By Bobby Narang
The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) boys and girls golf is nearly set to get under way for the 2022 season.
On the girls side, Barrington, Stevenson, Loyola Academy, and Hinsdale Central are all looking to equal or surpass last season’s exact order in Class 2A. Barrington won the State championship, ahead of Stevenson and Loyola Academy.
The Hinsdale Central has a strong returning girls group, led by Sarah Thornton, Caroline Owens, Elyssa Abdulah and Toral Bhatt. Last season, the Red Devils won the West Suburban Conference championship, and regional and sectional tournament championships.
“We have significant experience returning and are hoping to play at a consistently high level throughout the season,” Hinsdale Central head coach Nick Latorre said.
Glenbard West, coached by Mary McGrane, is another team looking to a team to watch in the West Suburban Silver. The Hilltoppers lost a lot of talent from last season’s team, but enter the season with optimism.
“We graduated six varsity athletes and are looking to the leadership of Anna Meinhart and Audrey Sawyer to help the younger players that will join them this fall,” McGrane said. “Anna Meinhart has put in a lot of work last Spring and over the Summer and we will look to her to lead our team. Audrey Sawyer, Kaavya Mamgain, along with Emme Burrus and Kate Groszek, are all capable of having great seasons and I am excited to see what this young team can accomplish together.”
• Another team looking to make waves is Kaneland’s boys golf team.. The Knights won six of their seven conference matches last season.
“We lost several seniors from last year, but both Josh Pehl and Cody Ganzon will lead big holes to fill,” Kaneland boys head coach Patrick Carter said. “I’m looking to our returning, seniors like Gabe Gooch, and Rocco Rosati, to be our team leaders. We also have juniors Wes Hollis and Bradley Frank who will hopefully be a big part of our team. The boys are looking to defend their regional title from last year, but we will see a lot of good competition.”