Karas, Malbacho the respective boys, girls winners in a Philly Junior Tour Nine-Hole Series stop at Sweet Water

 

   Samuel Karas of Blue Bell carded a solid 1-under-par 35 at the Sweet Water Golf Course in Pennsburg to best the field of boys 12-and-under nine-holers in a Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour Nine-Hole Series event June 17^th.

   Karas was coming off a Philly Junior Tour victory in the boys 12-and-under division a day earlier at Indian Valley Country Club in Telford.

   With the spotlight entirely on the nine-holers at Sweet Water, a nine-hole layout, Karas made birdies at the fourth and seventh holes and had six pars on his scorecard to finish at the top of the leaderboard among a typically competitive group in the boys 12-and-under division.

   Joey Charpentier of Schwenksville, who has been a regular on Philly Junior Tour 12-and-under division leaderboards all season, made an eagle at the par-5 fourth hole and had six pars on his card, opening his round with three straight pars and finishing his round with three straight pars, as he earned runnerup honors with an even-par 36 that left him a shot behind Karas.

   Blake Shurman of Villanova made a birdie on the fifth hole and had six pars on his card as he finished a shot behind Charpentier in third place with a 1-over 37.

   Baylor Keim, another Blue Bell entry, took fourth place with a 2-over 38, Smith Rawes of Elkins Park was fifth with a a 3-over 39 and Andrew DElia of Clarks Summit and Victor Wang of Hockessin, Del. shared sixth, each signing for a 40.

   Kash Gray of Eagleville took eighth place with a 41 and Andrew Herman of Telford and Nolan English of Villanova rounded out the top 10 in the boys 12-and-under division as they finished in a tie for ninth, each tallying a 42.

   Claire Malbacho of Haverford made a birdie on the third hole and had three pars on her scorecard as she bested the field of girls 12-and-under nine-holers with a solid 6-over 42.

   Lillian Fry, playing close to her Pennsburg home, had three pars on her card as she finished two shots behind Malbacho in second place with a 44. Fry was coming off a Philly Junior Tour victory among the girls 12-and-under nine-holers a day earlier at Indian Valley.

   Rounding out the field in the girls 12-and-under division was Sydney Lim of Harleysville as she registered a 62.

 

Andrews heads a strong showing for the Souderton contingent in Philly Junior Tour stop at Indian Valley

 

   The Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour had a stop at Indian Valley Country Club in Telford, where Montgomery County meets Bucks County, June 16^th and the Souderton golf team was out in force.

   Chase Andrews, a senior for the Big Red, claimed a Philly Junior Tour victory in the 16-to-18 division with a solid 1-over-par 73 and classmate Cole Henning and Declan Henry, a junior for Souderton, were Andrews’ closest competitors, finishing in a tie for second place among the older guys, each posting a 6-over 78.

   After making a birdie at the eighth hole, Andrews really got it going on the incoming nine at Indian Valley with four straight birdies at 12, 13, 14 and 15. Andrews, a District One Class AAA qualifier last fall, had 10 pars on his scorecard, including four straight pars to open his round.

   The birdie barrage on the back nine enabled Andrews to tour Indian Valley’s incoming nine in 3-under 33.

   Henning also got it going on Indian Valley’s back nine as he made birdies at the 12^th, 15^th, 16th and 18th holes and had six pars on his card.

   Henry made a birdie at the 12^th hole and had 11 pars on his card, including a string of five straight pars from 13 through 17.

   A couple of District One Class AAA qualifiers last fall, Tim Croyle, a senior on the Pennridge golf team, and Jake Jaffe, a senior on the Central Bucks South golf team, shared fourth place, each signing for an 80.

   Matt DeMarco, a Broomall resident and a senior on the Cardinal O’Hara golf team, took sixth place with an 81 and Mason Stephan, a Collegeville resident and a senior on the Malvern Prep golf team, was seventh with an 82.

   Jack Ferm, a District One Class AAA qualifier as a junior at Garnet Valley last fall, and A.J. Sundstrom, who wrapped up his scholastic career at Parkland last fall, shared eighth place, each tallying an 83 and Grant MacColl of Haverford rounded out the top 10 in the 16-to-18 division as he finished 10^th with an 86.

   Jack Shea of Harleysville made back-to-back birdies at the ninth and 10^th holes, added another birdie at 16 and had 10 pars on his scorecard as he earned a Philly Junior Tour victory in the 13-to-15 division with a 2-over 74.

   Shea’s a Class of 2030 kid, so maybe he, too, will be joining the team at Souderton this fall.

