The golf team wins the school’s first state championship – Shaw Local

NORMAL – Ottawa Township High School’s 107-year wait for athletic glory is over.

The Pirates finally won an IHSA state sports championship, with the boys golf team accomplishing the feat in the 2A state finals at Illinois State’s Weibring Golf Course.

With a total of 41 holes over par 609 on a summer day, the Pirates achieved a seven-shot victory over the Benton Rangers. Burlington Central took third place with a 52-over 620, the Rockets’ first trophy in golf.

Proving that youth golf is virtually impossible to handicap, the Pirates were led by their fifth man, junior Jacob Armstrong, whose rounds of 72 and 77 at 7-over 149 not only earned him a tie for ninth place in the individual competition, But the Pirates also set the pace with a three-shot lead over senior Chandler Creedon.

Armstrong explained that a positive mindset was the key to his score.

“My driver held and I made a few putts,” Armstrong said. “But I had a lot of problems mentally throughout the year. Normally I’m a crazy golfer. I worked really hard to not be a crazy golfer. I was as positive as I could be going into this tournament and it worked.

“You just have to realize that you play golf because it’s fun, so have fun. If you get stuck with the bad shots, you’ll hit more bad shots. It’s like a domino effect.”

This time the dominoes – and the putts – fell happily for Armstrong and his colleagues. The steady play of Armstrong, Creedon and Bryer Harris, playing on the first pitch, earned them the trophy. Armstrong made pars on the final five holes, while Creedon and Harris each made pars on the final four holes.

“For me, the outcome depends on my ability to cope with myself,” Armstrong said. “I didn’t play particularly well at the beginning. I still didn’t hit the best, but I made putts.”

Creedon matched Armstrong’s 77 points while Harris scored 78 points on Saturday. Colt Bryson’s 79 was the fourth count.

Pirates coach Keith Budzowski, in his ninth year, was more happy for his players than himself.

“It’s huge for Ottawa High School, the community and the kids,” Budzowski said. “First state championship, that’s the icing on the cake. These kids work so hard. They spent so much time in the offseason working on their game. To be able to show up and do it on those two days is just a lot of pressure. It shows the depth of our team.

“It’s crazy to think I’m a part of this.”

Creedon, who is graduating early, comes away in high form.

“It means everything,” Creedon said. “It was a struggle, but it paid off in the end. I think we deserve it more than anyone else here.”

On winning a state team championship, Creedon said, “It’s going to be huge…man, I don’t even know what to say.”

Burlington Central was almost as surprising with third place as Ottawa was with the overall win. The Rockets were led by junior Tyler Samaan, who finished 1-under 70, a round that included four birdies, 10 shots off his 80 on Friday. With a total score of 8 over 150, he placed 11th.

“We won the conference for the first time, then the section, now this,” Samaan said. “It’s pretty cool. We were hoping for first place, but you can’t always get that.

“It’s just a starting point for me. I can build on that for the rest of the year, some IJGA and AJGA tournaments.”

Lemont was briefly in trophy position early Saturday, but then fell to eighth place despite the hard work of junior Joey Scott, whose 72-75 for 5-over 147 put him in a tie for seventh. He was 1-over until a triple bogey on the par-3 17th and a bogey at the end.

“I’m happy with my performance and the team’s performance,” said Scott. “The best part of the week was just hanging out with the team.”

Nazareth finished in seventh place after finishing second after the first round. The Roadrunners were led Saturday by junior Gray Musker, who shot 8-over 79 and managed just one birdie. Their four scorers averaged 82 in the final round.

Regan Konen of Marmion won a three-way sudden-death playoff on the second extra hole to capture the individual title. He again became the Class 2A state champion. Konen and Wheaton Academy teammates Ben Patel and Own Coniaris were tied at 2-under 140.

But Ottawa was the story. After back-to-back heartbreaking outings in group play, including narrowly missing out on a state berth last year, the Pirates not only reached the final weekend, they owned it.

“We came here and we were all confident,” Armstrong said. “When we came in here we really felt like a team. It was a lot of fun coming in here.”

And so much fun for 36 holes that the school suddenly needs a new trophy case.