The Pittston Area golf team defeated Dallas 317-344 to win its second straight WVC Class 3A team championship.
Kevin Carroll | Sunday Dispatch
EXETER — Pittston Area avenged a loss from just five days earlier to repeat as the Wyoming Valley Conference Class 3A champion with a 317-344 victory over Dallas Wednesday at Fox Hill Country Club.
Noah Gruber shot a 5-over-par, 76 in the final foursome to lead the way.
“These guys have all believed in me for so long, I’ve put in the time and the work,” Gruber said. “It feels good to see the results.”
Wednesday’s clash was also a rematch from last year’s final, which Pittston Area won.
The Patriots recovered from a potentially costly loss late in the regular season by responding with a strong team effort.
Patrick Ruane shot a 78 while Andrew Nocito and Gianni Bartorilli added rounds of 81 and 82, respectively.
Pittston Area had an 11-shot lead at the turn, and poured it on down the stretch to win its second straight conference title in convincing fashion.
Ryan Roman had the low round of the day for Dallas, finishing one shot behind Gruber with a 77.
Pittston Area will head back to the district final where it was defeated by Abington Heights a year ago.
“We set a goal to win the district championship early in the season,” Patriots coach Jason Miller said. “We find ourselves back in the same 8spot, we have another shot at it and we’ll see what we could do in the district championship.”
Lake-Lehman defeated Holy Redeemer 317-330 for the Class 2A title.
Pittston Area 160, Crestwood 177
Patrick Ruane shot even par as Pittston Area reached the 18-hole WVC final with a victory in Monday’s nine-hole semifinal match at Fox Hill.
Ruane finished with a 35, five strokes better than the rest of the field.
Gianni Bartorillo chipped in with a 40 while Noah Gruber and Ryan Noone each came within a shot of Crestwood leader Brady Johnson when they finished with 42s.
Looking ahead
The WVC will determine its individual qualifiers for the district tournament Monday, beginning at 9 a.m., at Fox Hill.
Pittston Area will travel Elkview Country Club Oct. 6 to play the Lackawanna League Class 3A champion for the district title.
