Devon Prep’s McCabe places 2nd at Heritage Hills
YORK >> Devon Prep sophomore Ryan McCabe played like a seasoned veteran in the final round of the PIAA golf championships at Heritage Hills Golf Resort Tuesday.
His 1-over-par round of 72 boosted him into a tie for second place in boys Class 2A competition. McCabe finished with a two-day total of 151 to finish just two strokes behind winner William Mirams of Notre DameEast Stroudsburg.
“It felt very fulfilling to receive my medal,” said McCabe, who finished 15th at states as a freshman. “It felt good to know that I improved from last year. I was hitting my wedges better today. Yesterday I was missing a lot of greens. The greens are firm, and it’s hard to spin anything on them. I also was hitting my driver a lot better today.”
McCabe began his round Tuesday with a couple of birdies and he finished with four birdies for the round.
“Ryan’s wedges were amazing today, he hit them very solid, on point,” Devon Prep co-coach Monica Pedano said. “Yesterday, a lot of his shots were over the green, and after the round Coach Rogers (co-coach Brian Rogers) went to the range with Ryan and worked with him, and we really worked on honing it in.
“The way the wind is today, and the way the greens are, you’re not spinning the ball on these type of greens. Ryan’s birdie-birdie start today gave him confidence, knowing his wedges were in the right place, his mind was in the right place. He puts in the time to be where he is today, and we couldn’t be more proud of him.”
In boys Class 3A, Palmer Jackson of Franklin Regional (District 7) shot a red-hot 67 Tuesday for a total of 140 and a four-stroke margin over secondplace finisher Jimmy Meyers of Central Catholic (District 7).
District 1 golfers who placed in the top 10 for AAA boys included Patrick Sheehan of Central Bucks East (tied for third at 146), Liam Hart of Holy Ghost Prep (tied for third at 146), Unionville senior Connor Bennink (tied for sixth), Norristown senior Caleb Ryan (tied for sixth) and Luca Jezzeny of Central Bucks West (eighth).
“It felt really good to get that medal; after yesterday’s round I was aiming to get a top 10 finish,” said Bennink, who shot 76-73 for a total of 149. “I got the putter going today. My putting has been cold in the postseason, but I made some putts when I needed to today.”
Other District 1 finishers were Unionville senior Will Bennink (tied for 12th), Harriton junior Andrew Wallace (15th), Norristown sophomore Josh Ryan (tied for 19th), Souderton sophomore Stephen Butler (24th), SpringFord senior Axel Kalbach (tied for 32nd), Harriton junior David Fitzgerald (tied for 32nd) and Council Rock South senior Matt Fleming (tied for 34th).
On the girls side, Haverford High sophomore Riley Quartermain finished in 14th place in Class 3A. Quartermain carded a 12-over par 84 for a two-day total of 167 (+23).
Caroline Wrigley of North Allegheny (District 7) shot 147 (74-73) to win the crown by seven strokes.
The PIAA tournament turned out to be a little disappointing for West Chester East freshman Victoria Kim, fresh off her second-place finish at the PIAA East Regionals and first-place finishes at the District 1 and Ches-Mont Championships earlier this month.
“I didn’t play here like I wanted to, but I felt like I learned to keep going the last two days,” said Kim, who tied for 11th at States with a 81-84 for a total of 165. “On Monday, I had a bad front nine, but I picked myself up on the back nine.”
“This is a tricky kind of course, and today I think the wind took my ball a little bit,” said Conestoga senior Samantha Yao, who tied for fifth at 158. “Everything bounces here, and the fairways are narrow. It wasn’t my best round by far, but it was a lesson to be learned.”