauren Beaudreau's 72. Naperville North took second at 364, with Neuqua Valley third at 379. Waubonsie Valley (392), Naperville Central (397) and Metea Valley (401) filled the field.

“We knew Naperville Country Club is just a challenging place to play,” Benet coach Mike Bremner said, “so the key for our girls was to play through trouble. If they get in trouble, don't let it spiral out of control. And Lauren obviously played great for us. To put up a score like 72 gives us a jump-start toward winning it.”

“It means a lot,” Beaudreau added of her individual title. “I felt like I played really solid today and I drove the ball well and I just feel like I focused extraordinarily well today.”

Consistency was the key to her victory, with no 3-putts.

“I just focused on what I could do and I just stayed committed to every shot,” she said. “I didn't really think about the last hole or the next one. I just was focused.”

“She's so poised in how she plays,” her coach added. “For a freshman to come into high school and already have that calm demeanor, that approach. You make some mistakes and you play through them. She demonstrates that ability. She got into trouble on a few holes and played her way out.”

Katelyn Kline of Metea Valley placed second individually with a 77. Neuqua Valley's Jessica Yuen was third at 78.

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