Plymouth-Whitemarsh's Gooneratne cruises to PIAA Class AAA crown at Penn State

 

   Entering Tuesday’s final round of the PIAA Class AAA Championship at Penn State’s Blue Course with a five-shot lead, Plymouth-Whitemarsh junior Rhianna Gooneratne played it smart and, in the end, captured a state title by that same five-shot margin.

   Gooneratne basically won the title with her sizzling opening round of 5-under 67, but it isn’t always easy to play with a big lead, especially when there’s a state championship on the line.

   Gooneratne made a birdie at the fifth hole, a bogey at eight and another birdie at nine to make the turn at 6-under for the championship. After making her third birdie of the day at the 10^th hole, Gooneratne grinded out seven pars the rest of the way, the only exception a messy triple bogey at the par-3 14^th.

   But Gooneratne had given herself enough of a cushion to overcome that one bad hole. It added up to a 1-over 73, which, combined with her opening-round 67, gave Gooneratne a 4-under 140 total as she was the only player to finish under par for 36 holes.

   Gooneratne, who developed her game on the Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour, extended the run of Class AAA state champions out of District One to five straight years as Wissahickon’s Elizabeth Beek captured the title in 2019, West Chester East’s Victoria Kim won in ’20 and Lower Merion’s Sidney Yermish went back-to-back in ’21 and ’22.

   Phoenixville senior Kate Roberts, who captured the District One Class AAA crown last week at Turtle Creek Golf Course, closed with a solid 2-under 70 to finish in a tie for second place with North Pocono senior Gwen Powell at 1-over 145.

   Kate Roberts had opened with a 3-over 75 and her tie for second was her best showing at states as she closed out a tremendous scholastic career.

   Powell, playing in the PIAA Class AAA Championship for the fourth straight year, added a 1-under 71 to her opening-round 74 to join Kate Roberts at 1-over. Powell was playing on one of her future home courses as she will join the program at Penn State next summer.

   The best round of the day Tuesday belonged to Kate Roberts’ younger sister Kayley, a sophomore at Phoenixville. Kayley Roberts, a runnerup to her big sister in the district tournament last week at the Turtle and a runnerup in the PIAA Class AAA Championship as a freshman a year ago, closed with a sparkling 3-under 69 to finish two shots behind Kate Roberts and Powell in fourth place with a 3-over 147 total.

   Kayley Roberts had struggled in the opening round with a 6-over 78. Still, finishing second and fourth at states in your first two years is a pretty strong start to your scholastic career.

   A year ago, the Roberts sisters led the way as Phoenixville captured the PIAA Class AAA team championship.

   Downingtown East senior Mia Pace capped a strong scholastic postseason with her second straight 2-over 74 that left her in fifth place with a 4-over 148 total. Pace was the medalist in the Ches-Mont League Championship at Wyncote Golf Club before finishing in fourth place in the district championship at Turtle Creek.

   Wilson senior Kayla Maletto, coming off her second straight District Three crown, bounced back from an opening-round 77 by matching par in Tuesday’s second round with a 72 to finish alone in sixth place with a 5-over 149 total. Maletto will join the program at Creighton next summer.

   Upper Dublin’s Talia Hoffner also made a big move in Tuesday’s second round, rebounding from an opening-round 78 with a solid 1-over 73 for a 7-over 151 total that left her in a tie for seventh place with Elizabeth Forward’s Mya Morgan, who added a 3-over 75 to her opening-round 76.

   Rounding out the top 10 were four players tied for ninth place at 8-over 152, including Oakland Catholic’s Grace Windfelder, Warwick’s Elle Overly, Peters Township’s Ellie Benson and Seneca Valley’s Lihini Ranaweera.

   Ranaweera had been Gooneratne’s closest pursuer after matching par in the opening round with a 72, but she struggled to an 80 in Tuesday’s second round. Windfelder, who will join the program at Fairfield next summer, bounced back from an opening-round 79 with a solid 1-over 73.

   Overly recorded her second straight 4-over 76 and Benson added a 5-over 77 in Tuesday’s final round to her opening-round 75.

   Radnor sophomore Elayna Fanelli, the medalist in the Central League Championship at Turtle Creek last month, tallied her second straight 5-over 77 to finish alone in 13^th place with a 10-over 154 total.

   Two other players out of District One, Conestoga freshman Jill Burks and Souderton’s Alli Engart, landed in a tie for 16^th place at 12-over 156.