   Sam Nelligan, an incoming freshman at Boyertown, made an eagle at the par-5 12^th hole, had birdies at 10 and 14 and had eight pars on his card in earning runnerup honors among the younger guys with a 3-over 75. Nelligan toured the incoming nine at Indian Valley in even-par 36.

   Actually caddied for Nelligan at Stonewall’s Old Course two days before he teed it up at Indian Valley. The kid has game.

   Brody Campbell, a Plymouth Meeting resident and a sophomore on the Malvern Prep golf team, got off to a quick start with back-to-back birdies at the second and third holes and had 10 pars on his card, including four straight pars from 12 through 15, as he finished a shot behind Nelligan in third place with a 4-over 76.

   Thomas Holt IV of Haddonfield, N.J., coming off a Philly Junior Tour victory the previous week at Valleybrook Country Club, and Helmut Dang of Newtown Square shared fourth place, each recording a 77.

   Yet another Souderton guy, Daniel Ross, who joined Andrews in the District One Class AAA field at Turtle Creek Golf Course as a freshman with the Big Red last fall, and Benjamin Lear of West Chester shared sixth place, each registering a 79, Liam Jacobs of Philadelphia was eighth with an 80 and Kaycen Subbio of Blue Bell was ninth with an 81.

   Rounding out the top 10 in the 13-to-15 division was a trio tied for 10^th place at 82 that included Bobby Stefanski of Newtown Square, Cressman Sullivan of Pottstown and Tucker Detwiler, a West Chester resident and a sophomore on the Malvern Prep golf team.

   Corinne McReynolds, who helped Conestoga capture the PIAA Class AAA team crown as a junior last fall, had the best score among the girls at Indian Valley as she claimed a Philly Junior Tour victory in the 16-to-18 division with an 83.

   McReynolds made a birdie on the seventh hole and had eight pars on her scorecard.

   I was posting the last couple of days on the Pennsylvania Junior Girls’ Championship at Lebanon Country Club and McReynolds, playing out of Whitford Country Club, finished in a tie for 26^th place with a 242 total in the 54-hole test that included a double round Tuesday.

   Annie Corrigan, a Huntingdon Valley resident and a junior on the Mount St. Joseph team that finished in third place behind Conestoga in the PIAA Class AAA team chase last fall, had six pars on her card as she earned runnerup honors with an 86 that left her three shots behind McReynolds.

   Ella Kikuchi, a junior on the Downingtown East golf team, had three pars on her card as she finished in third place with a 100.

   Erin Urbanski, a West Chester resident and a junior on the Villa Maria Academy golf team, rounded out the field in the 16-to-18 division as she finished in fourth place with a 111.

   Urbanski’s teammate at Villa Maria, sophomore Lila Collingwood, a Collegeville resident, had three pars, all of them on Indian Valley’s incoming nine, as she earned a Philly Junior Tour victory in the 13-to-15 division with a 92.

   Kikuchi’s teammate on the Downingtown East golf team, sophomore Olivia Kirmayer, finished five shots behind Collingwood in second place with a 97.

   Lindsay Soporowski of Nazareth finished in third place with a 104.

   Elyssa Capaldo of Trooper took fourth place with a 105, Mackenzie Lim of Harleysville was fifth with a 106 and Natalie Soporowski, another member of Nazareth’s Team Soporowski, was sixth with a 109.

   Brooke Platt of Blue Bell rounded out the field in the 13-to-15 division as she finished in seventh place with a 115.

   Samuel Karas of Blue Bell had seven pars on his scorecard, including a string of six straight pars from the 11^th through the 16^th holes, as he bested the field of boys 12-and-under nine-holers with a 2-over 38.

   Brody Rollins of Milton, Del. made a birdie on the 16^th hole and had four pars on his card as he finished a shot behind Karas in second place with a 3-over 39.

   Grayson Wright of Philadelphia had five pars on his card as he finished in third place with a 40.

   Joey Charpentier of Schwenksville, Ryan Kaye of Lansdale and Nolan English of Villanova shared fourth place, each registering a 43, and Jamie Cahn of Penn Valley and Kash Gray of Eagleville finished in a tie for seventh, each posting a 46.

   Andrew DElia of Clarks Summit took eighth place with a 48 and Nolan Dunkelberger of Nazareth and Andrew Herman, playing close to his Telford home, rounded out the top 10 in the boys 12-and-under division as they finished in a tie for 10^th, each signing for a 49.

   Lillian Fry of Pennsburg bested the field of girls 12-and-under nine-holers with a 53.

