Providence does a dance in the rain

JOLIET — Gabe Aprati's last shot was about his only keeper.

John Thomas put a low number on the board.

Later, Ryan Monahan and Mike Sweeney turned in their best rain dances.

The four teamed with Jeremy Lackey and Evan Berna to help the Providence Catholic High School boys golf team survive the cut at the Joliet Township Regional.

On a damp and soggy Tuesday afternoon, the Celtics won a sixth-man tiebreaker to nab the final sectional qualifying spot at Inwood.

Thomas shot a 3-over-par 74 -- good for a tie for third place -- and led the way for Providence.

The Celtics bunched six players with scores between 74 and 80 and finished with a team total of 306. Monahan and Sweeney played their steadiest golf in the rain. Both strung together four straight pars to finish at 77.

"I knew I had to do something to help us pull through," Sweeney said. "On the last five holes, I got really wet. It started raining really hard.

"But on the last four holes I had birdie putts on every hole. I didn't make any of them. But I was right there. My hands were wet. I just stuck them in my pockets. I tried to keep dry as much as I could. And I kept it going."

Berna added a round of 78 for Providence. Aprati and Lackey shot 80 -- well over their averages for the regular season, but good enough to push the Celtics past Lincoln-Way East in the end.

The Griffins, who edged Providence in a tie-breaker at LaSalle-Peru on Saturday, had the tables turned on them despite also finishing at 306. They settled for fourth place.

Neuqua Valley won the regional championship in a show of power and depth. The Wildcats' six golfers sizzled with rounds between 73 and 76 and wound up with a total of 298.

Waubonsie Valley, led by individual medalist Thomas O'Bryan, took second at 305. O'Bryan shot 2-over 73 and dropped a five-footer for birdie to edge Neuqua Valley's Kyle Geist on the third playoff hole.

The top three teams and top eight individuals not on qualifying teams move on to play in the 3A Pekin Sectional on Monday at Lick Creek.

"Actually, our No. 1 and 2 guys didn't come in too well, but we had some clutch play by the last guys coming in," said Thomas, a junior left-hander who had nine-hole scores of 39 and 35.

"We've got a pretty deep team all the way around. And it just shows if one or two guys don't play well, we can still come in solid."

Aprati, a sophomore who has emerged as the Celtcis' ace, felt like his game was more shaky than solid -- right up until the end.

"I struggled all day," he said. "I had a couple of missed greens. I wasn't chipped the ball very well. And I was pretty hot coming off 17. I three-putted for a bogey there. I stepped up on 18 and hit it as hard as I could. I hit the green and just happened to drain a 40-footer."

His eagle on the 295-yard, par-4 finishing hole stole much of the thunder from his playing partners. Lincoln-Way East's Brian Bullington, Lincoln-Way Central's Ryan Carney and Neuqua Valley's Stephen Powers all birdied the last hole.

Bullington shot 75 and finished in a six-way tie for fifth place. The logjam at 75 also included two other local players -- Lincoln-Way East's Shane McGowan and Lockport's Ryan Frederick.

Bullington and McGowan were two of the four players from East to advance as individuals. Dan Petrarca shot 77 and Adam Sajewich 79.

Lockport and Lincoln-Way Central each qualified three individuals. The Porters had a team total of 311 and Knights 317. Both scores would have been good enough to qualify at another site.

Frederick was the low man for Lockport, which was bidding to win its sixth straight regional crown. Adam Saban shot 77 and Jake Kuper 79. Carney and Ricky Palonis topped Lincoln-Way Central with 78s. Will Knights shot 79.

"This definitely has to be one of the toughest regionals in the state, if not the toughest," Frederick said. "I got lucky to get my round in before the rain. But it was definitely windy early, and it stayed that way the whole round, really. The wind was the biggest factor.

"We have a lot of talent on our team. We just didn't bring it all today. We just didn't have it. We actually beat Neuqua earlier this year. So, we know we can hang with those guys. We just didn't play well."