Sewickley Herald notebook: Quaker Valley golfers wrap up solid season

By: Ray Fisher
Sunday, October 20, 2024 | 11:01 AM

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Quaker Valley placed fifth at the WPIAL Class 2A golf team championship held Oct. 10 at the Cedarbrook Gold course.

QV finished with 433 team points to end up behind North Catholic (419), Greensburg Central Catholic (420), Shady Side Academy (424) and McGuffey (429).

“The times we put it all together during matches this year, we were tough to beat,” QV coach Greg Vecchi said. “We had a few close-call, tough wins this season, which were fun. Overall, it definitely was a solid year.”

The Quakers’ leading competitors at the WPIAL championship were seniors Ethan Dai (75) and Nolan Wagoner (86), juniors Will Newlin (91) and Makenna Kamnikar (93) and freshmen Joseph Kamnikar (88) and Ty Stofko (95).

QV was the only team to break 400 at the semifinal round held at Pleasant Valley. The Quakers tied for third at last year’s WPIAL championship match.

“The team collectively performed great at Pleasant Valley,” Vecchi said. “We also had a great practice round at Cedarbrook the next day before the finals.

“Cedarbrook is a great but tough finals location. Add competition to that, and anything can happen. Our team knows we collectively underachieved there. It was a beautiful day to score well, but it just didn’t happen.”

Kad earns PIAA trip

Sewickley Academy senior Karan Kad had some insightful things to say about the WPIAL golf season.

Kad tied for seventh place at the Section 9-2A qualifier at North Park with a round of 79. He then tied for 11th at the WPIAL Class 2A championships with rounds of 81 and 77 at Youghiogheny Country Club and Sewickley Heights Golf Club.

“I was very happy with my performance at the WPIAL 2A golf championship,” Kad said. “I made a couple mistakes on my last three holes, yet I still performed to the best of my abilities.”

The top 18 golfers at the WPIAL event qualified for the PIAA tournament Oct. 21-22 at Penn State.

“My expectations for the PIAA tournament are to have fun and play the best I can,” Kad said. “It’s my final year of high school golf, so just being able to compete is a blessing. I couldn’t have asked for a better team and coach this year, and I’m proud of our work ethic regardless of our results.”

Big season for SA girls

Sewickley Academy’s girls soccer team waited until after the intermission break to roll out their dice in its section game Oct. 14 against Bishop Canevin.

Makenzie Dice scored the game’s only goal as the Panthers edged Bishop Canevin, 1-0, to extend their Section 3-A record to 9-1-1.

A junior forward, Dice netted the game-winner in the second half off an assist by sophomore midfielder Emma Eannarino.

“Every section game is extremely important,” Dice said, “and with that being said, I was thrilled to put the ball in the back of the net. I was happy for the whole team as both offense and defense had been working hard all game.

“My immediate reaction was excitement as Emma passed a beautiful ball to the top of the 18, putting me in a perfect position to score. We were 10 minutes into the second half and our team had ample opportunities to score. I was relieved and excited to put the ball in the net.”

Senior goalkeeper Marie Bigi registered the Panthers’ fourth consecutive shutout. Previously, Sewickley blanked Aquinas Academy, 3-0, South Allegheny, 6-0, and Carlynton, 4-0. SA defeated Bishop Canevin earlier this season in another close one, winning by a 2-1 score.

The Panthers took a 10-3-1 overall record into their final game of the regular season Oct. 16 against Serra Catholic.

“Every game, each player brought their best to the field, as it showed in the results,” Dice said before also giving credit to the coaching staff.

“Through our hard work and dedication, it made this season one to remember.

“We began this season with a goal of winning our section and making it into the (WPIAL) tournament. I believe we will build on the momentum we’ve created as a team to be successful in the postseason.”

Basketball camp set

The Quaker Valley girls basketball team’s annual fall clinic for players in fourth to eighth grade will run for four consecutive Saturdays beginning Oct. 20.

It will be held from 4 to 5 p.m. in the high school gym. The registration fee is $100 with all proceeds going to the QV girls basketball program. Scholarships are available.

Contact QV coach Ken Johns at ken.e.johns@gmail.com to register or for more information.

Tennis teams win

The No. 2 doubles team of Kate Miller and Parker Barnes won a three-set match to help No. 2 Quaker Valley to a 5-0 sweep of No. 10 Indiana in the WPIAL Class 2A tennis quarterfinals.

Kirsten Close, Avery Allan and Jay Olawaiye and the No. 1 doubles team of Livia Jobbins and Jane Lenhard won in straight sets for the Quakers.

QV wins on ice

Quaker Valley forwards Max Modrovich and Matthias Lezama combined for four goals and five assists in a recent PIHL Class A game against Kiski.

Modrovich, a junior, clicked for two goals and three assists while Lezama, a freshman, had two goals and two assists to lead QV (3-0) past the Cavaliers (0-1) by an 8-0 score.

Liam Welge, a senior defenseman, added a goal and two assists and Ben McHenry, a junior forward, had a goal and an assist. Junior goaltender Ian Lorang made 11 saves in posting the shutout.

Fun fact

Did you know that there are six more girls volleyball teams than football teams in the WPIAL?

The total number of girls volleyball teams is 122, compared to 116 football teams.

Tags: Quaker Valley, Sewickley Academy