   Addison Sabatini of West Chester made a par on the 13^th hole as she finished a shot behind Fry in second place with a 54.

   Sydney Lim, another member of Harleysville’s Team Lim, rounded out the field in the girls 12-and-under division as she finished in third place with a 60.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yenser outduels Kittsley to repeat as Pennsylvania Junior Boys champion; Zhang a runaway winner in Junior Girls

 

   Reading Country Club’s Chase Yenser outlasted Oakmont Country Club’s Carson Kittsley in a thrilling stretch duel to become the first repeat winner of the Pennsylvania Golf Association’s Junior Boys’ Championship in 30 years Tuesday at Hershey Country Club’s East Course.

   Kittsley, back-to-back winner of the PIAA Class AAA Championship and with still a year to go at Fox Chapel, put a nose in front when he opened Tuesday afternoon’s final round with an eagle at Hershey East’s par-5 opening hole and added birdies at five and six.

   But Yenser, who wrapped up an outstanding scholastic career at Daniel Boone by finishing in fourth place in last fall’s Class AAA state tournament behind Kittsley at Penn State, made four birdies in a stretch of 12 holes while Kittsley faltered ever so slightly.

   Yenser closed with a 3-under-par 68 that gave him a 54-hole total of 11-under 202, one shot better than Kittsley, who closed with a 2-under 69 and a 10-under 203 total in the 83^rd edition of the Pennsylvania Junior Boys’ Championship.

   Yenser became the first player to repeat as the Pennsylvania Junior Boys champion since Jon Rusk, the current general manager at LuLu Country Club, achieved the feat in 1995 and ’96.

   The victory earned Yenser a ticket to the U.S. Junior Amateur, which will be something of a home game for Yenser as it tees off July 20 at Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem.

   There was no such drama in the 63^rd edition of the PAGA’s Junior Girls’ Championship at Lebanon Country Club as Wildwood Golf Club’s Alyssa Zhang, a third-place finisher in the PIAA Class AA Championship in each of her first two years at Shady Side Academy, ran away with a 12-shot victory with a fairly spectacular 12-under 204 total.

   The dominating win at Lebanon punched Zhang’s ticket to the U.S. Girls’ Junior Amateur Championship, which tees off July 13 at Old Chatham Golf Club in Durham, N.C.

   Dick’s Sporting Goods is the title sponsor for all of the PAGA championships.

   Yenser had a share of the lead at Hershey East following a sizzling 6-under 65 in Monday’s opening round.

   It looked like he might turn it into a runaway in Tuesday morning’s second round as he made birdies at the first, seventh, 10^th, 12^th and 14^th holes to get it to 11-under for the tournament.

   But Yenser, who will join the program at Big 12 power Baylor later this summer, stalled a little at the end of the round with bogeys at the 15^th, 16^th and 18^th holes that left him with a 2-under 69 and at 8-under going into Tuesday afternoon’s final round.

   Kittsley, who had opened with a 4-under 67, started to make his move in Tuesday morning’s second round as he made birdies at first, sixth, seventh and 12^th holes to get it to 8-under for the tournament.

   Kittlsley dropped a shot with his lone bogey of the round at the 13^th hole, but a birdie at 17 gave him another 4-under 67 and left him tied with Yenser at 8-under going into Tuesday afternoon’s final round.

   Kittsley was 12-under for the tournament following his opening burst in the final round that included that eagle at the first hole.

   But he stumbled with a bogey at the seventh hole and a costly double bogey at eight that dropped him back to 9-under.

   Back-to-back birdies at the 16^th and 17^th holes got Kittsley within a shot of Yenser, but Kittsley closed with a bogey at the finishing hole.

   Yenser made birdies at the sixth, 10^th, and 12th holes and a critical birdie at 17, to get to 12-under for the tournament. That gave him the luxury of making a bogey at the last while Kittsley was doing the same.

   Yenser had taken the first step toward a possible appearance in the U.S. Amateur, which tees off Aug. 10 at Merion Golf Club’s historic East Course, when he earned co-medalist honors in a GAP-administered local U.S. Am qualifier last week with a 2-under 68 in his first look at Huntingdon Valley Country Club.

   Radley Run Country Club’s Charlie Barrickman, who closed out an outstanding scholastic career at Unionville with a third-place finish behind Kittsley in the Class AAA state tournament last fall, elbowed his way into the picture with two really strong rounds Tuesday.

   Barrickman, who led the Longhorns to the PIAA Class AAA team crown at Penn State, had matched par in the opening round with a 71. But he signed for a 4-under 67 in Tuesday morning’s second round and tallied a sizzling 5-under 66, the best round of the day, in the final round to finish a shot behind Kittsley in third place with a 9-under 204 total.

