2025 Clutch Sports Media Boys Golf All-Area Teams: 41 Central Illinois golfers earn honors

2025 was a banner year for Central Illinois boys golfers and for the first time in its seven-year history, Clutch Sports Media is proud to recognize the top athletes in Central Illinois with its All-Area teams. 

Normal U-High and Washington headlined the season with numerous victories before tying each other for first place at the Class 2A State Finals. Normal U-High won the title in a playoff for its 11th state title in program history while Washington’s runner-up finish marked the Panthers’ best state finish in program history. 

Dunlap junior Nolan Eccles became the first state champion in boys golf from the area since 2019, while several other area stars finished among the best in the whole state. 

Golfers from the 39 schools in the Clutch Sports Media coverage area surrounding Peoria and Bloomington/Normal were eligible to be nominated for the All-Area teams, which feature a total of 41 golfers. 

Clutch Sports Media will also have a Coach of the Year and a Boys Golfer of the Year, which will both be announced shortly. All of the All-Area nominees below are listed by team, then in alphabetical order. 

Clutch Sports Media All-Area First Team

Brody Allen, junior, Normal U-High 

Allen was the top golfer for Class 2A state champion Normal U-High and led the Pioneers to the title by finishing as the state runner-up. Allen shot 72-68 at the Class 2A State Finals at Weibring Golf Club and was the champion at the Bloomington Regional after firing a 72. The Pioneers’ ace carried an 18-hole scoring average of 70.9 through the season and won several tournaments, including the Bloomington/Normal Intercity Tournament (68) and the Champaign Central Invitational (71). Allen also racked up top-5 finishes at the Pekin Dragon Classic (70-73), PND Invite (70), Danville Viking Invitational (73), and Ottawa Pirate Invitational (69).

Jack Coulter, junior, Peoria Notre Dame

Coulter cobbled together an outstanding regular season in his junior year, winning several tournaments with sizzling scores. The Irish junior shot a 75 to finish T8 at the Class 2A PND Regional and tied for 32nd at the Class 2A Bloomington Sectional. Coulter won three of the area’s biggest regular season events including the Pekin Dragon Classic, where he shot 65-69 to set a new tournament record by four strokes. His other wins included the Raider/Redbird Classic (65) and the Limestone Invitational (65); Coulter also tied for first at the PND Invite with a 68 lost on a scorecard playoff. He finished third at the Big 12 Conference Tournament and had a season scoring average of 71.3. 

Shane Cunningham, freshman, Richwoods

Cunningham established himself as the next upcoming face of boys golf in the area in his freshman season, which culminated in shooting 77-80 to finish T42 at the Class 3A State Finals at The Den at Fox Creek. Cunningham displayed maturity beyond his age by winning the Big 12 Conference tournament with a 74, was the runner-up at the Class 3A Pekin Regional (75) and tied for third at the Class 3A Lockport Sectional (75). The freshman also finished third at the Metamora Redbird Classic and Limestone Invitational and took sixth at the PND Invite. 

Nolan Eccles, junior, Dunlap

Eccles put a bow on a fantastic junior season with a Class 2A state title, shooting 69-68 at Weibring Golf Club to win by three strokes over Normal U-High’s Brody Allen and Belleville Althoff’s Carson Tribout. In doing so, Eccles became the first Peoria-area boys golf state champion since Peoria Christian’s Weston Walker in 2019 and the first Dunlap boys golf state champion since Tony Turner in 1993. It was Eccles’ second consecutive top-10 performance after finishing T7 in 2023. Eccles began his postseason with a runner-up showing at the Class 2A Macomb Regional (70) and tying for fourth at the Class 2A Bloomington Sectional (73). The Dunlap star earned first-team all-Mid Illini honors during the regular season and had several top-10 finishes at key tournaments. His best came at the IVC Invite, which he won and set a new course record of 61 at Arrowhead Country Club.

Colin Kemp, sophomore, Pekin

Kemp competed at the top of the state’s most competitive class, closing out his sophomore year by tying for fourth at the Class 3A State Finals with rounds of 68 and 74 at The Den at Fox Creek. Kemp grabbed key wins at the Class 3A Pekin Sectional (72) and at the Mid-Illini Conference Tournament, in which he fired a 70 and won in a 3-hole playoff over Washington’s Gavin Schreurs. The Dragons’ sophomore had multiple top-10 finishes in key tournaments and earned first-team all-Mid Illini honors. 

Gavin Schreurs, senior, Washington 

A star in Central Illinois for multiple seasons, Schreurs capped his high school career by leading Washington to its best season in program history as the Panthers finished second at the Class 2A State Finals and fell to Normal U-High in a fifth-score tiebreaker. Schreurs took fourth place at state, carding rounds of 71 and 70 at Weibring Golf Club. The Panthers’ ace came through with several key rounds in the postseason, winning the Class 2A PND Regional — which Washington won with a school-record score of 283 — with a 68 and tying for fourth at the Class 2A Bloomington Sectional with a 73. Schreurs was the runner-up at the Mid-Illini Conference Tournament and led the Panthers to the Mid-Illini team title, earning first-team all-conference honors. The Bradley commit also won the PND Invite with a 68, finished second at the Metamora Redbird Classic and placed third at Bloomington’s Mia Gordon Memorial Tournament. 

