Oct 19, 2006 By Jim Downey 5 min read

Jefferson-Morgan’s Josh Kokoska had a round free of 3-putts, finishing one shot off medallist honors with a 7-over-par 79 Wednesday to lead the Rockets into today’s WPIAL Boys Division II Golf Team Championship at Cedarbrook Golf Course’s Gold course. Jefferson-Morgan finished first among the nine teams in the Division II semifinal at Norvelt Golf Course in Mount Pleasant with a 409.

St. Joseph’s was second with a 419, and Burgettstown grabbed the third and final berth with a 421 on the par-72 course.

Ellwood City’s Patrick Jackson and James Eich of St. Joseph’s shared the medallist honors with a 78.

The Rockets were the only local team to advance to the championship.

Waynesburg Central finished tied for fourth in the other Division II semifinal at Conleys Golf Course with Deer Lakes at 419.

Geibel Catholic was sixth at 424.

The Division I, Section 2 teams had a rough day. Uniontown, the second-place team, was 10th of 11 teams in the semifinal at Grand View Golf Course with a 432. Mount Pleasant, the section champion, was ninth of the 10 teams at Donegal Highlands Golf Course with a 445.

Jefferson-Morgan was steady throughout the lineup after Kokoska’s 79.

Justin Hughes, playing at No. 2, finished with an 84. Matt Kokoska shot an 81 at No. 3 with Zack Basinger carding an 85. Dylan Blosser, the Rockets’ No. 5 man, closed out the scoring with an 80.

Brian Scritchfield, who shot a practice round of 80, finished with a 101.

Josh Kokoska had a case of nerves as he entered the round, but a 40 on the front nine put him at ease.

“I was putting and driving well. I was having a good first putt and an easy tap-in,” said Kokoska. “We were tight (when the team arrived at Norvelt). We had to practice a lot.”

Jefferson-Morgan coach John Curtis believed his squad had an opportunity to advance to the championship, and told his team so before they hit the course.

“I gathered the team together and told the guys before the match to go shoot the round you’re capable of shooting,” said Curtis.

“I think they were intimidated by the names of Burgettstown and Greensburg Central Catholic, traditional powerhouses.”

The team scoring in the semifinal was representative of the way the Rockets had shot all season on their way to the Division II, Section 8 title.

“The difference between No. 1 and No. 6 all season was 41/2 shots,” said Curtis. “No one is outstanding, but they’re all capable of shooting a good round.”

Several of the Rockets have played junior golf tournaments at Cedarbrook, including Josh Kokoska.

“I never really shoot too low. It’s a hard course, long. There’s trouble everywhere. If you hit it straight, you should be good,” said Kokoska. “It’s going to be fun. It’s going to be hard.”

The Jefferson-Morgan School District is having a good fall with the football team in first place and the volleyball team positioned for a playoff spot.

“It’s nice to continue (in the playoffs). The team will be at the football game, rooting them on. Everyone’s rooting for everyone else at the school,” said Curtis.

“I’m not sure they understand the impact (of playing for a WPIAL title). This is a far as they can go. It’s a big step from last year. And, everyone is back next year.”

Another team with everyone returning is Waynesburg, with two juniors and four sophomores in the starting lineup.

Sophomore Rachel Rohanna shot a 3-over-par 73, three shots off the pace of Shenango’s Jereme Stewart with a medallist round of even-par 70.

Junior Zach Schloemer finished with a 76, Matt Fox carded an 86 and Taylor Moore was a shot behind. Joe Moore rounded out the team scoring with a 97 with Anthony Jarrell’s 106 thrown out.

The season for Rohanna and Schloemer is not over, however, with both golfers playing in the PIAA Golf Championships next Monday and Tuesday. Rohanna had a share of last year’s state title after rain shortened the two-round tournament to a single round.

“I asked the team if they could’ve made up the nine strokes (to tie for third place), and they said yes, if they had putted better. The greens were aerated and still wet,” said Waynesburg Central coach John Garber.

“I didn’t know what to expect. We averaged between 195 and 205 for nine holes,” said Garber.

“We had a target score of 410 or below. It was a good day for us. Taylor Moore did a good job. Zach and Rachel played solid, as usual.

“I was proud of them. We’re right there.”

DIVOTS: Sewickley Academy (371), Shenango (390) and Center (410) were the top three teams at Conleys. … Upper St. Clair (364), North Allegheny (391) and Shady Side Academy (393) advanced from the Division I semifinal at Grandview Golf Course while Latrobe (388), Fox Chapel (394) and Seneca Valley (404) were the top three teams at Donegal Highlands. … The Mount Pleasant girls, in their first year of existence, will be one of eight teams playing for the WPIAL Girls Golf Team Championship today, also at Cedarbrook on the Red course.