   Barrickman, the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s Junior Player of the Year in 2025, will join the program at Bucknell later this summer.

   Out Door Country Club’s Callahan Harrell was another five shots behind Barrickman in fourth place as he registered a pair of 2-under 69s in Tuesday’s double round to finish with a 4-under 209 total.

   Harrell, who had matched par in Monday’s opening round with 71, will join the program at Charleston Southern later this summer.

   Wouldn’t be a state Junior Boys if a phenom didn’t show up and Niko Ameredes of The Club at Nevillewood, headed a trio of players tied for fifth place at 2-under 211.

   The kid is a Class of 2031 competitor, which means he’s still more than a year away from playing high school golf. Ameredes had opened with a 1-over 72 Monday, but got it going in Tuesday morning’s second round with a 4-under 67 before closing with another 72.

   Ameredes was joined at 2-under by the home course’s Carson Hummer, who wrapped up his scholastic career at Hershey High with a trip to the PIAA Class AAA Championship last fall, and Dane Mohap, who finished in a tie for ninth place in the state Class AAA tournament with Nazareth last fall.

   Hummer, who had opened with a 1-under 70 Monday, posted a solid 3-under 68 in Tuesday morning’s second round before closing with a 2-over 73. Hummer will join the program at West Chester later this summer.

   Mohap, who also opened with a 2-under 70, recorded a solid 2-under 69 in Tuesday morning’s second round before closing with a 1-over 72.

   Union League Golf Club Torresdale’s Logan Cassidy, a District One Class AAA qualifier as a junior at Holy Ghost Prep last fall, and Lebanon Country Club’s Benjamin Allwein, who finished in a tie for seventh place in the PIAA Class AA Championship as a freshman at Annville-Cleona last fall, shared eighth place, each landing on 1-under 212.

   Cassidy, who had opened with a 2-under 69, struggled a little in Tuesday morning’s second round with a 3-over 74 before bouncing back with another 69 in the final round.

   Allwein carded a second straight 1-under 70 in Tuesday morning’s second round before closing with a 1-over 72.

   Rounding out the top 10 at Hershey East was Overbrook Golf Club’s Freddy Hartmann, who helped Episcopal Academy claim the Inter-Ac League Championship as a junior with the Churchmen last fall, as he finished alone in 10^th place with an even-par 213 total.

   Hartmann had matched par in the opening round with a 71 and added a 1-over 72 in Tuesday morning’s second round before closing with a 1-under 70.

   Hartmann’s Episcopal teammate, Liam Crowley, playing out of Aronimink Golf Club, finished among a trio of players tied for 12^th place with a 2-over 215 total.

   Crowley, winner of the Bert Linton Invitational for the Inter-Ac’s individual championship as a junior last fall at The 1912 Club, had opened with a 1-over 72, but got it going with a 4-under 67 in Tuesday morning’s second round before closing with a 6-over 76.

   Merion Golf Club’s Brad McDermott, who capped his scholastic career at Radnor with a second trip to the PIAA Class AAA Championship last fall, had shared the lead with Yenser on the strength of a 6-under 65 in Monday’s opening round and was still very much in the hunt when he matched par in Tuesday morning’s second round with a 71.

   McDermott struggled in the final round with an 81 that left him in the group tied for 18^th place at 4-over 217.

   McDermott will join Barrickman in a freshman class with a distinct District One flavor at Bucknell later this summer.

   Zhang took a one-shot lead into Tuesday morning’s second round, but proceeded to put the tournament away with a flawless tour of the Lebanon layout.

   Zhang made a birdie at the first hole and then eagled the par-5 second. After making a birdie at the ninth hole, Zhang parred out on the incoming nine for a bogey-free 4-under 68 that gave her a commanding six-shot lead going into the final round.

   There wasn’t much letup in the final round as Zhang jumped out of the gate with birdies at the second, third and sixth holes before finally making her first bogey of the day at seven.

   Zhang made a birdie at the eighth hole and a bogey at 12 before making her second eagle of the day at the par-4 13^th. A bogey at the finishing hole gave Zhang a final round of 3-under 69 and a 12-under total.

   Centre Hills Country Club’s Maddie Koshko, who wrapped up her outstanding scholastic career at the Saint Joseph Catholic Academy in Boalsburg by claiming a second straight PIAA Class AA crown last fall, and Cobblestone Creek Country Club’s Myra Toomer, a talented youngster from Newtown, finished in a tie for second place, each ending up 12 shots behind Zhang with an even-par 216 total.

