Nov. 30, 2005
NORMAL, Ill. -
Three 2005 IHSA Top-10 finishers will join the Illinois State men's golf team in 2006. Drew Miller led his University High School team to its third consecutive state title by finishing tied for eighth place after the team made the leap to Class AA in 2005. Tommy Bliefnick, of Decatur St. Teresa, and Drew North, of El-Paso Gridley, both tied for 10th place at state in Class A. All three recruits were regional medalists.
Head coach Ray Kralis believes that the recruits are "tournament-tested" and will form the nucleus for the future of Redbird golf.
"These three are proven competitors on the national level," said Kralis. "They are used to winning, and want to compete against the best. They all have a lot of confidence, and their desire to be the best that they can be is very appealing to the coaching staff."
Bliefnick (pronounced BLEEF-nick), a native of Decatur, Ill., finished tied for 10th place at the 2005 IHSA Class A State Tournament and tied for 11th place at the 2004 IHSA Class A State Tournament. He also posted a second-place finish at sectionals and a first-place finish at regionals, both in 2005. He tied for 14th place at the 2005 Pepsi Little Peoples Championship and finished in fourth-place at the PGA Junior Series Championship at Lexington, Ky.
Miller finished tied for eighth place at the 2005 IHSA Class AA State Tournament, leading his team to its third consecutive state title. Miller finished tied for fourth-place at the IHSA Class A State Tournament in 2004 and tied for sixth-place in 2003. The Bloomington, Ill., native won the 2005 Bloomington-Normal Two-Man Best Position Tournament with his brother Matt, a current member of the Illinois State golf team. Miller finished in fourth-place at the 2005 Illinois State Junior Amateur Tournament and tied for 34th place at the Illinois State Amateur Tournament which included a 127 player field loaded with the state's best talent.
North, an El Paso, Ill. native, finished tied for 10th place at the 2005 IHSA Class A State Tournament, reaching the tournament by winning regionals and finishing second at sectionals. North finished in eighth-place at the 2005 Illinois State Junior Amateur Tournament and tied for 19th place at the 2005 Pepsi Little Peoples Championship. North also qualified and competed in the 2005 Junior World Golf Championship and made the cut at the 2005 Optimist International Junior World Golf Championship.
"I expect all three to have an immediate impact," said Kralis. "All three of our recruits have had success at the state and national level. They all love the game of golf and are personally motivated to continue their improvement."
