Morgan Lofland will head into this senior season at
Conestoga – fingers appropriately crossed when it comes to making any plans in
this coronavirus-plagued 2020 – with a pretty glittering scholastic record
already behind him.
Lofland earned a share of the Central League title at Turtle
Creek Golf Club in each of the last two seasons. He has twice qualified for the
PIAA Class AAA Championship at the Heritage Hills Golf Resort, heading to York
County last fall as the Class AAA East Regional champion after firing a
brilliant 5-under-par 67 at Golden Oaks Golf Club in Fleetwood.
Lofland, who cracked the top 10 with a solid ninth-place
finish at Heritage Hills last fall, grabbed the lead in the 16-to-18 division after
the opening round of a Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour Precision Pro Golf
Open event with a solid 1-over 72 Thursday at Hickory Valley Golf Club in New
Hanover Township.
I’m flying a little blind here, but the Precision Pro Golf
Open event at Hickory Valley is a two-day test and both courses at Hickory
Valley are utilized. The opening round a year ago was on the Ambassador Course,
so I’m guessing that’s where Thursday’s opening round was. The Presidential is
the longer and considered the tougher of the two courses. Both are par-71
layouts.
The Precision Pro Golf Open events also include overall
scoring for boys and girls ages 13 to 18, although the Junior Tour does its
usual age breakdowns as well. The overall leader after Thursday’s opening round
was Jeffrey Homer of the talented Homer crew from Wilmington, Del. Jeffrey
Homer, playing in the younger 13-to-15 division, matched par with a sparkling
71 and leads Lofland in the overall chase by a shot.
Lofland, though, took control of the older division with a
steady round. Pretty sure some of the field was probably dodging some raindrops
at some point Thursday, although the weather cleared out pretty well in the
afternoon.
After making a birdie at the second hole, Lofland rattled
off nine straight pars before stumbling with a double bogey at the 12th
hole. He got it back to even-par with a birdie at the 14th hole
before making a bogey at the 16th that left him at 1-over.
Devon Prep senior Ryan McCabe, who was a dominant winner at
Hickory Valley a year ago, and Corey Haydu of Doylestown shared second place in
the 16-to-18 division and were tied for third in the overall scoring as each
posted a 4-over 75.
McCabe finished in a tie for third in the PIAA Class AA
Championship last fall after getting a share of second place in the state
tournament as a sophomore in 2018.
Strath Haven senior Jackson Debusschere, a member of the
Panthers’ history-making District One Class AAA championship team last fall,
headed a group of three players tied for fourth place in the division and tied
for fifth overall at 5-over 76.
Jackson Debusschere was joined at 5-over by Berks Catholic
senior Michael Fiorvante, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier last fall, and Peyton
Mussina of Muncy.
Pennridge senior Blake Stewart and Noah Kim of Royersford
were in a tie for seventh place in the 16-to-18 division and tied for eighth
overall, each carding a 77.
Brandywine Heights senior Elijah Ruppert, who shared third
place with McCabe in the PIAA Class AA Championship last fall, headed a group
of three players tied for ninth place in the older division and was part of a
five-way tie for 10th place in the overall scoring with a 7-over 78.
Unionville senior Roy Anderson, a Class AAA East Regional
qualifier last fall, and Shane Lawler, coming off a solid junior season at
Episcopal Academy, each also signed for a 78.
Jeffrey Homer, meanwhile, recovered from an early double
bogey at the second hole to post the best score of the day. His even-par 71
gave him the overall lead and a seven-shot cushion over the 13-to-15 field.
After that early lapse, Jeffrey Homer rattled off birdies at
the eighth, 10th and 11th holes to get it to 1-under for
the round. He responded to a bogey at the 14th hole with a birdie at
15 that again got him under par before a bogey at the 17th gave him
an even-par finish.
Jeffrey Homer’s twin brother Matthew and Sean Surowiec of
West Chester each carded a 78 to share second place among the younger guys and
join Ruppert, Anderson and Lawler in the quintet tied for 10th
overall. Matthew Homer won the 13-to-15 division at Hickory Valley and was the
runnerup to McCabe in the overall scoring a year ago.
A couple of Jersey guys, Kevin Zhang of Warren and Adrian
Jordan of Lawrenceville, are tied for fourth place in the 13-to-15 division
after each carded a 79.
