High School Golf
Area teams knocked out of WPIAL playoffs If a golf coach were told his team would shoot a score of 389, he would feel pretty good about his squad’s chances of grabbing one of the three spots per site available for the WPIAL Boys Team Golf Championships at Cedarbrook Golf Course’s Gold Course on Thursday.
That’s exactly what Laurel Highlands did Tuesday in the Division I semifinals played at Chippewa Golf Course, but the Mustangs’ score of 389 unfortunately did not make the cut.
The other local teams followed suit with Brownsville in Division I and Division II teams Geibel Catholic, Mapletown, Beth-Center, Southmoreland and Jefferson-Morgan also failing to make the grade for a shot at the district team championship.
Longtime Mustangs coach Don Crawford could hardly believe what he saw unfold in Bentleyville with Pine-Richland firing an amazing team score of 10-over-par 360, or an average of 72 per man. Mt. Lebanon, Peters Township and Penn Trafford all shot 370 with the Blue Devils and Indians ousting Penn-Trafford in a playoff.
“Those are college scores. That’s unreal,” Crawford said. “I thought 390 would win it. We shot 412 when we won in the championship in 1996.”
Medallist for the day was Pine-Richland’s Mike Van Sickle. The two-time WPIAL individual champion shot an 8-under 62.
Chris Bonchosky was low man for the Mustangs with a 71 on the par-70 course.
Santino Marchitello and Andrew Fike both shot 77 while Bruce Burish and Jeremy Boskovitch both carded 82. Matt Hoover’s 83 was thrown out.
“The kids did what I asked them to do,” said Crawford. “I’m proud of my Nos. 4-5-6. I talked to them after No. 18 (the trio started on No. 10) and they played the front nine (as a group) at 4-over.
“I’m proud of these kids. They have done everything I’ve asked of them all year. I have nothing but praise for them for an 18-2 season.”
Brownsville, the second place team to the Mustangs in Division I, Section 2, had a tough round at Hiland Golf Course in Butler. The Falcons were last among the nine teams with a 436. North Allegheny was the low team with a 383 with Shady Side Academy and Trinity tying for second at 385.
Ryan Bashour shot a 10-over 80 for team medallist honors for Brownsville. Ron White carded an 84, Ron Jones finished at 85, and Bryce Conners had an 89. Chuck DeCarlo’s 98 closed the scoring while Joe Machnik’s 104 wasn’t used.
“It was raining, foggy, and the bunkers were full of water,” said Brownsville coach Chris McManus.
For McManus, in his rookie season as coach, and most of the Falcon lineup, the trip to the semifinals was a learning experience.
“It was a learning experience, even for myself. I’ve never been there before. Now we have an idea of what we need to do,” said McManus. “What a great experience in my first year of coaching. It was a blast. What a great way to go out in my first year of coaching.
“We just had a bad round. Bryce Conners finished with an 89 and took a 12 on a par-4. I told them to play the course. We were shooting for around 400. That’s the score that seemed to be good in the past.”
As for the team’s demeanor, McManus added, “They were relaxed. It just wasn’t their day. Unfortunately, it was today.”
Both Crawford and McManus have a week left in their seasons with the PIAA Individual Championships next week in York. Maria Battaglia advanced in the girls playoffs while Bashour will make his first trip.
Geibel Catholic also has a state-qualifying golfer in James McGrath, but the Gators fell just a bit short in their bid to advance to the Division II finals. The Division II, Section 8 champions finished with a team total of 420, 11 strokes behind third place Neshannock in the semifinal played at Fort Cherry Golf Course.
South Fayette, the team to beat, shot 386 on the par-70 course. Vincentian Academy was second with a 401.
“We felt we had four low rounds in the 80s and James would shoot his usual score and we’d qualify,” said Geibel Catholic coach Joel Hood.
McGrath fired a 4-over-par 74, but his was the only score in the 70s. Erio Vignali shot an 84 and Zack Bell had an 85. Geibel’s Nos. 2 and 3 golfers had uncharacteristically bad rounds in Philip Lucostic’s 88 and Ed Spotts’ 89.
“We didn’t play as well as we could. We just didn’t hit the shots today,” said the second-year coach. “This was a great learning experience. We have everyone back next year.
“It was a missed opportunity, but you learn from that. That’s all I can hope. We made the playoffs my first year and won the section in my second season. It’s a nice progression.”
Beth-Center shot a 441 and Mapletown, in the program’s first trip to the playoffs, finished with a 456.
John Curtis and his Jefferson-Morgan six had a long haul to Champion Lakes Golf Course in Bolivar only to be greeted with fog and a cool rain all day. The Rockets shot a 471 to finish eighth in the field of nine. Southmoreland was ninth at 484 with Greensburg Central Catholic having the low score of 411. North Catholic (412) and Shenango (416) also advanced.
Chad Kokoska, who just missed advancing to the state tournament last week, had the third-lowest score of the day with a 6-over 78. The scores of the rest of the squad of underclassmen were Zack Basinger’s 91, Justin Hughes’ 93, Matt Kokoska’s 102, Dylan Blosser’s 107 and Chris Barno’s 117.
“We got some good exposure,” said Jefferson-Morgan coach John Curtis. “The kids understand what goes on. It was very educating for the kids and me.
“The weather affected (play) a little, especially for the 4-5-6 kids. They were trying to do the best they could do. It’s something to work for next year. They’ll play all winter and hopefully come back stronger.”