Posing with the 2019 District 1 championship trophy are Mount St. Joseph Academy golfers (from left) Caroline Gola, Clare Gimpel, Olivia Wirsching, Sophia Gambone and Nora Blatney. by Tom Utescher …
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Posing with the 2019 District 1 championship trophy are Mount St. Joseph Academy golfers (from left) Caroline Gola, Clare Gimpel, Olivia Wirsching, Sophia Gambone and Nora Blatney.by Tom Utescher
After their annual fall frolic to the Athletic Association of Catholic Academies championship (the 17th in a row), Mount St. Joseph Academy golfers faced competition from all over southeastern Pennsylvania at the PIAA District 1 tournament last week.
In 2018, the Mount Magic won the district title by just a single stroke over Downingtown East High School. While the Mounties had a little more breathing room this time around, it was still a competitive tournament with better team scores overall than last season.
The Mount came away with its seventh straight championship, putting up a three-player score of 230, while Unionville High School was the runner-up with a 240 and Downingtown East was third with a score of 260. By winning the team title last Monday at Raven’s Claw Golf Club in Pottstown, the Mount advanced to the PIAA state team tournament, which will take place on Oct. 23 in York, Pennsylvania.
Raven’s Claw was a new venue for the District 1 golfers, who’d been used to playing at Gilbertsville and Turtle Creek (also near the western border of the district) in years past. Mount head coach John Mischler described Raven’s Claw as a tighter and tougher course that tracks through several neighborhoods rather than the wide open Gilbertsville course.
The three MSJ players who were the official scorers at last year’s tournament emerged as the top three Mounties once more. Junior Clare Gimpel scored a 73 and senior Olivia Wirsching carded a 74, while sophomore Caroline Gola completed the Magic’s team score with a round of 83. The other participants for the Magic were sophomore Nora Blatney (87) and junior Sofia Gambone (93).
Wirsching is a graduate of Wyncote’s Ancillae Assumpta Academy, and the other four athletes are all Norwood-Fontbonne Academy alumni.
Mount St. Joseph finished third at the 2018 state tournament behind Western Pennsylvania’s North Allegheny High School and Downingtown East. Each of the other two schools graduated their best player last spring. The Magic last won the state team championship in 2013, and earned the honor twice before that.
