Riverside & Ellwood Boys Golf Teams Share Section Co-Championship

The Riverside and Ellwood boys golf teams both had extremely successful seasons. Their records led to the two, normal rivals, to be crowned section co-champs.

For the Wolverines, the team was led by senior co-captains Broc Boariu and Alex Scott. The team also consisted of seniors Jake Peffer and Jake Alberts, junior Tyler Richards. sophomores Joey Hudson and Angelo Agostinelli, and freshmen Milo Sesti, Alexander Roth, Tyler Baker, Daniel Rogers, Zac Polojak, and Zion Bunney.

“I am very proud of our accomplishments as a team. We have worked hard to compete in one of the best WPIAL Division II sections. Winning the section with my teammates was a memory I will never forget,” said Ellwood Co-Captain Alex Scott.

Individually, the boys had their own victories. Broc Boariu advanced to the WPIAL Individual Championship at Allegheny CC., where he placed 19th. However the top 18 golfers advance, and Boariu missed the qualification by 1 stroke.

Ellwood City Golf Seniors (left to right) Alex Scott, Jake Alberts, Broc Boariu, and Jacob Peffer

Ellwood head coach Sam Barry was thrilled with his co-captains efforts this season.

“This season exceeded my expectations. Broc, Alex and I had set a team goal to make the playoffs early in April and ultimately win the section,” said Barry.

“They knew that Riverside would be a challenge but felt that we had a solid team from top to bottom. The seniors (Broc Boariu, Alex Scott, Jake Alberts) have been on the team since 9th grade and have improved each year. They remained dedicated to the game and to the team,”

“Their hard work, along with the contributions of Freshman Milo Sesti, Sophomore Joey Hudson, Junior Tyler Richards, and Senior Jacob Peffer proved to be the formula needed to finish the season 12-2. Simply put remaining focused all season, working to make improvements to there swings, short games, paid off with a 12-2 season, a share of the section title and a trip to the playoffs,” Berry concluded.

Their season achievements included perfect 8-0 home records, top 10 finishes in the team Tri-County Invitational and 4th place in the Tam O’Shanter Invitational, along with WPIAL first round team championships.

Co-Captain Broc Boariu had believed the team had potential.

“Going into the season I knew we had potential to make some noise in the section and to be a contender for the section. It was a lot of hard work but as the pieces came together we were a force to be reckoned with.”

For the Panthers, the team is led by team captain Daniel Zelch. The team consists of seniors Natalie Holzer, Daniel Zelch, and Devin Reed, juniors Skylar Fox, Justin Hand, Ethan Pilarski, Liam Grinnen, and Cameron Dimeo.

On top of gaining the title as section co-champs with their team, juniors Justin Hand and Skylar Fox had their own successes this season.

Justin Hand qualified for the PIAA Western Individual Finals, and he also qualified for the PIAA 2A Individual Championship.

Skylar Fox not only qualified for the PIAA Western Individual Finals and the PIAA 2A Individual Championship, he became the WPIAL 2A Individual Golf Champion which marks this as the third year in a row he has won this title.

Fox has been playing golf since he was only 3 years old, making this year his 13th year. He says he owes his love of golf to his grandfather.

His plans for after high school does include college, but he also has plans on going professional for the sport.

“I chose golf because it physically and mentally challenges me,” Fox said. “That is why I love the sport so much.”