Rebarchick wins final home match as Hazleton places 2nd at Valley CC
Hazleton, Pa. - The Nittany Lion golfers competed in their final regualar season match this week, hosting the annual Clark Luis Invitational at the Valley Country Club in Sugarloaf Township, Pa. Hazleton played host to nine Penn State campuses and over 50 golfers on Monday as the season winds down and the conference championships approach. Leading the way was Hazleton's own, fourth year player Joey Rebarchick who shot a round of plus 7 for a 78. Rebarchick tied for the low round of the day with Penn State York's Andy Manges, winning on a match of cards with a par on the 18th hole.
Rebarchick's day got off to a rocky start, carding a triple bogey on the first hole and a double at the difficult fifth hole, but the senior powered through the errors to play excellent golf for the remainder of the round. After posting a 41 on the front nine, Rebarchick played the next four holes at -1 and if not for a double at the 15th hole, may have finished the back nine under par. Joey went on to make a great par save at the 16th and finished up with routine pars on holes 17 and 18. York's Andy Manges notched three birdies in a row to snag the lead from Rebarchick late in the day, but a costly bogey at the last, dropped him into a tie to finish as the co-leader in the clubhouse.
Other notables for Hazleton included third year Grant Culbert who posted an 84 to finish in a tie for ninth place, first year Jake Babinchak in a T-11 finish with an 85 and second year player Bobby Kaufman who carded an 87 for T-19 finish. Each player was forced to contend with a triple bogey or higher on Monday as the golf course took its toll on competitors but in each case, Hazleton players were able to rally after the miscues to post solid scores in the clubhouse. The Lions finished with a 334 total on Monday and led in the clubhouse for much of the afternoon. But as scores continued to be posted, one campus stood out amongst the rest. While none of their players broke the 80 threshold, all six starters for the western campus put up solid numbers in the low 80's, proving to be the day's best survivors against the difficult greens and windy conditions at the Valley Country Club. Fayette's Jay Thompson posted the low round for the campus with an 81 followed by Nate Moody's 82. Rounding out the top scores for Fayette were Colin Hayes with an 83 and Dylan Pawlak with a 85, giving Fayette the edge over with team score of 331 to claim the coveted Clark Luis Invitational trophy and the campuses first win in 2024.
After a win at Penn State York last week and the second place finish on Monday, Hazleton is heating up heading into the PSUAC/USCAA Championships next week. The Lions will look to hit their stride on the Penn State Blue Course and look to defend their PSUAC title from a year ago over the course of the two day tournament on October 14 and 15.