Girls golf: Plenty to celebrate at UEC tournament
There were plenty of winners at Tuesday's Upstate Eight Conference girls golf tournament.
Glenbard South's girls were happy to win the tournament's team title, the first in the 13-year history of the program.
The U-46 co-op celebrated winning the overall season championship, another program first. The team - comprised of players from Bartlett, Elgin, Larkin, South Elgin and Streamwood - defeated the Raiders 16-15. Glenbard East placed third in the season standings and West Chicago fourth.
Then there was West Chicago junior Kendall Farm, who not only won the individual tournament title by shooting a 74 as well as the season championship. Farm also hit a hole-in-one at St. Andrews Golf Course in West Chicago.
The hole-in-one came on the 119-yard 15th hole.
"I had an 8-iron to get over the bunker and the next thing I know it's in the hole," Farm said. "I saw it bounce and just roll on in."
Farm also hit a hole-in-one last year at the Cantigny youth links. This one was more exciting, she said.
"This one was in a tournament so it actually meant something rather than just going out and playing for fun," she said.
Farm's 74 tied her best score and was 20 strokes better than the second-place golfer, U-46's Gabby Garza.
"I knew that there was good competition, but I won last year with a 79 so I was just hoping to break 79 and play better this year," Farm said.
Glenbard South has seen improvement through the season, which started with the Raiders losing their first three conference dual matches.
"It took us a while to find our swings and find our confidence," Raiders coach Kevin Berner said. "But ever since then, really the last couple of weeks, the team has finally started to play decent golf. And you're getting it from kids that probably didn't think they were going to be in the picture at the beginning of the season."
The slow start, as well as being the smallest school in the conference, showed how much the Raiders overcame to win the tournament and nearly the season championship.
"It means a lot, actually, because we've worked hard this season and I don't know if it's happened in a while, so it means a lot to us and our coaches (Berner and Wade Hardtke) too," said Raiders sophomore Paige Kennedy, who placed sixth in the season standings, making a big jump with her third-place tournament finish.
Kennedy and teammate Aubrie LaBarbera each shot a 97, with fellow Raider Megan Bristow just 1 stroke back.
U-46 was thrilled to hold off the Raiders for the season title.
"It feels really good," said U-46 coach Amy Silverman, in her 12th season coaching girls golf. "... I know that they were feeling pressure. They knew coming in where they were sitting and all."
Silverman said her golfers didn't have their best day, "but it was good enough that it kept us in the lead. So I'm really proud of them. I know that they felt the pressure, and I just kept saying to them, shoot your regular, normal score and we'll be OK. And I thought we did it. They played well enough to win."