   After opening with a 3-over 75, Burks struggled a little with an 81 in Tuesday’s second round. Burks will hang around at Penn State for one more day as she will be the leading lady for the District One Class AAA champion Pioneers as they take a shot at a state crown in Wednesday’s team competition.

   Engart bounced back from an opening-round 82 as she capped her scholastic season with a solid 2-over 74.

   North East senior Anna Swan continued the family tradition with a steady 2-under 70 as she finished atop the Class AA leaderboard at Penn State’s White Course with a 1-under 143 total.

   Swan had trailed opening-round leader Sasha Petrochko of Hickory by a shot after Swan carded a 1-over 73.

   A bogey at the second hole was the only blemish on Swan’s scorecard. She made birdies at the third, 10^th and 13^th holes and grinded out 14 pars.

   North East’s Lydia Swan, Anna’s older sister, won the PIAA Class AA crown in 2019 and North East’s Isaiah Swan was the boys Class AA state champ in 2019. I’m not certain that Isaiah Swan is their brother, but that’s a pretty good run by Team Swan out of North East over the last five years.

   Anna Swan will join her sister Lydia at Oral Roberts at the end of next summer.

   Warrior Run senior Hannah Rabb made a strong defense of the title she won a year ago as she finished in a tie for second place with West Middlesex’s Kate Sowers, each ending up two shots behind Swan at 1-over 145.

   Rabb, who will join the James Madison program next summer, added a solid 1-under 71 in the second round to her opening-round 74. Sowers matched Rabb’s splits, adding a 1-under 71 in the second round to her opening-round 74.

   Wyoming Seminary’s Anna Zapletalova finished two shots behind Rabb and Sowers in fourth place with a 3-over 147 total as she added a 2-over 74 to her opening-round 73 and Sant Joseph’s Catholic’s Maddie Koshko was another shot behind Zapletalova in fifth at 4-over 148 after a second straight 2-over 74.

   Jersey Shore’s Caitlyn Schall and Hickory’s Luciana Masters finished three shots behind Koshko in a tie for sixth place at 7-over 151 total. Schall shaved five shots off her opening-round 78 with a solid 1-over 73 in the second round while Masters added a 4-over 76 to her opening-round 75.

   Masters’ Hickory teammate Petrochko struggled to an 81 in the second round after she had matched par in the opening round with a 72 as she finished alone in eighth place with a 9-over 153 total.

   Eden Christian Academy’s Pearl Lundgren posted her second straight 78 to finish three shots behind Petrochko in ninth place with a 156 total.

   Rounding out the top 10 in the Class AA state tournament field was Wilmington’s Kaitlyn Hoover as she added a 78 in Tuesday’s final round to her opening-round 80 to finish in 10^th place with a 158 total.

   There was plenty of drama in the boys PIAA Class AAA Championship at the Blue Course as Butler senior Hunter Swidzinski made an eagle on the par-5 18^th hole to complete a scintillating 8-under 64 and then drained a 20-foot birdie putt on the third hole of a playoff to capture the state crown.

   Swidzinski had opened with a 1-over 73 and was seven shots behind opening-round co-leaders Will Lorish of Plum and Aidan Farkas of St. Joseph’s Prep. The eagle at the finishing hole gave Swidzinski a 7-under 137 total.

   Swidzinski got it going early with birdies at the first, third, fourth, fifth and seventh holes before a bogey at eight slowed his roll a little. He bounced back with a birdie at the ninth hole, but a bogey at 11 dropped Swidzinski to 3-under for the championship.

   But Swidzinski wasn’t done yet as he made birdies at the 12^th and 13^th holes before closing with an eagle at the last to get it to 7-under.

   Lorish added a 1-under 71 to his opening round of 6-under 66 and Penn Trafford’s Nick Turowski, winner of a second WPIAL Class AAA crown this fall, joined the playoff as he added a 4-under 68 to his opening-round 69.

   Lorish exited the playoff following the first hole, the par-4 10^th. Swidzinski and Turowski, who will join the program at West Virginia next summer, both parred the next hole of the playoff, the par-3 14^th, before returning to the 10^th where Swidzinski ended it by dropping his birdie try.

   Lower Merion sophomore Seiji Sako had the best finish among a talented District One contingent as he added a 2-under 70 to his opening-round 68 to finish in a tie for fourth place with Peters Township’s Colton Lusk at 6-under 139.

   Lusk had the opposite splits, closing with a 4-under 68 after opening with a 70.

   Max Wager, playing close to his State College home, added a 1-under 71 to his opening-round 68 to finish alone in sixth place with a 5-under 139 total.

