MARENGO – After ending her Class 2A Huntley Girls Golf Sectional round with a putt for par, Crystal Lake Central co-op senior Kat Bevill let out a huge smile and got a hug on the 18th green at Blackstone from Tigers coach Kyle McCaughn.
When Bevill was announced as the 10th individual to qualify for Friday's state meet, the four-year varsity golfer was on the receiving end of another warm embrace – this time from teammate Molly Lyne.
Bevill and Lyne, a junior at Cary-Grove, both advanced from Monday's sectional and will be among a select group to compete at the state meet at Hickory Point in Decatur.
Bevill is making her first trip, and Lyne is going for the third year in a row.
Lyne tied for sixth with a 2-over-par 74, and Bevill posted a 79 to take the last qualifying spot among individuals not on advancing teams. Barrington's Nicole Ciskowski had a 4-under 68 to earn medalist honors.
Barrington won the sectional team title with a 298, St. Charles North (306) was second and Stevenson (314) was third. Central co-op finished fifth with a 331, and Prairie Ridge (374) was 10th.
Bevill wasn't sure whether a 79 would be good enough to qualify, despite it being her best score in four years at sectionals.
"Five minutes before we found out, I was in the corner crying," said Bevill, who fired a 38 on the front nine and a 41 on the back. "I was so upset and worried, and nervous. Four years later, I'm finally here and happy."
"It means everything. I've worked so hard. It all needed to come together today, and it did."
McCaughn, who took over when Bevill was a freshman, was thrilled to see her advance to state.
"She’s a kid who has worked so hard and deserves it," McCaughn said. "She did everything she could do today, and she felt good about that. You hate to feel like you left strokes out there. She didn’t feel that way."
Lyne was equally excited to see Bevill move on.
"Last year, [2018 graduate Rylie Schurter] just missed it by one, and that basically killed me," Lyne said. "I was crying, and I made it. I'm so happy for Kat, and I'm so excited to share a hotel with her. It's gonna be a blast."
Lyne and Bevill were the only two local golfers to advance to state. Central co-op's Renata Petersen and Jacobs' Lauren Kempf missed by four shots, each shooting 83s. Jacobs' Roslyn Leitner had an 84, and Huntley's Katie Matustik had an 85.
McHenry's Sarah Fergus had an 87, Woodstock co-op's Kenna Miles had an 88, and Marian Central's Lauren McNulty and Danielle Lattanzio had 89s. Dundee-Crown's Alyssa Trebat and Central co-op's Arden Podpora had 95s, and Hampshire's Delaney Marcuccilli had a 98.
Prairie Ridge, which won its first regional since 2012, was led by seniors Morgan Taylor (88), Sophia Pascente (90) and Grace VanHyfte (95).
"They were tremendous leaders," Wolves coach Sarah Kazlauskas said. "It was incredible to watch them work with our underclassmen. They were great role models, great golfers and great people."
STAR OF THE MEET
Kat Bevill
Crystal Lake Central co-op
Bevill fired a 7-over-par 79 to earn her first state appearance. The senior was the 10th and final individual to advance.
THE NUMBER
3: Cary-Grove junior Molly Lyne is making her third straight state appearance
AND ANOTHER THING ...
Central co-op's team score of 331 was 31 shots better than its regional score from last week. The Tigers took fifth among teams. Prairie Ridge shot a 374 and placed 10th.
Class 2A Huntley Girls Golf Sectional
at Blackstone in Marengo, par 72
Medalist: Nicole Ciskowski (Barrington) 68
Team scores (top 3 advance to state): 1. Barrington 298, 2. St. Charles North 306, 3. Stevenson 314, 4. Prospect 330, 5. Crystal Lake Central co-op 331, 6. Geneva 347, 7. Warren 355, 8. Lake Forest 356, 9. Rockford Lutheran 361, 10. Prairie Ridge 374, 11. Libertyville 376, 12. Rockford Guilford 398
Top-10 individuals (not on advancing teams): 1. Emma Carpenter (DeKalb) 69, 2. Adrienne Rohwedder (Wheeling) 73, 3. Molly Lyne (CLC) 74, 4. Katelyn Sayyalinh (RG), 5. Cate Reisinger (St. Viator) 76, 6. Natalie Hooper (RL) 76, 7. Emily Fleming (Prospect) 78, 8. Grace Baddeley (Deerfield) 78, 9. Brighton Young (Harlem) 78, 10. Kat Bevill (CLC) 79
Local team results
Crystal Lake Central (331): Molly Lyne 74, Kat Bevill 79, Renata Petersen 83, Arden Podpora 95, Joella Greeley 108, Abby Rubsam 114
Prairie Ridge (374): Morgan Taylor 88, Sophia Pascente 90, Grace VanHyfte 95, Elizabeth Tucker 101, Alexis Baron 115, Jo Gindorf 117
Local individuals: Lauren Kempf (Jacobs) 83, Roslyn Leitner (Jacobs) 84, Katie Matustik (Huntley) 85, Sarah Fergus (McHenry) 87, Kenna Miles (Woodstock co-op) 88, Lauren McNulty (Marian Central) 89, Danielle Lattanzio (Marian Central) 89, Alyssa Trebat (Dundee-Crown), Delaney Marcuccilli (Hampshire) 98