Stein gives Latrobe boys golf another WCCA championships

By: Paul Schofield
Thursday, September 12, 2019 | 5:08 PM

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Another scorecard playoff was needed to decide the winner of the Westmoreland County Coaches Association boys golf championship Thursday at Latrobe Elks Golf Club.

And for the second consecutive year, a Latrobe golfer won the playoff, giving the Wildcats three consecutive first-place finishes in the event. Brady Pevarnik, a freshman at Penn State, won the past two.

This time, senior Jarred Stein took top honors, edging senior teammate Darick Hrtyanski. Both shot a 3-over-par 75.

The deciding hole was No. 6, the No. 1 handicap hole. Stein carded a par on the 398-yard par 4, and Hrtyanski had a bogey.

In 16 years of the tournament, a Latrobe golfer has won five times. Jake Reed won in 2011 and Will Wears in ’12.

Not only are Stein and Hrtyanski teammates, they work at Latrobe Elks Golf Club. Stein said course knowledge helped.

“I was surprised 75 won,” Stein said. “I thought I was going to be in the middle, but I ended up pretty good.”

Stein had eight pars and a bogey on the front nine. He survived a double bogey on No. 12 and a bogey on No. 13. He bounced back with a birdie on No. 14.

“Winning means a lot,” Stein said. “It’s like my own course because I basically grew up here. It’s really special to compete and beat all these good players. Darick and I had an advantage over everyone else because we worked here.”

Hrtyanski was in good shape through 15 holes, but a double bogey on the par-3 No. 10 cost him. He hit his drive into the pond in front of the green.

“As long as it was my teammate, I’m not disappointed,” Hrtyanski said. “I’m kind of upset that I doubled one of my last holes. I usually hit it on the green, never in the water. Now I’m looking forward to individual at Hannastown Golf Club on Monday.”

Latrobe coach Scott Reaugh said he hopes this round helps steady his team.

“We’ve been up-and-down,” Reaugh said. “We just need to more consistent.”

Latrobe’s Mario Battaglia finished with a 79. He was inconsistent until No. 13, when he went birdie, birdie and eagle.

Three players finished at 4-over 76. The scorecard playoff gave Franklin Regional junior Michael Wareham a third-place finish. Greensburg Salem senior Jeff Mankins was fourth, and Penn-Trafford junior Alex Turowski fifth.

There were two golfers at 77. Sixth place went to Franklin Regional junior Chuck Tragesser and seventh to Norwin junior Trent Kablach.

Four players finished at 78. The order by scorecard was Kiski School seniors Patrick Jacob and Ian Russ, Hempfield senior Alex Podlucky and Norwin’s Logan Divald.

The team title in Class AAA went to Franklin Regional, which edged Latrobe 394 to 398. The Class AA winner was Kiski School with a 402.

Paul Schofield is a TribLive reporter covering high school and college sports and local golf. He joined the Trib in 1995 after spending 15 years at the Daily Courier in Connellsville, where he served as sports editor for 14 years. He can be reached at pschofield@triblive.com.

Tags: Franklin Regional, Greensburg Salem, Hempfield, Latrobe, Norwin, Penn-Trafford