Sep 28, 2005 By Jim Downey 3 min read

Both teams needed the victory Tuesday at Duck Hollow Golf Club, but the match meant a lot more to the Albert Gallatin golf team than it did to Laurel Highlands. The Mustangs rose to the occasion with an impressive team round with four scores under 40 to defeat the Colonials, 188-200, for a Division I, Section 2 victory.

Laurel Highlands improves to 9-2 in the section with three matches to go, maintaining a match lead over Connellsville after the Falcons’ victory over Brownsville. The Mustangs (11-2) extended their lead to two matches, plus a series sweep, against the Colonials.

Albert Gallatin (8-3, 10-3) travels to Willowbrook Golf Course Thursday to face Belle Vernon, returning home next Tuesday to play Brownsville before closing the season on Oct. 3 on the road at Pleasant Valley Country Club against Connellsville.

“We have three losses. All we have to do is win out,” said Albert Gallatin coach Bernie Wydo. “It’s going to come down to the last match against Connellsville.”

Laurel Highlands is a victory away from clinching a playoff berth. The Mustangs travel to Rohanna’s Golf Course Thursday to play Waynesburg Central, stay home at Duck Hollow next Tuesday against Belle Vernon and close the season next Thursday against Uniontown.

“We have both of the Connellsville and Albert Gallatin matches out of the way. Albert Gallatin and Connellsville still have to play one another,” said Laurel Highlands coach Don Crawford. “We’re in the position all coaches want to be in. We control our destiny.”

Wydo was counting on his first two golfers to score and his middle two to make up some ground. The Colonials’ Kevin Uglik and Matt Shay both shot 42 while their opponents in the Mustangs’ adjusted lineup, Bruce Burish and Matt McCabe, finished with a combined 72 for an early 12-shot lead. Burish tied for medallist honors with a 35.

“Bruce had a nice even-par round,” praised Crawford.

Albert Gallatin’s Brett DiDominic picked up a stroke against Matt Hoover and teammate Cory Moore shot an even-par round for a seven-stroke advantage against the Mustangs’ Maria Battaglia.

Laurel Highlands finished strong, though, with Santino Marchitello carding a 36 and Fred David finishing with a 39 to close out the victory. Tom Corazzi shot a 41 and Jake Magerko had a 43 for Albert Gallatin.

“I didn’t think they’d shot that well,” said Wydo, who believed 195 would win the match. “I thought Laurel Highlands would be in the upper 190s and we’d have a shot. The middle guys did what I wanted. The front guys didn’t do what I wanted.

“If you can’t make short putts, you struggle. We had at least 10 3-putts.”

Crawford was expecting a tough match with the Colonials, but his squad was up to the challenge.

“I was a little concerned about Albert Gallatin. They wanted to win. It’s too bad one team had to lose,” said Crawford. “The kids did an excellent job.”

The win all but clinches a playoff berth for the Mustangs as well.

“That’s what you start out the year to do,” said Crawford.