   Koshko, who will be staying home and joining the program at Penn State later this summer, had trailed Zhang by only a shot following an opening round of 4-under 68, added a 1-over 73 in Tuesday morning’s second round before closing with a 3-over 75.

   The 14-year-old Toomer also opened with a 3-under 68 and was only a shot behind Zhang. Toomer matched Koshko’s splits during Tuesday’s double round, posting a 1-over 73 in the morning and a 3-over 75 in the afternoon to join Koshko in the tie for second place at even-par.

   Nice rally by Kayley Roberts, who wrapped up her scholastic career at Phoenixville last fall with a runaway victory in the District One Class AAA Championship and a runnerup finish in the PIAA Class AAA Championship.

   As Roberts wraps up her junior career, she bounced back from an opening round of 6-over 78 by matching par in Tuesday morning’s second round with a 72 and closing with a sparkling 3-under 69 that left her three shots behind Koshko and Tomer in fourth place with a 3-over 219 total.

   Roberts will join her older sister Kate at Delaware later this summer. Kayley Roberts and Kate Roberts qualified for the match-play bracket in the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship at the Daniel Island Club in Charleston, S.C. in April, falling in the opening round of match play.

   Really nice showing by Rolling Green Golf Club’s Nicolette Bottos, who helped Conestoga capture the PIAA Class AAA team crown as a sophomore with the Pioneers last fall.

   Bottos recorded a second straight 2-over 74 in Tuesday morning’s second round before matching par in the final round with a 72 that left her a shot behind Kayley Roberts in fifth place with a 4-over 220 total.

   Overbrook’s Kiersten Bodge, a senior at Notre Dame who captured the Inter-Ac League’s individual crown at Sandy Run Country Club in May, finished a shot behind Bottos in sixth place with a 5-over 221 total.

   Bodge, who plans to join Koshko at Penn State at the end of next summer, registered a second straight even-par 72 in Tuesday morning’s second round before struggling a little in a final round of 5-over 77.

   Regents’ Glen Country Club’s Bryn Krosse finished a shot behind Bodge in seventh place with a 6-over 222. Krosse tallied a second straight 4-over 76 in Tuesday morning’s second round before closing with a solid 2-under 70.

   Krosse, a Class of 2030 entry, is the latest in a long line of Krosses and she just might be the best of them all. I’m guessing she’ll follow her older siblings and play at Dallastown.

   Penn Oaks Golf Club’s Hannah Webb, who capped her junior season at Archmere Academy with a runnerup finish in the Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association (DIAA) Championship at Baywood Greens in late May, finished a shot behind Krosse in eighth place with a 7-over 223 total.

   Webb had opened with a 3-over 75 and carded a pair of 2-over 74s in Tuesday’s double round.

   Conestoga Country Club’s Piper Smith, who capped her senior season at Warwick by finishing in third place in the PIAA Class AAA Championship last fall, and Foxchase Golf Club’s Makenna Heckman, a Class AAA state tournament qualifier as a sophomore at Ephrata, rounded out the top 10 as they finished in a tie for ninth place, each ending up with an 8-over 224 total.

   After opening with a 2-over 74, Smith carded a 76 in Tuesday morning’s second round before closing with a book-end 74. Heckman struggled in an opening round of 6-over 78, but flashed her talent with a 4-under 68 in Tuesday morning’s second round before closing with another 78.

   West Shore Country Club’s Cora Hirz, who capped her scholastic career by finishing in fourth place in the PIAA Class AA Championship as a senior at Fairview last fall, finished three shots behind Smith and Heckman in 11^th place with an 11-over 227 total.

   After opening with a 2-over 74, Hirz registered a 5-over 77 in Tuesday morning’s second round before closing with a 76.

   Rolling Green’s Alaina Carson, the defending champion who has qualified for the PIAA Class AAA Championship in each of her first two seasons at Cardinal O’Hara, shared 12^th place with Nemacolin Country Club’s Mya Morgan, who repeated as the PIAA Class AAA champion as a senior at Elizabeth Forward last fall, as they each landed on 13-over 229.

   Carson, who was coming off a victory in a two-day Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour stop at Penn State (which I will round up eventually) June 18^th and 19^th, had opened with a 6-over 78 and added a 76 in Tuesday morning’s second round before closing with a 75, her best round of the tournament.

   Morgan had opened with a 2-over 74, but struggled a little in Tuesday’s double round with a 77 in the morning and a 78 in the afternoon.