"Mr. High School Sports" - Special Report: WPIAL Championship Roundup

While Mr. High School Sports was preparing for Week 5 of high school football and recovering from the illness that kept him home for Week 6, a handful of gold medals were awarded in other District 7 fall sports.

There was more postseason glory to be achieved by girls' tennis players in the area, and the golf championships were historic in more ways than one.  It made for quite a memorable week on the green and on the clay...and here are the highlights:

First, I would like to extend an overdue congratulations to Serra Catholic freshman golfer Max Kaminsky, who captured the WPIAL Boys' Division II Individual Golf Championship on the soggy afternoon of Sept. 29 at Youghiogheny Country Club in Elizabeth Township.  For the first time in history, the WPIAL Boys' and Girls' Individual Golf Tournaments were split into two divisions, and for the first time in history, at least to the knowledge of WPIAL officials and record-keepers, it was the first title win ever by a freshman.

Kaminsky shot a front-nine 39, followed by a 35 on the back nine, including a crucial birdie on the 17th hole, for his winning score of 74.  He is one of 12 Division II golfers who qualified for the WPIAL Division I Boys' Individual Golf Finals.

Congratulations of a belated nature are also in order for Katterina and Nadia Luttner of Fox Chapel for their performances in the WPIAL Girls' Division I Individual Golf Championships at The Club at Nevillewood Oct. 5.  An appropriate soundtrack to the day would have been "Sisters are Doin' it for Themselves" by The Eurythmics, because sisters, together, owned the spotlight.

Katterina (pictured left) defeated two-time defending champ Nadia by a single stroke for her first crown, allowing the Luttners to join ten other qualifiers for the PIAA Western Regionals Oct. 18 at Tom's Run Golf Course.  Among the others was Emily Rohanna of Waynesburg, sister of former champion Rachel Rohanna, who claimed the girls' Division I championship.  The Luttners and the Rohannas are now the second and third pairs of sisters to win WPIAL individual golf titles.

In addition, I salute Belle Vernon senior Bo Lustig (pictured left) for his victory in the WPIAL Boys' Division I Individual Golf Championships.  Subpar conditions did not deter Lustig, who shot a 3-over 73 at the Longue Vue Club in Verona Oct. 6 to join 11 other qualifiers for the PIAA Western Regional.

Finally, kudos to the winners of the WPIAL Girls' Tennis Doubles Championships.  Kylie Isaacs and Mikayla Becich of North Allegheny, who were seeded No. 11, won the Class AAA tournament in straight sets, while Elise Carter and Tracy Gibson of South Park also needed just two sets to capture gold in the Class AA tournament at Pine-Richland High School on Friday.  Both pairs will play in the PIAA Girls' Doubles Tournament at Hershey Racquet Club Oct. 22-23.

Good luck to all at states!

(Special thanks to the Post-Gazette and the MSA Sports Network for their contributions to this post.)