Whips' Ellett, BC take honors at BNC meet

She may not be Michelle Wie just yet, but Hampshire freshman Taylor Ellett is certainly making her mark on Fox Valley area girls golf.

Fighting the elements as well as the course, Ellett earned individual championship honors at the Big Northern Conference Golf Tournament Wednesday after shooting a 91 on the par-72 Timber Pointe Golf Course in Poplar Grove.

Scoring the lowest amongst some 54 individual golfers and 10 teams contending, Ellett helped Hampshire to a fifth-place overall finish with a total 476 strokes.

"It was definitely one of my goals this year," said Ellett of the conference title. "I was pretty happy with the way I played today. You can always play better but I drove the ball well and after a while my chipping came around."

Ellett's coach and mom, Sue, was equally pleased with her daughter's performance.

"I'm extremely proud," said Sue Ellett, whose team will play in the Class A St. Edward regional at The Highlands of Elgin next Wednesday. "It's rewarding to see her hard work pay off. I thought she really managed the golf course well today. She stayed out of trouble."

Burlington Central shot its way to the team title, shooting a 434.

"The course played extremely tough," said BC coach Deb Twenhafel. "I didn't think we were going to make it, but our girls didn't fall apart."

Erica Maisto led the Rockets after shooting a 105, which was good enough for sixth-place individual honors. Jordan Maisto and Erin Cisneros finished among the Top 10 with matching 108s while Nicole Brown (110), Taylor Colby (111) and Dena Capitani (112) followed respectively, filling slots 11-14.

"Jordan, Erin, Nicole and Dena all came through for us," said Twenhafel. "We couldn't have done it without everybody contributing.

Bre Mariotti recorded a 133 finish for the Rockets.

"These girls have picked one another up all season," Twenhafel said. "This is one of my most deserving teams to win a conference title by far.

"They worked very hard all year to achieve it."

While Ellett led the Whips, they also had good rounds from Alex Field who shot a 117, Jessie Van Durin (128) and Stephanie Hermann (140). Taylor Zilek added a 152. Field finished 17th overall.

"Taylor had some tough holes, but she didn't give up and fought her way back," said Twenhafel.