Golfers Show Depth In Season Debut

Evanston’s golfers proved they can play with the best in the state of Illinois in Thursday’s season debut at The Den in Bloomington.

Now the Wildkits will aim to end their season where they started it --- on the same course where the Illinois High School Association state tournament is held.

Coach Jed Curtis’ squad flashed the potential to become the first ETHS team to qualify for State since 2013 Thursday with an impressive showing at the Prep Tour Showcase hosted by Edwardsville High School. The Wildkits placed fourth in the 16-team field with a team score of 301, behind only Hinsdale Central (293), Geneva (295) and Lyons Township (300).

Senior Harrison Stracks earned 8th in the individual standings with a one-over-par score of 73, and junior Miles Gomberg placed 15th with a 74. The Kits also counted a 76 from freshman Luciano Giangrossi and a 78 from the standout who played mostly at the No. 1 position last year, junior Kieran Low.

“We’ll have a deep team this year,” predicted Evanston head coach Jed Curtis. “I’ve never had a team where so many guys played in so many national tournaments in the summer. We have three fabulous freshmen (Giangrossi, Lester Low, Henry Way) coming in and I think we have a great blend of young freshmen, sophomores and juniors to go with the senior leadership.

“It’s exciting to have such fantastic depth. Several of these guys have the ability to shoot in the low 70s and I think we can compete with anybody.”

Curtis was especially encouraged because the younger Low didn’t compete Thursday and the Kits still turned in a better-than-respectable team score. One of the top young players in the Chicago area, Lester Low nursed back problems through the summer and was held out of Thursday’s lineup as a precautionary measure. But he and classmates Way and Giangrossi already have more course experience than most of the incoming freshmen Curtis has welcomed into the program in his 33 years at ETHS.

Kieran Low is coming off a sophomore season where he finished third at the IHSA regional tourney and 6th at the Central Suburban League South division championships. He was runnerup in the CSL South --- the toughest golf conference in the state of Illinois --- as a freshman.

In the summer, the birdie machine qualified for the three-day Illinois Open professional tournament held in Flossmoor and is believed to be the first ETHS golfer ever to compete in that tourney while still in high school.

Stracks came on strong over the second half of last season and will take on a leadership role on and off the course, along with fellow seniors Tommy Hillbrant, Oscar Gutierrez and Jack Zabala. Also expected to be in the mix are junior Nick Bonaguro and sophomores Henry Schmidt and Derrick Nelson.

“Harrison has really been our rock as team captain. He had a wonderful summer,” Curtis praised. “He’s going to be a great leader for our young guys.

“This was a great way for us to start the season. We’ve never had more than one freshman on the varsity, but so far they’ve been a joy to coach. They root for each other, and they push each other. They’re grinders who have really developed their games, and it’s going to be fun to watch them develop further.”