Denis leaves as pioneer for girls in high school
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STATE COLLEGE -- Crosby Denis walked off the green for the final time as a high school player Tuesday afternoon at the Penn State White Course.
The Hollidaysburg senior didn't have that day she wanted or the end to her scholastic career that she hoped for, but somewhere in the region, another girl might have been buying her first set of clubs or swinging a golf club for the first time because of what Denis has accomplished over the last four years.
"It's definitely a thing, and I think it stretches even beyond Hollidaysburg," Denis said. "Across the district, there have been a lot of girls who have talked to me personally that have talked about maybe joining golf or learning how to play. It's a really cool thing."
Denis shot an uncharacteristic score of 87 on Tuesday to finish at 19-over par over the course of the two-day tournament and ended up tied for 21st in a field of 35 golfers. But her unprecedented four Class 3A District 6 championships and last year's fifth-place finish in the PIAA tournament will live on forever and continue to inspire a new generation of female golfers.
"She obviously elevated our entire program," said Hollidaysburg coach Jill Hileman, who was recently named the 2025-2026 NFHS/Pennsylvania Girls Golf Coach of the Year. "Having her be as competitive and as successful as she is, it makes everyone else work hard to try to at least get to her level. Having that helped our program evolve, and that's one of the reasons we had a great run last year. The kids see that, and it's a testament to her drive to be the best golfer in the area. She really is. Just because she didn't win here or have her best round these two days, the accumulation of what she's done the last four years is outstanding."
Denis helped Hollidaysburg win the District 6 team championship and win in the PIAA regional at Treasure Lake last season. That victory put the Lady Tigers in the PIAA team championship, which are the memories Denis will hold close to her heart.
"Definitely states last year was a really big one," Denis said. "That was a big highlight, but playing on a team with a bunch of my friends was awesome. It was great to have a season with people I love."
Denis will continue her golf career at Division I Duquesne following her graduation from Hollidaysburg.
"I want to be successful and have fun with it," Denis said. "I want to grow my game a little bit and take advantage of all the opportunities that I have. Golf is something I will be able to play forever, and it's definitely something I will stick with."
Across the golf complex at Penn State on the Blue Course, another local golfer was also celebrating great strides and achievement in his game but dealing with the disappointment of the day not finishing the way he hoped.
Bishop Guilfoyle Academy senior Grant Okonak was in position to earn a PIAA medal for nearly his entire round on Tuesday. With just five holes to play, he was tied for fifth in the Class 2A boys field of 72 and just one shot back of a tie for third.
"As kids get older, they can hit it higher and further, but Grant really improved on the mental side of the game," Bishop Guilfoyle coach and Grant's father Robby Okonak said. "He took one shot at a time. The hardest thing for amateurs is dealing with making mistakes -- which you are going to make. It's what you do after that, and that was a big stride he took this season. His short game got better, and he has great course management and knows which side of holes to be on, things like that."
Unfortunately, after playing 31 holes of his PIAA championship tournament at 1-over par, he played his final five holes four over par, including a double bogey on No. 16.
Despite that, he was still tied for 10th with North Catholic's Chris Faber going into their final hole. Things looked good for Okonak off the tee as his drive put him in position to reach the par 5 green in two and Faber topped his drive.
But that's how quickly golf can turn.
Faber hit what he called "the best 3-wood of his life" from there, and Okonak's approach into the green landed just short in the bunker. Faber ended up making birdie, and Okonak made a two-putt par after nearly holing his bunker shot but watching it roll 10 feet past the hole after it didn't go in.
Okonak settled for a tie for 11th place with four other golfers -- one shot and place short of a state medal.
"I'm really happy with how I performed and did today," Grant Okonak said. "It was the same thing as yesterday. I hit great shots all around, but I couldn't get a putt to fall at all. At the end of the day, that's going to happen, but I'm very proud how far I came from last year. I couldn't consistently break 80, now I'm shooting in the low 70s at times. It sucks missing the top 10. The last couple holes cost me, but at the end of the day you can't do much about it."
Okonak did reach his goal coming into the tournament, however.
"He set a goal for himself to finish in the top 15," Coach Okonak said. "He readjusted a little bit after yesterday. In his head, he thought there was a chance he could do something special today and medal by getting into the top 10, but it's been a super positive season. He experienced heartbreak two years in a row at the district tournament not making it here, and now that he got the opportunity, he kept up with the big boys. There's a lot of pride in what he did this week."
Okonak said he knew where he stood in the standings due to a large scoreboard at the turn.
"Down the stretch, I knew it was going to be tight," Grant Okonak said. "I walked past a scoreboard on No. 9 and saw some scores and put a little pressure on myself to go make some pars and drop some putts. At the end of the day, the putter was good, but no putts fell. It's golf. It's going to happen."
Okonak will lead the Marauders -- along with Callen McClellan, Troy Nachtman, Carter Boland and Aidan Sheehan -- in today's PIAA team championship competition. He's hoping his leap in play from junior to senior year will open opportunities at the collegiate level.
"I have been talking to a couple coaches recently," Grant Okonak said. "I am looking forward to playing college golf. I'm looking forward to it. I'm definitely going to stick with it. It's done a lot for me and helped me grow, not only as a golfer but as a person."
Notes: Scranton Prep's Cole Powell won a two-hole playoff over Annville Cleona's Ben Allwein to win his second straight PIAA Class 2A boys championship after both finished 4-under par in regulation play. ... Central's Cody Clapper, who was tied for ninth going into Tuesday's round, made par on his first three holes Tuesday before running into trouble and shooting an 82. He finished tied for 35th. ... District 6 champion Colten Karlheim of Penn Cambria rebounded from a first-round 85 to shoot 75 and finished tied for 49th. ... Juniata Valley's Ethan Scalia also had a better second day, improving from 88 on Monday to 80 on Tuesday. He finished tied for 65th in his first year of competitive golf at any level. ... Shady Side Academy's Alyssa Zhang shot 3-under par to win the Class 2A girls championship by 10 strokes. ... Bryn Krosse, of Dallastown, won the 3A girls championship at 1-under par. ... West Allegheny's Nico Ward set the competitive round course record at the Penn State White Course with a 9-under par 63 to storm ahead and win the Class 3A boys championship with an overall score of 14-under par. ... State College's Luke McGraw finished fourth at 8-under par.