Three area golfers advance to finals
BEALLSVILLE – Brandon Noonan fortunately had some room to spare, so the Geibel Catholic golfer was able to chuckle about his last approach shot at the WPIAL Boys Individual Semifinal regional Monday at Nemacolin Country Club. Noonan somehow managed to bounce his shot from the fairway into the 18th green into one of the evergreen trees surrounding the back of the green. He wisely opted for an unplayable lie to salvage the hole and finish with an 18-round total of 3-over par 75.
Fellow Gator James McGrath and Connellsville’s Jonathan Luczka were also among the 10 golfers to advance from the southern regional semifinal qualifier into next Tuesday’s WPIAL Boys Individual Golf Championship at Sewickley Heights Golf Course.
“I couldn’t keep away from the trees,” said Noonan. “It would’ve been nice to par No. 18 and finish with a 73.”
Noonan also had problems with trees on No. 9 when his tee shot ricocheted off a couple trees and settled near the roots. He missed a chance at a par save when his putt slid past the hole, finishing the front nine with a one-over 39.
“I was playing just under 40 on the front. I was on cruise control,” said Noonan. “I figured I just needed to make pars and birdies on the back, stay around par. I just wanted to make it out (of the semifinals) into the final.”
Noonan, like most of those gathered around the scoreboard, was surprised with the qualifying scores. Greensburg Central Catholic’s Nic Mililo shot a medallist round of 2-under 70 with the cut at 77.
“(The scores) are a lot lower than I thought it would be. It’s fair. (The course) is playing a lot better than I thought,” said Noonan.
McGrath went out in 40, but finished in one-under 33 to tie with Luczka and Penn Trafford’s Shane Miller for second place. He birdied No. 9 after a double bogey on No. 5 and a bogey on No. 8 on the front, and stuck a birdie on No. 11, a par-3, around eight pars on the back.
“I didn’t catch too many breaks,” said McGrath, who did get a fortuitous bounce leading to his tap-in birdie on No. 9.
“I actually had a double-hit on No. 5 out of the bunker.
“I thought 75, 76 maybe a little high. I played really conservatively. I just wanted to get through to next week. Keep it straight on the fairway. Play steady and not make any big numbers. It doesn’t matter if you’re first or 10th.”
The Gators played without Joel Hood present with the Geibel Catholic head coach recovering from surgery done early last week.
“We’re really happy he’s doing well. It’s definitely disappointing he’s not here,” said McGrath. “He’s the best thing that’s happened to this team. He’s great. He’s our biggest supporter.”
Luczka was cruising right along on the front with a 2-under 36, including an eagle on No. 2, a 442-yard par-5. The Falcon shot a 4-over 37 on the back to tie for second.
“I made an eagle on No. 2 so I was 2-under after two holes. From there, I knew I just had to hang on,” said Luczka, who advanced to the championship for the first time. “I played one shot at a time. I made some putts.
“I have lots of confidence. It certainly helps.”
Latrobe’s Ken Porembka (74) and Hempfield’s Kyle McCullough (76) easily made the cut, but Hempfield’s John Skonezny, Indiana’s Sean Swiethelm and Latrobe’s Sean Knaus had to go to a playoff for the final two berths after the trio finished tied at 77.
Skonezny and Swiethelm parred the first hole for the ninth and 10th berths while Knaus’ bogey made him the first alternate.
Belle Vernon’s Brian Luzanski was in the lead group so he had to wait around a long while to see if his 78 would stand. The Leopard golfer was having a good time of it until No. 15 rolled around, a 377-yard par-4. Luzanski went out-of-bounds which led to an eight to take the steam out of his round.
“I was 2-over on the front, but got it to 1-over after 14. Then I hit OB on No. 15, took and eight, and that was it,” said Luzanski. “It was a great round, otherwise.”
DIVOTS: Laurel Highlands’ Matt Hoover was also a stroke off the cut with a 78. … Brownsville’s Ron Jones shot a 79. … Porembka had the low round on the front nine with a 35. … Mililo’s 31 was the best on the back. … The top 16 of the 40 golfers in the WPIAL Championship will advance to the PIAA Championships on Oct. 24-25.