Naperville Central girls golf defeats Neuqua Valley to open DVC play

After a summer of practice, IHSA Girls Golf is back in action at Naperbrook Golf Course. We have the DVC opener between the hosts, Naperville Central girls’ golf, and the 2024 conference champion, Neuqua Valley. The Wildcats enter their first year under head coach Steve Treptow, while the Redhawks return all but one varsity player from last season’s team. This highlight is sponsored by BMO.

A Wildcat and Redhawk secure pars on the opening hole

We begin on hole one with Wildcat junior, Malar Anand. The Wildcat’s second shot lands right of the flag and just stays on the putting surface. She putts for birdie, but leaves it a little short and would hit her next putt for par.

Wrapping up action on hole one, we’re with Redhawk Mae Binkowski– she hits her third shot right below the pin, setting up a good look. She steps up and drains it to start the day with a par.

Nine pars or better recorded on the par three, fourth hole

Over to the par three fourth hole, and Anand is on the tee for Neuqua. She sticks it behind the pin and get’s it to stop on a dime. She locks in on the birdie read, and hits it to perfection– watching it drop right down the cup.

Over to Anand’s teammate and playing partner, Aditi Reddy. The Wildcat’s teeshot is just as good, and she also applies some spin on it. Reddy tries to make it two birdies for the top Wildcat group, but the putt just slides to the left. She still taps in for par.

Now with the top Redhawk pairing for the day, and first with Erin Hackett. Her tee-shot lands right behind the flag, and some backspin helps the ball get even closer! Hackett goes for birdie, and she watches it stop inches away from the cup, but still secures a par.

After a second straight sectional appearance, Central’s Ashika Patel gets her day started with a nice tee shot on the par three fourth. She attempts a long birdie putt, and it tracks well towards the hole but misses to the right. Patel secures the par.

Wildcat Ellie Rogers made it to Sectionals last season, and she’s on the 4th hole green with a chance for birdie. She leaves it a little bit short, but would secure a par on her next putt.

Binkowski is another Redhawk who qualified for Sectionals in 2025, and here she is again with a great approach shot. On the birdie putt, Binkowski rolls it well, but misses a tad to the left and picks up a par.

After hitting the green on the tee shot, Central’s Alexa Miller steps up with a similar birdie look to Patel. It comes up short, but Miller looks to rebound on the par putt–and she does! A solid par from the Redhawk junior.

 We’re still at hole four, as Central senior, Poppy Marusin, steps up to the tee-box with a nice approach. Her downhill birdie putt rolls a little short, but she’s able to secure a par.

Closing out our coverage on the fourth hole with Redhawk newcomer Lia Elliot. She lands it on the front of the green, and watch it track towards the pin! Elliot comes up close to an ace, but the ball rolls past the cup. Elliot putts for a birdie, but it doesn’t have much break on it and records par.

Naperville Central girls golf takes down Neuqua by four strokes in a shortened matchup

Moving to the par four, sixth hole–  Patel comes off a birdie on the fifth and now chips from off the front of the green. She applies a nice touch on it, and the ball comes up inches away from a birdie! The Redhawk would tap in her par.

With thunderstorms approaching, golfers are picking up the pace in an effort to complete the match. Anand is on the fairway for Neuqua, and she gets her approach to check up. She putts for birdie and applies a little too much power on it. The Wildcat does make a par and finishes with a score of 41.

Thunderstorms force the DVC opener to end early, with only the first group finishing all nine holes. Patel led the day with a score of 38 for Central, helping the Redhawks to an 88-92 victory.