On one hand, Oswego East boys golf coach Jim Vera said senior Zach Johnson is a lot of fun to watch. On the other hand, Vera is a very superstitious man.

“Zach hasn’t bogied many times at all this year,” Vera said. “But I think every time I’ve watched him myself, I’ve seen one.”

As such, Vera tends to make a habit of following his other golfers and letting Johnson forge his own path. Johnson probably had to thank him for doing that Wednesday, but he missed one heck of a performance.

Johnson cruised to the Southwest Prairie Conference Championship at Fox Bend Golf Course in Oswego on Wednesday morning. He finished with a 3-under par 69 for first place, while also being named SPC MVP of the season. To top it off, he led Oswego East to the team championship as they finished with a score of 296.

“It feels great,” Johnson said of winning MVP. “It was pretty easy going for the most part [today]. This team has put in a whole bunch of work, so it’s awesome.”

“Awesome” would be a fitting word for the Wolves’ performance Wednesday. Johnson’s teammate Logan Hong finished in fourth place with a 73, while sophomore Jack Malm was eighth at 77. Jack Steele finished just outside of the top 10 on a tiebreaker, but he also finished with a 77.

Of the 84 golfers participating, six of Oswego East’s eight finished in the top 20.

“This is an extremely special group of guys,” Vera said. “We’ve been building on the success we’ve had the past couple of years. This is 100% because of the work that they’ve put in during the offseason. I just sign the lineup card. This is all because of the effort that these guys have put in.”

In addition to Johnson winning MVP, Oswego East had Hong, Malm and Brayden Rusin make the All-Conference team for the year. Rusin finished with an 86 on Wednesday.

The runner-up for the day was Yorkville’s Carter Humbers, who finished at 71. Plainfield South’s Jonah Powell was third at even par 72. Both also made the All-Conference team for the season, with Humbers finishing runner-up to Johnson.

As for their teams, Plainfield South was ninth (346) on Wednesday, with Yorkville finishing sixth (320). The Foxes did have one more golfer finish in the top 10 in sophomore Ian Saar, who carded a 77, good for ninth. He, too, made the All-Conference team.

The final four spots in the top 10 were occupied by golfers from Plainfield North and Oswego. Declan Chavez took 10th on the tiebreaker at 77 while fellow Panther Jax Baker was sixth with a 74. The Tigers’ two golfers were Patrick Cosgrove (seventh) and Sam Espinosa (fifth).

All four were All-Conference selections as well. Fellow Oswego golfers Chase Knutson and Carter Anderson made the All-Conference team, as did Plainfield North’s Evan Lee. On Wednesday, Knutson finished with an 81, Anderson with an 83, and Lee an 85.

Oswego was the runner-up, ending with a score of 311, while Plainfield North was third at 315.

Minooka came in fourth, with Gabe Ciesielski leading them with a 78. Ciesielski was an All-Conference selection along with his teammates Ethan Walsh and Lucas Heap.

“The kids that earn being an All-Conference member [earn] a great honor because it’s a season-long accomplishment,” Minooka coach Jeff Petrovic said. “It shows consistency throughout the season. These kids work really hard, and it’s great to see that hard work pay off.”

Walsh scored an 81 and Heap had an 82.

Plainfield East finished fifth with a 317, and were well represented on the All-Conference team. Trevin McConnell (84), Jett Utrata (78), Evan Orlet (81) and Jake Czerniak (78) all received the honor.

The final All-Conference honoree was Plainfield Central’s Anthony Battaglia, who carded an 84. Plainfield Central finished in 10th (353).

Joliet Township took seventh place (335), Bolingbrook was eighth (341) and Romeoville finished 11th (358).

The regional tournament will take place Wednesday at Wedgewood Golf Course in Plainfield. Plainfield Central will be the host.