Clutch Sports Media All-Area Second Team

Court Bohanon, junior, Washington 

No team can be as successful as Washington’s was without players like Bohanon, who finished 11th at the Class 2A State Finals with matching rounds of 74. The junior provided several low scores to help Washington win multiple matches and tournaments during the season. His best finish came at the 36-hole, 30-team Pekin Dragon Classic with rounds of 70 and 71 at Pekin Country Club and Lick Creek Golf Course, respectively, to place second overall. Bohanon was fourth at the Class 2A PND Regional (72) and tied for 14th at the Class 2A Bloomington Sectional with a 75. He also earned second-team all-Mid Illini honors. 

Grady Burrell, sophomore, Delavan

Burrell has a bright future ahead and proved it with a T22 finish at the Class 1A State Finals, firing rounds of 79 and 78 at Prairie Vista Golf Course. The sophomore’s strong work ethic was on display with several strong showings, including runner-up placements at the Class 1A Tri-Valley Regional (73), Tomahawk Conference Tournament (74) and Inter-County Conference Tournament (72). Burrell shot a 78 to take 11th at the Class 1A Jacksonville Routt Sectional and advance to state and also carded a 76 for a third-place finish at Petersburg PORTA’s Ray Toland Invite. The star Panther carried an 18-hole scoring average of 75.4. 

Crew Fortin, junior Illini Bluffs

Fortin made a strong case as the premier small-school golfer in the Peoria and Bloomington/Normal area in 2025, racking up three top-10 finishes in the postseason. The Tigers’ junior finished ninth at the Class 1A State Finals at Prairie Vista Golf Course (77-73), tied for fifth at the Class 1A Jacksonville Routt Sectional with a 76 and won the Class 1A Tri-Valley Regional, carding a 72. Fortin won the Tomahawk Conference Tournament with a 73, tied for fifth at the Inter-County Conference Tournament with a 78 and led the Tigers to victories in multiple matches during the season. He finished the year with an 18-hole scoring average of 75.5.

Dawson Freeman, sophomore, Normal U-High 

Freeman was part of a loaded Normal U-High lineup that helped the Pioneers win the Class 2A State title and finish second at the Class 2A Bloomington Sectional. The sophomore won the Central State Eight Conference Tournament by firing a 68, a score that he matched to win the Danville Viking Invitational. Freeman added a runner-up finish at the Bloomington/Normal Intercity Tournament with a 70 and finished in the top 10 on several other occasions, including at the Ottawa Pirate Invitational (73, T9) and Champaign Central Invitational (76, sixth). Freeman ended his year with rounds of 78 and 79 to tie for 42nd at the Class 2A State Finals and carried an 18-hole scoring average of 74.7.

Jack Quinn, sophomore, Normal U-High 

Quinn played alongside several impressive teammates, but was a strong player in his own right with more than a handful of top-5 showings. The Pioneers’ sophomore tied for 11th at the Class 2A State Finals at Weibring Golf Club (74-74) after finishing as the runner-up via a strong round of 68 at the Class 2A Bloomington Sectional. Quinn racked up third-place finishes at the Class 2A Normal U-High Regional (75), Bloomington/Normal Intercity Tournament (73), Champaign Central Invitational (75) and Danville Viking Invitational (74). Quinn, who boasted an 18-hole scoring average of 75.9, also tied for fourth at the Ottawa Pirate Invitational with a 69 and came in fifth at the 30-team Pekin Dragon Classic with two rounds of 72. 

Dominic Yocum, senior, Washington

Yocum was an integral part of Washington’s state runner-up season and emerged as one of the stronger golfers in Central Illinois. The first-team all-Mid Illini player was third at the Class 2A PND Regional with a 69 and followed it up with a T9 finish at the Class 2A Bloomington Sectional with a 74. Yocum ended his senior season by tying for 31st at the Class 2A State Finals (80-74) at Weibring Golf Club. His 74 at the Mid-Illini Conference Tournament helped Washington repeat as conference champions and gave him sixth place overall. 

Clutch Sports Media All-Area Honorable Mention 

Owen Adams, senior, Morton

Ethan Barnes, junior, Olympia

Lee Bolliger, freshman, Morton

RJ Duncheon, senior, East Peoria

Isaiah Farraher, sophomore, Metamora

Aiden Foster, junior, Washington

Drew Gama, senior, Peoria Christian

Sean Graham, junior, Peoria Notre Dame

Nick Herget, junior, Dunlap

Chase Hopper, junior, Morton

Mason Kenny, senior, Peoria Notre Dame

Jordan Kerr, senior, Metamora

Trace Knight-Garlisch, sophomore, Delavan

Hayden Lochbaum, senior, Richwoods

John Martin, senior, Eureka

Parker McDermott, senior, Normal West

Griffin Meeker, senior, Tremont

Vaughn Oakey, senior, Bloomington Central Catholic

Michael Ocheltree, junior, Normal U-High

Alex O'Leary, sophomore, Peoria Notre Dame

Dominic Rosa, senior, Midland

Jacob Schulz, junior, Eureka

Carter Senko, junior, Fieldcrest

Dash Simpson, sophomore, Tri-Valley

Will Snyder, freshman, Brimfield

Drew Stevens, senior, Normal Community

Kayden Turner, sophomore, Peoria High

Nicholas Unes, senior, East Peoria

Ty Zeller, senior, Bloomington Cornerstone Christian