Denis, Lady Tigers take home district championships
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By Michael Boytim
mboytim@altoonamirror.com
SALIX -- Everyone loves an underdog story when a player or team overcomes the odds to win a championship.
But if that underdog doesn't come through with the championship, no one holds it against them.
That's why being an overwhelming favorite has its challenges, too.
Hollidaysburg sophomore Crosby Denis faced that Thursday in the District 6 Class 3A girls golf championship at Windber Country Club.
Denis found herself in third place after making a double bogey on No. 1, her 10th hole of the day, but she composed herself on the par 3 second hole and hit an excellent tee shot right behind the pin for a par while her competition made bogey and double bogey to pull the top three competitors into a tie through 11 holes.
She took control from there, shooting 2-under par over her last eight holes, and shot a 77 to eventually win her second straight district title by five strokes over Central Mountain's Reese Walizer.
"The shot on the par 3 really got it back in my head that I could still do well," Denis said. "No. 1 has never been my hole. I have played here a lot, and I don't think I have ever made par on it. I expected to do badly on it, but I didn't expect a double bogey. I tried to get it back by making a birdie or par on the next one."
Denis, who won a Class 3A doubles tennis championship on Wednesday with teammate Grace Muriceak, said she felt a sense of relief when she made a short par putt on her final hole to seal the victory.
"It's so stressful," Denis said. "This has been the most stressful tournament I have ever had in my entire life. I have been stressing about this since the beginning of the season. It's so different when you're expected to win. Everyone thinks you are going to win -- they know you're going to win -- and if you don't win it becomes a huge letdown rather than being projected to be second or third place and then if you don't place first, it's OK. It's win-win if you aren't supposed to place first and you do, but being expected to win is so stressful and worrisome."
In addition to winning the individual championship, Denis helped lead Hollidaysburg to its first-ever team District 6 Class 3A championship, 270-296, over Altoona.
Maliah Malausky, who finished fourth overall to medal, shot a 94, and Lexi Peacock had a 99 to round out the Lady Tigers' scoring and secure a spot in the Class 3A girls subregional tournament at The Country Club of Meadville on Tuesday against the District 8, District 9 and District 10 champions at 10 a.m.
"It's so amazing," Denis said. "This is the first time in school history that we have won. It's so amazing to win with my team and have another round that we can play together."
Altoona's Ellie Filer held the overall lead through the first nine holes while playing in a group with Denis and Walizer.
"I was a little nervous, but I tried to keep calm," Filer said. "If you don't, then you go everywhere. It was nerve wracking, but I'm happy with how I did."
Even after Denis started to pull away down the stretch, Filer made birdie on the group's 16th hole to pull back within two strokes before Denis responded with a birdie on the next hole to regain a comfortable lead.
Filer shot a career best and Altoona school record score of 83 and finished third, one stroke behind Walizer.
"It's really cool to know I can be right there with them," Filer said. "I have gotten fourth place every year, so third place is better. I feel good about that."
Altoona started a girls golf program in 2021 and has made tremendous progress, finishing this season with a winning record of 6-4 behind Filer, a junior.
But once Denis tied things up 11 holes into the tournament with seven holes from the front nine left to play, everyone else was facing an uphill challenge.
"I just started from square one," Denis said. "The front has always been good for me. I'm so much better at the front than the back."
In Class 2A, Saint Joseph's star junior Maddie Koshko won her third straight district championship with a 3-under par 69. Koshko will be among the favorites in the state championship tournament, which begins Oct. 21 at Penn State.
"I feel like I keep getting better every year," Koshko said. "I keep working hard, and it's paying off. I don't have a score in mind (for states), I just want to stick to my plan, stick to my routine and it will work out."
River Valley won the District 6 Class 3A team title with a score of 314 by two strokes over Westmont Hilltop and Forest Hills, but because Valley did not break 300, it will not advance to the subregional round and District 9 champion Oswayo Valley will automatically advance to the state championship.
Central Cambria senior Jazmine Boland saved her best round for one of her last high school appearances. After just missing out on qualifying for the state championship last year, Boland shot an 88 on Thursday to finish third and punch her ticket to states.
"I didn't have a great season, but it clicked today, and I'm really happy that it did. I'm really excited for states," Boland said. "My driver and my putting was good today. I only three-putted twice, and my putting has been really good this year. It's great after missing states by one stroke last year. Finally making it is a big accomplishment for me. I worked my butt off to improve my putting."
CLASS 3A
TEAM RESULTS
1, Hollidaysburg (H) 270; 2, Altoona (A) 296.
INDIVIDUAL RESULTS (CHAMPION ADVANCES)
1, Denis, H, 77; 2, Walizer, Central Mountain, 82; 3, Filer, A, 83; 4, Malausky, H, 94; 5, Dworsky, State College, 96; 6, Peacock, H, 99; T-7, Hallinan, A, 100; T-7, Carles, H, 100; 9, Panaro, H, 104; 10, Keys, State College, 111; 11, Long, A, 127.
CLASS 2A
TEAM RESULTS
1, River Valley (RV) 314; T-2, Westmont Hilltop (WH) 316; T-2, Forest Hills (FH) 316; 4, Central Cambria (CC) 320; T-5, Bishop Guilfoyle (BG) 354; T-5, Philipsburg-Osceola (PO) 354; 7, Bishop McCort (BM) 359.
INDIVIDUAL RESULTS (TOP THREE ADVANCE)
1, M. Koshko, Saint Joseph's, 69; 2, O. Koshko, Saint Joseph's, 82; 3, Boland, CC, 88; 4, Patalune, Portage, 93; 5, Yoder, Bishop Carroll, 95; 6, Cruley, FH, 96; T-7, Hampton, PO, 99; T-7, Pynos, RV, 99; T-9, Durbin, Penn Cambria, 104; T-9, Bagley, BG, 104; T-9, Hill, WH, 104; T-12, Mosorjak, WH, 106; T-12, Wesner, WH, 106; T-14, Stouffer, Richland, 107; T-14, Dunlap, RV, 107; 16, LaMantia, RV, 108; T-17, Kasisky, BM, 109; T-17, Wilson, BG, 109; 19, Mesoras, CC, 112; 20, King, Homer-Center, 113.