Battling the big boys
Brownsville鈥檚 Vojacek, J-M鈥檚 Teasdale place at TriCADA tournament
BEALLSVILLE 鈥� South Fayette, Peters Township and Canon-McMillan grabbed eight of the 10 individual medals Friday afternoon at Nemacolin Country Club in the TriCADA Golf Tournament, but Jefferson-Morgan鈥檚 Urijah Teasdale and Brownsville鈥檚 Ben Vojacek proved that they can hang with the big boys by playing neck-and-neck with some of the top Class 3A golfers in the WPIAL.
Teasdale, a junior, was 3-over-par with a 75, while Vojacek, a senior, was ninth after carding a 77.
Urijah Teasdale, who is the younger brother of four-time state wrestling champion Gavin Teasdale, demonstrated he is not the only athlete in the family after shooting a 39 on the front nine and a 36 on the back.
鈥淭he pins were really tough today,鈥� Teasdale said. 鈥淚 played at this course last week and I didn鈥檛 play well at all. The course played tough, but I was able to battle through it. I gave most of my strokes away on the green. I am pretty pleased with how I did with the conditions and all.鈥�
Teasdale shot a 79 in the TriCADA tournament last year. He was one stroke shy of qualifying for the state tournament last season.
鈥淚 made a nine on one hole last year, and that killed me,鈥� Teasdale said. 鈥淥bviously, I want to improve on that and get to the state tournament.鈥�
Vojacek, who was 2-over on the front nine and 3-over on the back, was proud to be playing shot-for-shot with some of the top Class 3A schools in the WPIAL.
鈥淚t was a good feeling to be in the top 10 with the top teams from bigger schools,鈥� Vojacek said. 鈥淭he greens were moving really fast and the pins were tough, but I was able to adapt to the way the course was playing. My wedges were working really well today, and I was able to get some good distance with my driver.鈥�
Teasdale and Vojacek were not only the two Class 2A players to be in the top 10, but they were in the same foursome, which Vojacek believed helped him stay focused.
鈥淚t was good to play with Urijah,鈥� said Vojacek. 鈥淚t really kept me focused, plus Jefferson-Morgan is in our section, so it is good to play with someone we will see again. It is a good feeling to represent my school against these types of teams. I have been playing well this summer, and I hope it continues in the fall.鈥�
Brady Newman carded a 3-under 69 to top Peters Township鈥檚 Camden Reyes, who fired a 71. Newman and Reyes were the only players in the field of 135 to break par.
The Lions鈥� Sam Bishop was third at 72. The Indians鈥� Tyler Ondrejko was fourth with a 73. The Big Macs鈥� Chase Werthman (76) and Ben Taczak (77) were sixth and seventh. Taczak topped Peters Township鈥檚 Finn Sobehart (77) and Vojacek for eighth and ninth-place.
South Fayette鈥檚 Jackson Stephens rounded out the top 10 with a 78.
The Lions won the Class 3A team championship with a gross score of 380 for their five golfers. The Indians鈥� were second at 381 and Canon-McMillan third after shooting 397.
Charleroi won the Class 2A team title with a score of 425. Chartiers-Houston shot 431 and Waynesburg Central 452.
Newman knew the challenge of playing at Nemacolin Country Club, and despite some shots that he wasn鈥檛 pleased with, the South Fayette senior was able to edge Reyes by two strokes.
Newman shot 36 on the front nine and 33 on the back.
鈥淚 hit some good shots today, but I definitely hit some bad ones that were tough breaks,鈥� Newman said. 鈥淚 had a good bunker shot out of that second par three on the back nine. I put myself in a bad spot, but I was able to make up for it with a good shot, but that鈥檚 how golf is. It sort of evens out every once in a while.鈥�
Newman and his teammates were pleased to defeat a squad like Peters Township, who is normally at the top of the team scores at the TriCADA tournament.
鈥淧eters Township is a good squad, and they are a good school,鈥� Newman said. 鈥淚t was nice to win this one as a team. I really like playing this course. It鈥檚 unique because it鈥檚 a par 38 on the front nine and a par 34 on the back nine.鈥�
Laurel Highlands junior Kayden Smith shot an 80 to finish in a tie for 16th. He was at 1-over on the front nine and 7-over on the back.
鈥淭he pins were placed in a tough place today, which made it pretty hard to putt,鈥� Smith said. 鈥淭he driver wasn鈥檛 the best today for me, but the irons, chipping and putting kind of saved me.鈥�
Smith shot an 85 in two rounds at Nemacolin Country Club this summer.
鈥淚t was nice to do better this time in tougher conditions,鈥� Smith said. 鈥淚 think I played pretty well, especially considering the difficulty of the course.鈥�
Uniontown head coach Danae Uphold didn鈥檛 have a full squad available at TriCADA, but was proud of her team鈥檚 effort. The Red Raiders鈥� Liam Glover shot a 91.
鈥淚 am really excited for the team,鈥� Uphold said. 鈥淚t has been a work in progress, but we鈥檝e improved every single day. The course played really difficult today. I was impressed with the way they played. We have some tough competition playing in Class 3A this year.鈥�
Albert Gallatin was led by Tyler Felio鈥檚 99. Beth-Center鈥檚 Evan Lowman carded a 91.
Waynesburg鈥檚 Jarrett Tretnik shot an 84. Carmichaels was led by Eli Hastings, who came in at 82 after finishing 1-over on the back nine.
Frazier鈥檚 Mason Ritz carded a 100.