LIMERICK – District One has produced more than its share of outstanding golfers over the years.
Not sure if the District One Championship has ever seen anything to the level of the performance Downingtown West junior Nick Gross displayed over two days at Turtle Creek Golf Course.
On a sun-splashed Tuesday in western Montgomery County, Gross, who reached the U.S. Amateur quarterfinals before he reached the age of 16 a couple of months ago at The Ridgewood Country Club in Paramus, N.J., blitzed the 6,375-yard, par-72 Turtle Creek layout with a remarkable 8-under-par 64 to capture the District One Class AAA Championship for the second time in three years, this time by a whopping nine shots.
Combined with the 6-under 66 Gross opened with in Monday’s first round, it gave him a 14-under 130 total. Some of those gathered at the Turtle said it was a District One record, pointing to the 12-under 132 recorded by Methacton standout Kyle Vance at Turtle Creek.
So, it was likely a 36-hole record for the District One Championship in the 22 playings of the tournament at the Turtle beginning in 2002. I’m not even sure how long it’s been a 36-hole event, although I’m pretty sure it’s been 36 holes since I first covered it circa 1978 at the long gone Valley Forge Golf Course in King of Prussia. Any way you want to look at it, Gross was simply sensational.
Gross won the district title as a freshman in 2020 and lost in a playoff to Holy Ghost Prep’s Calen Sanderson a year ago. He admitted he might have Turtle Creek solved a little bit.
“I only play here for districts, but when you play a course over and over again, you do start to figure it out,” Gross said following his masterful performance. “You know where to put the ball.”
Oh yeah, and he wasn’t feeling all that great, battling a cold that seemed to affect the top contenders on both the boys and girls sides.
Almost as impressive as Gross’ performance was that of Lower Merion senior Sydney Yermish, who, like Gross, was fighting a cold and running a slight fever. But Yermish added a solid 2-under 70 to the 2-under 69 she carded in Monday’s opening round at nearby Raven’s Claw Golf Club for a 4-under 139 total that left her three shots clear of a trio of players.
It was the third district crown for Yermish. Pretty sure the last player to win three District One titles was Chichester’s Aurora Kan when I was covering her for the Delaware County Daily Times. Kan won the district crown in her first three cracks at it in 2007, ’08 and ’09 before being denied a fourth straight title as a senior in 2010 by Council Rock North’s Erica Herr.
“Pretty awesome, to win it three times,” said Yermish, who join the program at Michigan next summer. “If it wasn’t for that 2020, who knows?”
Yes, that 2020, you remember, the coronavirus pandemic. With all the upheaval created by the pandemic, the Central League didn’t schedule a qualifier in time to get its players into the District One Championship. So, Yermish won every District One Championship in which she had a starting time.
Gross finished about an hour ahead of Yermish and immediately hustled out to see how his Downingtown West teammates were faring in the battle for the District One Class AAA team crown. Turns out, pretty good.
Getting a big boost from Gross’ 64, the Whippets also got a sparkling 1-under 71 from Bret Bergey and a pair of 80s from Brady Manning and Steve Wogram for a 7-over 295 total that left the Ches-Mont League representative four shots clear of Pioneer Athletic Conference champion Spring-Ford, which was playing on its home course at the Turtle.
Icing on Gross’ cake, right?
“More like the other way around,” Gross said. “I think the individual title was the icing on the cake.”
Clearly, hanging a District One championship banner for golf in the Downingtown West gym meant a lot to Gross.
Gross started a little slowly in Tuesday’s second round, making pars on the first five holes. But then he went off with birdies on seven of the next nine holes at six, eight, nine, 11, 12, 13 and 14.
I saw him just miss from inside eight feet for birdie at the 17th hole, but he drilled his approach over the pond in front of the 552-yard, par-5 finisher at the Turtle to the fairway just short of the green, chipped it to four feet and calmly dropped the putt for his eighth birdie of the day.
“I have a 62 at the Country Club of Charleston and a 63,” Gross said. “I think that’s my third 64, but considering it was for a district title, it was pretty big.”
Gross will try to make it back-to-back PIAA Class AAA crowns beginning Monday at Penn State as the state championship returns to Happy Valley for the first time since 2001. He will be favored, of course, because he returns not as just the best high school player in Pennsylvania, but as one of the best amateur players in the country, period.
It had been building, but making match play in the U.S. Junior Amateur at the Bandon Dunes Resort in Oregon, finishing in a tie for third in the Boys Junior PGA Championship at Cog Hill outside of Chicago and then the run to the quarterfinals in the U.S. Amateur at Ridgewood really put him in the spotlight.