   It was a disappointing day for the Prep’s Farkas, a product of the junior program at Llanerch Country Club, as he backed off from his opening-round 66 with a 2-over 74, but the 4-under 140 total still gave the District 12 champion a seventh-place finish.

   Spring-Ford’s Charlie Ferrise, who tied for second place in last week’s District One Class AAA Championship at Turtle Creek, recorded a solid 3-under 69 to finish in a tie for eighth place with Central Dauphin’s Joey Sembrot at 3-under 141.

   Ferrise had matched par in the opening round with a 72. After opening with a 75, Sembrot closed with a sparkling 6-under 66 to get his share of eighth place.

   La Salle senior John Stevenson, winner of two of the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s major championships for juniors, the Junior Boys’ Championship and the Christman Cup, in the summer, carded a second straight 1-under 71 to join three other players in a tie for 10^th place with a 2-under 142 total.

   Joining Stevenson at 2-under were District One Class AAA champion Sam Feeney, a junior at West Chester Rustin, Fox Chapel’s David Fuhrer, the latest in a long line of standouts from one of the first families of golf in the Pittsburgh area, and Manheim Township’s Andrew Bilson.

   Feeney matched Stevenson’s splits with a second straight 1-under 71, Fuhrer added a 2-under 70 after matching par in the opening round with a 72 and Bilson, who had opened with a 5-under 67, fell back a little with a 1-over 73.

   Feeney’s Rustin teammate, Anestis Kalderemtzis, added a 2-under 70 to his opening-round 73 to join the group tied for 14^th place with a 1-under 143 total.

   Adam Fluehr of Springfield (Montco), who shared runnerup honors with Spring-Ford’s Ferrise in last week’s district tourney at the Turtle, finished alone in 18^th place at even-par 144 as he added a 1-under 71 to his opening-round 73.

   Two more District One entries, Radnor senior Shaun Mazzalupi and Unionville’s Charlie Barrickman, earned top-20 finishes as they landed in a large group tied for 20^th place at 2-over 146.

   Mazzalupi, in his third appearance in the state tournament, matched par in Tuesday’s final round with a 72 after opening with a 74.

   After opening with a 1-under 71, Barrickman closed with a 75. Barrickman will spend another day in State College as he and the District One Class AAA champion Longhorns will battle for the PIAA Class AAA crown in Wednesday’s team competition.

   In Class AA at the White Course, Wyoming Seminary junior Nick Werner, a contender in his first two state tournament appearances, claimed a state title as he added a 2-under 70 to his opening round of 4-under 68 for a 6-under 138 total that was two shots clear of the field.

   Werner had an up-and-down front nine at the White Course as he opened with a bogey at the first hole, made a birdie at three, a bogey at five and a birdie at six. But Werner rattled off birdies at the 10^th, 11^th and 13^th holes to nail down the title. Werner made one last bogey at the 14^th hole.

   The Lake Lehman duo of Michael Lugiano and Cael Ropietski shared second place as each finished two shots behind Werner in a tie for second place at 4-under 140.

   Lugiano added a 3-under 69 to his opening-round 71 while Ropietski recorded a solid 4-under 68 in Tuesday’s second round after he had matched par in the opening round with a 72.

   Riverside’s Michael Maslanka, Quaker Valley’s Ethan Dai and Eden Christian Academy’s Luke Gronbeck finished in a tie for fourth place, each ending up four shots behind Lugiano and Ropietski at even-par 144.

   Maslanka added a 2-under 70 to his opening-round 74, Dai registered a 1-under 71 in Tuesday’s second round after opening with a 73 and Gronbeck, who was Werner’s closest pursuer after an opening round of 2-under 70, closed with a 2-over 74.

   Lackawanna Trail’s Gavin June and Neshannock’s Matt Morelli finished in a tie for seventh place, each landing on 1-over 145.

   June bounced back from an opening round of 4-over 76 with a solid 3-under 69 in Tuesday’s final round. Morelli closed with a 1-over 73 after matching par in the opening round with a 72.

   Devon Prep senior Nick Ciocca, the defending PIAA Class AA champion, closed out his brilliant scholastic career with a second straight 1-over 73 as he shared ninth place with West Shamokin’s Alex Talmadge, each ending up with a 2-over 146 total.

   In addition to the individual crown he won a year ago, Ciocca, a product of the junior program at Aronimink Golf Club, led Devon Prep to a PIAA Class AA team crown as a sophomore two years ago. Ciocca will join the program at Notre Dame next summer.

   Talmadge matched Ciocca’s splits with a pair of 1-under 73s to get his share of ninth place.