Low scores just par for the course
Peters Township’s Jake Sollon finished fourth at Monday’s Section 7-AAA Individual Qualifier.
Peters Township’s Alec Stopperich placed fourth at last year’s WPIAL championships.
Peters Township High School’s boys golfers aren’t concerned about past achievements or the improved field in Class AAA. They are focused solely on one opponent: par.
No matter what course the Indians are playing, the expectation is each of the 10 golfers shoot even par or below par.
Reaching that feat might sound far-fetched to most golfers, but Peters Township (7-0, 13-0) continues to defy logic. In its Section 7-AAA win over Trinity last Friday, only two of the 10 golfers on the roster were above par.
It wasn’t an anomaly. Led by senior Connor Schmidt, who is averaging below par after missing the WPIAL Championships last fall, the Indians are on pace to break the program scoring record for the second consecutive season. They currently have an 18-hole average of 185.
“Honestly, we’re playing to the expectation,” head coach David Kuhn said. “Our expectation at any golf course we play is to win. We never talk about opponents or what they’re doing. Our goal is to do our best against par every match. That’s the name of the game in golf. You have to play against the course.”
Few WPIAL golf programs fared better against par since Kuhn took over prior to the 1999 season. During that span, the Indians had 11 golfers finish in the top 10 at the WPIAL Individual Championships.
They also have four WPIAL team titles and finished fifth or better in the WPIAL 11 times in 14 postseason appearances. The run of dominance continued last season when Peters Township won the WPIAL Class AAA title – its fifth championship – and finished third at the PIAA Championships.
“It’s not easy to crack our lineup,” Schmidt said. “Our other guys are shooting even (par) or barely over. It’s helped me and everyone else on the team get better. We help each other out, watch each other’s swings and work together to get better.
“We are all looking at the long-term goal of winning a state championship.”
The program is often called the gold standard in WPIAL golf, but that wasn’t always the case. Prior to Kuhn’s arrival, the Indians hadn’t won a section title since 1990 and hadn’t won a WPIAL title since 1981. Developing golfers from the youth level to varsity shifted the balance of power in high school golf toward Peters Township.
Kuhn wanted to build depth and foster competition on the roster. Returning five of six starters from last season and an ability to fill the remaining spots with golfers who could start for most teams in the district is an example of how far the program has come. The Indians missed the playoffs in 1999 and 2002 without an individual in the top 10 of the WPIAL.
“We have a couple kids who might start only one or two matches who will play college golf next year,” Kuhn said. “Competition is really what drives it forward and that’s part of the plan. We know the more competitive you make it and the more competitive the team becomes, the better the team will play. If you want to be in the lineup, you have to earn your way in.”
Schmidt has been below par in eight of 13 matches, and Alec Stopperich, who finished 18th in the state and fourth in the WPIAL last year, is back. They are joined in the starting lineup by Jake Sollon, Tanner Johnson, J.W. Cunningham and Hunter Bruce. The Indians did lose Ben Morgret, who finished 21st in the PIAA and is playing at Saint Francis (Pa.).
A summer spent on the course, fine-tuning every aspect of their game, has continued to pay off for the Indians. That was evident Monday afternoon at the Section 7-AAA Individual Qualifier.
Schmidt took first place by shooting 3-under-par 69 and Peters Township’s entire starting lineup qualified for the semifinals, which will be next Monday or Tuesday. Sollon finished in fourth place, Stopperich was eighth, Bruce 11th and Cunningham 14th. Thirty-five percent of golfers who qualified from the section play for the Indians.
The accomplishments continue to add up and the scores continue to surprise many, but Schmidt and his teammates are focused on one goal: winning a state championship.
“We expect those low scores and we’re proud of that, but some guys come out with a 38 and they aren’t happy,” Schmidt said. “We put everything in perspective. We’re confident, but we know we have to play our best golf.
“If we play our best, we know we can accomplish great things. We know we can compete with the best teams in the state.”