“There was nothing about it that wasn’t awesome, especially the Amateur,” Gross said. “It was just a great experience.”
Gross will be joined at Penn State next week by an impressive roster out of District One.
West Chester Rustin sophomore Sam Feeney, who took down Gross in the Ches-Mont League Championship at Applecross Country Club two weeks ago, was a distant second to Gross at Turtle Creek. Feeney added a solid 70 to his opening round of 3-under 69 for a 5-under 139 total that left him nine shots behind Gross.
Strath Haven senior Tyler Debusschere matched par with a 72 to finish three shots behind Feeney in third place with a 2-under 142 total. Debusschere headed a group of seven Central League golfers from seven different schools who qualified for the PIAA Class AAA Championship.
I caught up with Debusschere on his final hole, the risk-reward 18th at Turtle. After hitting a layup short of the water, Debusschere reported he had hit 16 of 17 greens, but said “I haven’t made a putt longer than five feet.”
He made it 17 greens hit with a solid approach to 20 feet at the 18th hole. When his birdie putt slid over the edge of the cup and stayed out, he couldn’t have been too surprised. Still, he was the first Strath Haven player to reach states since Conrad Von Borsig made the last of his three straight trips to states as a senior in 2004.
Central Bucks South’s Noah Moelter added a 1-under 71 to the even-par 72 he opened with Monday to finish alone in fourth place, a shot behind Debusschere with a 1-under 143 total.
A couple more Central League guys, Penncrest senior Eli Shah and Harriton senior Cyrus Parvizi, were joined by Central Bucks West’s Charles Feraco in the trio tied for fifth place at 2-over 146.
Shah will cap an outstanding career at Penncrest with a second straight trip to the PIAA Class AAA Championship as he matched par in Tuesday’s second round after opening with a 74. Parvizi added a 4-over 76 to his opening-round 70. Feraco, who had opened with a 1-under 71 Monday, closed with a 3-over 75.
There were two more Central League players in the trio tied for eighth place at 7-over 151, Springfield senior Danny Flaherty and Radnor junior Shaun Mazzalupi.
Flaherty, the Central League’s individual champion as a junior a year ago, added a 3-over 75 to the 76 he posted in Monday’s opening round. Mazzalupi will be making his second straight trip to the state tournament after he added a 4-over 76 Tuesday to his opening-round 75.
Flaherty and Mazzalupi were joined at 7-over by Central Bucks West’s Ryan Quinn, who matched Flaherty’s splits, adding a 3-over 75 to his opening-round 76.
Kennett junior Kasim Narinesingh-Smith and Central Bucks East’s Will Dunsmore shared 11th place, each landing on 8-over 152. Narinesingh-Smith added a 5-over 77 Tuesday to his opening-round 75 while Dunsmore signed for a 3-over 75 in Tuesday’s second round after opening with a 77.
The magic number for advancing to the PIAA Class AAA Championship turned out to be 9-over 153 and six players, including two more from the Central League, landed on that figure to punch their tickets to states.
Conestoga senior Kyle Mauro, who claimed medalist honors in the Central League Championship three weeks ago at Turtle Creek, added a 5-over 77 to his opening-round 76 to making it to the state tournament on the number.
Garnet Valley’s Braden Rogers rounded out the Central League contingent advancing to states at 153 as he carded a 4-over 76 in Tuesday’s second round after opening with a 77.
Rounding out the group at 153 were Springfield (Montco’s) Adam Fluehr (76-77), Plymouth-Whitemarsh’s Evan Rosenstein (77-76) and a pair of Council Rock North players, Nick Riscica (77-76) and Andrew Zazoff (75-78).
Spring-Ford was the runnerup to Downingtown West in the Class AAA team competition with an 11-over 299 total. Behind Feeney, West Chester Rustin finished six shots behind Spring-Ford in third place with a 17-over 305 total, giving the Ches-Mont two of the top three teams in the team standings.
Souderton finished in fourth place with a 311 total, Central Bucks West was fifth at 313 and Unionville was sixth at 314. Trying to avenge a dual-match loss to Conestoga that gave the Pioneers the Central League crown, Radnor came up a shot short as the Raptors finished in eighth place, a shot behind Conestoga in seventh with a 326 total.
A couple of New Hope-Solebury seniors finished 1-2, respectively, in the Class AA individual chase as Malcolm Raupp held on to claim the district title by three shots over Nate Wiseman.
