Benson leads golfers headed to WPIAL finals
Ellie Benson earned medalist honors and takes a two-stroke lead into the WPIAL individual girls golf championship match to be played Oct. 4 at Diamond Run Golf Course in Sewickley.
The Peters Township sophomore shot a 1-over-par 73 during the first round of the competition played Sept. 26 also at Diamond Run.
Benson was one of five Lady Indians to move on to the finals. Brooke Vowcheck eked out eight place with an 85. Sophia Severns, Gabby Catalogna and Amelia Severns followed in 13th, 16th and 23rd positions.
The Lady Indians are the defending WPIAL team champions and PIAA state runners-up. They recently completed an undefeated season in regular match play, defeating Upper St. Clair, 179-194, to claim their second straight section crown. Benson had the low score of 39 in the triumph.
USC advanced three golfers. Olivia Ziegler finished 12th while Addy Shedd added 15th place. Myra Burchill followed in 25th position.
Mt. Lebanon senior Madeline Zerenga gained a spot in the final round. She placed seventh overall with an 82 score.
In boys competition, Connor McKenzie of Upper St. Clair shot a 1-over-par 73 and finished runner-up to Nick Turowski (72) from Penn-Trafford in the first round of the WPIAL Class 3A individual championships held Sept. 24 at Latrobe Country Club. The duo are among the top 36 qualifiers to advanced to the championship round to be played Oct. 2 at Valleybrook Country Club.
Colton Lusk led three Peters Township golfers into the finals. The junior carded a 78 to finished tied for sixth place. His score included an eagle on the par-5 No. 2 hole.
Six of the top seven finishers eagled the hole.
Chan Yoon of Bethel Park tied for eight position with PT’s Nick Haught and South Fayette’s Sam Bishop. All carded 79s.
Ryan Watterson of Peters Township tied for 20th position with an 81.
USC’s Neil Joon, SF’s Brady Newman and Canon-McMillan’s Tanner Mizenko tied for 30th place. Both shot 82 and made the cut to compete in the championship round.
Qualifiers take their first-round scores into the match. They will be combined with second-round numbers to decide the winner.
In team golf news, Peters Township clinched the Section 6-AAA title with a pair of wins against Canon-McMillan. It marks the 21st straight season the Indians will compete in the WPIAL team tournament.
The top finishers in semifinal matches played Oct. 10 at The Links at Spring Church in Apollo and Duck Hollow Golf Club in Uniontown, advance to the Class 3A team championship match set for Oct. 12 at Cedarbrook Golf Course in Belle Vernon.
With the wins over the Big Macs, PT finished the regular season with a 16-0 overall record. The Indians were 10-0 in the section.
In a 197-211 win over the Big Macs, Griffin Hansberry and Lusk shot the low scores of 35 and 38. Ben Miller followed with a 40 and Haught and Watterson submitted 42s.
In the season finale victory, 194-222, Hansberry (36), Watterson (38) and Lusk (39) led the attack followed by Haught (40) and Shane Willimans (41).