Wager's Penn State University Golf Club team claims title in Pro-Junior Championship at French Creek

   Steve Wager has a pretty good thing going with his junior program at the Penn State University Golf Club.

   Wager coached a team of junior standouts to a victory in the Philadelphia Section’s PGA Junior League championship last summer at Cedarbrook Country Club that earned it a berth in the Region 2 Championship at the Seaview Resort in Galloway Township, N.J.

   One of the members of that team was Maxwell Wager and I’m going to go ahead and guess that he belongs to Steve. Well, Team Wager was at it again Thursday as a foursome from the Penn State University Golf Club captured the Philadelphia Section PGA’s Pro-Junior Championship at French Creek Golf Club, where East Nantmeal Township meets Warwick Township in northwest Chester County.

   Steve and Maxwell Wager were joined by John Olsen and Luke Janac to fire a sparkling 14-under 57 in the four-man scramble format. They made 14 birdies and no bogeys and that, folks, is how you win a scramble.

   The Bidermann Golf Club quartet of Anthony Malizia, Jack Cooley, Drew Clark and Shane Powelson finished a shot behind the Penn State team in second place with a 13-under 58. Pretty sure Cooley is the same guy who helped Unionville win back-to-back District One Class AAA titles, a state championship in 2017 and a runnerup finish in the PIAA Championship in 2018.

   It was another shot back to the Manufacturers Golf & Country Club foursome of Ross Seaman, Griffin Caulfield, Steve Lorenzo and Mark Huntley in third place with a 12-under 59.

   Lorenzo capped his career at La Salle by leading the Explorers to a third-place finish in the PIAA Class AAA Championship team chase last fall. Looks like Lorenzo might have pulled double duty Thursday as finished in a tie for third in the Christman Cup, a Golf Association of Philadelphia junior major, at LuLu Country Club, which was also contested Thursday.

   There were four teams tied for fourth place at 10-under 61 including Bridgewater Golf Club’s Daniel  Becker, Mason Turner, Reed Krosse and Lane Krosse, Saucon Valley Country Club’s Steven Chalmers, Colin Zavacky, Lauren Chung and David Tervalon, the Steel Club’s Chris Wagner, Jacob Haberstumpf,  Matt Ronce and Emma Shelby and another Manufacturers entry that included Wade Sander, Stephen Rebar, Christopher Rebar and Ajeet Bagga.

   Rounding out the top 10 were three teams tied for eighth place at 9-under 62, including Chester Valley Golf Club’s Nicholas Iacono, Henry Fish, a member of the Malvern Prep golf team, Andrew Ranaudo and Jack Pugliese, the host club’s Andrew Turner, Hayden Bond, Alex Chapman and Stefania Fedun and Huntingdon Valley Country Club’s John Allen, Colin Broderick, Mark Heinz and Molly Gregor.

   The Fieldstone Golf Club foursome of Matthew DiEleuterio, Davis Conaway, Carson Holmes and Lawson Leeper was part of a three-way logjam tied for 11^th place at 7-under 64. The following day, Conaway, Holmes and Leeper finished first, second and tied for fourth, respectively, in a Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour event limited to the coed 12-and-under nine-holers at West Chester Golf & Country Club, so it appears the Pro-Junior was a nice tuneup for those guys.

   Joining the Fieldstone group in the tie for 11^th place were Wilmington Country Club’s Michael Shank, Joe Cicontee, Fletcher Jones and Jack Homer and Bluestone Country Club’s Christopher Gardner, Lenny Brenner, Jesse Stern and Evan Rosenstein.