Raupp added an 82 in the second round Tuesday to his opening-round 75 for a 157 total. Wiseman carded a second straight 80 to claim a share of second place with a 160 total.
Jenkintown’s Will Gouveia had the best round of the day in Class AA, a 4-over 76, after opening with an 84 as he joined Wiseman at 160. Raupp, Wiseman and Gouveia earned District One’s three berths to the PIAA Class AA Championship.
Ehren Weyman carded a solid 79 to lead New Hope-Solebury to the District One Class AA team crown with a 323 total. Wiseman’s 80, Raupp’s 82 and the 82 carded by Max Wagner were the other three counters for New Hope-Solebury.
Dock Mennonite was the runnerup in the Class AA team chase with a 345 total.
Yermish’s three-shot margin of victory was a little misleading because everybody in her foursome was in contention the whole day.
Owen J. Roberts senior Stefania Fedun,who will join the program at Lehigh next summer, had grabbed the lead following the opening round with a sparkling 4-under 67 at Raven’s Claw.
When Yermish rolled in a tricky three-footer for birdie on the 17th hole (“that putt wasn’t as easy as it looked,” Yermish would say later), it was right on top of Fedun’s 15-footer for birdie. They headed for the tee at the par-5 18th hole with Fedun only trailing Yermish by a shot at 3-under for the championship.
Yermish’s length gave her an opportunity to reach the green in two, but she blocked her approach a little and ended up right of the green. Fedun laid up short of the water in front of the green, but then knocked her approach into the pond, leading to a double bogey.
With some breathing room, Yermish chunked her first chip, then chipped it to 15 feet and made the par putt.
Yermish had battled all day. She made a birdie at the fifth hole, but gave a shot back when she yanked her tee shot out of bounds on the par-5 13th hole. She did manage to save a bogey, however.
But when she absolutely needed a couple of big shots, Yermish got them, knocking a 54-degree wedge to three-and-a-half feet at the par-4 14th hole and converting the birdie putt and hitting a 58-degree wedge into 17 for what proved to be a critical birdie.
Fedun’s finishing double bogey left her with a 3-over 75 as she fell into a tie for second place with a 1-under 142 total. She will be making her second trip to the PIAA Championship, having made it there as a sophomore two years ago.
Plymouth-Whitemarsh sophomore Rhianna Gooneratne, also playing in the group with Yermish and Fedun, was in the hunt all day. Gooneratne added a 2-over 74 to her opening-round 68 at Raven’s Claw as she earned a piece of runnerup honors at 1-under. Gooneratne will be making a return trip to states after qualifying as a freshman a year ago.
Phoenixville junior Kate Roberts, playing up ahead of Yermish and Co., recorded a solid 3-under 69 Tuesday at the Turtle after opening with a 2-over 73 at Raven’s Claw to join the trio tied for second place at 142. Kate Roberts will be making her second straight trip to the state tournament.
The best round of the day among the girls belonged to Unionville senior Mary Dunigan, who carded a sparkling five-birdie, no-bogey 67 to finish alone in fifth place at even-par 143. Dunigan, who was also battling a nasty cold, had struggled to a 5-over 76 in the opening round at Raven’s Claw.
Dunigan will return to the PIAA Class AAA Championship for the second straight year and for the third time in her outstanding scholastic career.
North Penn senior Hayley Ekert was the fourth member of the foursome with Yermish, Fedun and Gooneratne and barged her way into contention with back-to-back birdies at the ninth and 10th holes. Ekert, who had opened with a 1-under 70 at Raven’s Claw, struggled a little down the stretch, settling for a 3-over 75 to finish in a tie for sixth place with a 2-over 145 total.
Ekert was joined at 2-over by Kate Roberts’ younger sister Kayley, a freshman at Phoenixville. Kayley Roberts matched big sister’s 3-under 69 in Tuesday’s second round after opening with a 5-over 76 at Raven’s Claw.
The Roberts sisters led the Phantoms to the District One Class AAA team crown Monday at Raven’s Claw.
“It’s not easy to win this,” Yermish said. “There’s so many good players. It seems like every year, they’re getting better and better. It’s pretty cool.”
Downingtown East senior Silvana Gonzalez punched her ticket to the PIAA Class AAA Championship as she added a 2-over 74 to her opening-round 73 at Raven’s Claw to finish alone in eighth place with a 4-over 147 total.
The final berth to the state tournament out of District One went to Central Bucks West’s Abigail Lynn as she added a 3-over 75 at the Turtle to her opening-round 77 at Raven’s Claw for a 9-over 152 total that left her in ninth place.
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