Strath Haven sophomore Tyler Debusschere, like older brother
Jackson a key contributor to Strath Haven’s run to its first Central League
crown last fall, shared seventh place after Day One of the Precision Pro Golf
Open with Thomas Wen of Basking Ridge, N.J. and Michael Maslanka of Taylor,
each signing for an 81.
Matt Vital, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a freshman at
Bethlehem Liberty last fall, rounded out the top 10 in the 13-to-15 division as
his 84 left him alone in 10th place. Matt Vital captured the Boys
12-13 division in the Drive, Chip & Putt National Finals at Augusta
National Golf Club a year ago.
Michael Vital was two shots behind his brother in 11th
place in the 13-to-15 division after posting an 86.
On the girls side, Downingtown East junior Ava O’Sullivan
grabbed a one-shot lead in the 16-to-18 division and in the overall scoring with a solid 80 that included
a birdie at the 14th hole.
Haverford senior Riley Quartermain, a PIAA Class AAA
qualifier as a sophomore in 2018, was just a shot behind O’Sullivan in the
16-to-18 division and in the overall scoring with an 81. Quartermain is a
product of the junior program at Llanerch Country Club.
Olivia Wirsching, who capped her scholastic career by
leading Mount St. Joseph to the PIAA Class AAA team crown last fall, was in
third place among the older girls and sixth in the overall scoring with a 90.
Samantha Ritchie of Great Falls, Va. was a shot behind
Wirsching in fourth place in the division and seventh overall with a 91. Olivia
Strigh of Hammonton, N.J. was another shot behind Ritchie in fifth place in the
division and eighth overall with a 92.
Molly Gregor of North Wales carded a 94 that left her in
sixth place in the 16-to-18 division and tied for 10th overall.
Lindsey Seeley of Camp Hill rounded out the 16-to-18 field as her 99 left her
in seventh place.
Evelyn Wong of Macungie signed for an 82 that gave her the
lead in the 13-to-15 division and very much in the hunt for the overall title,
just two shots behind O’Sullivan in third place. Wong’s scorecard included nine
pars. Kate Roberts of Phoenixville was four shots behind Wong in second place
in the division and fourth overall.
Elle Overly of Lititz posted a solid 89 and was in third
place among the younger girls and fifth overall. Kayley Roberts, another member
of Phoenixville’s Team Roberts, was in fourth place in the division and ninth
overall with a 93.
Mount St. Joseph junior Caroline Gola, another key
contributor to the Mount’s state championship run last fall, carded a 94 that
left her in fifth place in the 13-to-15 division and tied with fellow North
Wales resident Gregor for 10th in the overall scoring.
Tristan Groff of Lancaster stood in sixth place in the
division with a 98 and Brynne Mushlin of Berwyn rounded out the 13-to-15 field
with a 134 that left her in seventh place.
Among the nine-holers, Davis Conaway of West Chester, who
has been on a roll in the first week of the resumption of Junior Tour play in
the wake of the coronavirus-enforced layoff, carded a solid 2-over 38 to grab a
five-shot lead. Conaway, who had wins at the Pine Meadows Golf Complex and Wild
Quail Golf & Country Club earlier this week, birdied the sixth hole.
Lawson Leeper of York was in second place with a 43, Ian
Larsen of Glenmoore was third with a 46 and Chase Mitstifer of Sinking Spring
was fourth with a 47.
Bryn Krosse of York landed in fifth place with a 58 and
Xinyun Zhou of Newtown was sixth with a 61.
The Precision Pro Golf Open also includes men’s and women’s
college divisions and Nikita Romanov, who had plenty of success on the Junior
Tour, took advantage of the opportunity to grab the lead in the men’s 17-to-24
division with an 80 that was highlighted by a birdie at the second hole.
After an outstanding scholastic career at Mount Pleasant in
Delaware, Romanov had worked his way into the starting lineup as a freshman at
La Salle last fall before the coronavirus pandemic halted the spring portion of
the season.
Shea Murphy of Wilmington, Del. was two shots behind Romanov
in second place with an 82 and Noah Pfautz of Lebanon was third with an 88.
Casey Oppenheimer, who, like Romanov, played a lot of Junior
Tour golf, was the only competitor in the women’s 17-to-24 division and carded
a 93.
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