St. Joseph golf wins battle of North Jersey powers at Arcola Invitational
PARAMUS – St. Joseph has become a serious contender for multiple titles heading into the make-or-break month of May.
The Green Knights won Monday’s Arcola Invitational golf tournament, the final 18-hole tune-up heading into league, county, sectional and state championships.
“It’s a great momentum boost and we’re heating up at the right time,” St. Joseph sophomore Michael Asselta said.
Asselta won the individual title at Arcola Country Club – arguably the toughest course North Jersey high schoolers will face this season – to strengthen his already compelling case for North Jersey Boys Golfer of the Year.
Asselta shot 3-over-par 75 to finish one shot ahead of Ridgewood sophomore Braden Bhalla. The Green Knights carded a shoot-five, count-four score of 325 to finish three shots ahead of Ramapo.
Northern Highlands delivered the biggest surprise by finishing third with 334. Don Bosco and Bergen Catholic, neither fielding its top lineup, tied for fourth with 336, while Ridgewood shot 337 and was sixth among the dozen Bergen County teams.
St. Joseph: North Jersey’s finest
St. Joseph had nary a senior in the lineup and this marks its second 18-hole title of the season and Asselta’s third individual crown. The Green Knights are favorites to win the overall title at Friday’s Big North Championship at Rockleigh.
Asselta had an eagle, two birdies, five bogeys and a double-bogey for his 75. He eagled the par-5 eighth hole in the shotgun event by sinking a 10-footer. He birdied his second-to-last-hole, the par-4 17th, by sinking a 6-footer.
“It’s a really hard course, so I would say a 75 is a pretty good score,” Asselta said. “I was a little bit up and down, but overall, I hit it solid. Putting, it’s hard out there. The greens are firm and fast, but overall I putted it pretty good. I drove it really well, and I think that’s kind of what won it today.”
Green Knights junior captain Liam Moloney finished in a six-way tie for third with 77. Freshman CJ Antifonario shot 81 to finish in a three-way tie for 10th, and sophomore Darren Coyle carded 92.
“It really gives us a confidence boost. Everybody’s game has been getting better each and every day,” Moloney said, adding, “It’s really just coming together at the right time.”
Ramapo: Public powerhouse
Ramapo, reigning State Group 3 champion, is fully capable of starting May by upending St. Joseph and the other non-publics and winning Friday’s Big North Conference overall title.
Junior Harry Cohen, last year’s North Jersey Boys Golfer of the Year, and Peter Keith each shot 77 to finish in that six-way tie for third. Jackson Chudnoff shot 86 and Jordan Weiss 88.
“I think we played OK. I think we’re capable of playing a little bit better golf,” Green Raiders coach Brian Gogerty said. “That course also showed its teeth today. That was a difficult course from start to finish for everybody in the field.”
Northern Highlands: Surprise, surprise
Northern Highlands’ third-place finish, ahead of Don Bosco and Bergen Catholic, was led by the Klarreich brothers. Ryan Klarreich, a junior, shot 80 to finish ninth, while his freshman sibling, Owen, had 81 to tie for 10th. Cooper Brodie shot 83 and Chase Collum 90.
“I thought the kids battled. We had a rough couple of days last week, bounced back, and put up a couple of nice scores,” Highlanders coach Dave Cord said. He added, “I thought we were right in it and had a chance to win it at the end.”
Bhalla: Individual contender
Bhalla has continued to improve, after last season turning heads by qualifying for the state championship. He had three birdies, five bogeys and a double-bogey. On the par-5 eighth and ninth holes, he just missed eagles after missing putts.
“I felt like I played well,” said Bhalla, who could make a run at Friday’s Big North overall crown. “I made a couple of mistakes, but I was able to bounce back from them.”
Arcola Invitational
At Arcola CC, Paramus
Par: 72; Yardage: 6,390
Team scores
St. Joseph 325
Ramapo 328
Northern Highlands 334
Bergen Catholic 336
Don Bosco 336
Ridgewood 337
Tenafly 346
Old Tappan 353
River Dell 359
Glen Rock 365
Ramsey 393
Mahwah 413
Individuals
Michael Asselta, St. Joseph 75
Braden Bhalla, Ridgewood 76
Ryder Hodgson, Bergen Catholic 77
Harry Cohen, Ramapo 77
Peter Keith, Ramapo 77
Aarush Malmandi, Don Bosco 77
Liam Moloney, St. Joseph 77
Hoewon Park, Tenafly 77
Ryan Klarreich, Northern Highlands 80
Johnny Keyes, Bergen Catholic 81
Owen Klarreich, Northern Highlands 81
CJ Antifonario, St. Joseph 81
Stephen Viray, Don Bosco 82
Cooper Brodie, Northern Highlands 83
Alex Na, River Dell 83
Finn Doherty, Ridgewood 83
James Ko, Old Tappan 83
Owen Moynihan, Mahwah 83
Michael Buckley, Old Tappan 84
Jayden Na, River Dell 85
Brendan Burkhardt, Glen Rock 85
Jackson Chudnoff, Ramapo 86
Eric Kim, Tenafly 86
Matt Wall, Ridgewood 87
Jordan Weiss, Ramapo 88
Gavin Sullivan, Don Bosco 88
Will Calocino, Bergen Catholic 89
Nikhil Sahu, Bergen Catholic 89
Dom Cannao, Don Bosco 89
Aidan Pifko-Walsh, Don Bosco 89
Jun Chun, Old Tappan 89
Dylan Sawyer, Pascack Hills 89
Dylan Ayer, Ramsey 90
Chase Collum, Northern Highlands 90
SeongJune Bae, Northern Highlands 91
Parker Rollins, Ridgewood 91
Noah Rubach, Tenafly 91
Jake Good, River Dell 92
Sebastian Skibo, Ridgewood 92
Darren Coyle, St. Joseph 92
Will Casper, Glen Rock 92
Drew Davis, Tenafly 92
Ryan Ledlow, Ramsey 94
Cooper Peck, Fair Lawn 94
Declan Manning, Glen Rock 94
Quinn Reardon, Glen Rock 94
John Fenton, St. Joseph 95
Chris Vrtis, Bergen Catholic 96
Jack Sposa, Ramapo 96
Braden O'Shea, Midland Park 96
Zach Miller, Old Tappan 97
Matthew Na, Old Tappan 97
Austin Groves, Pascack Hills 97
Michael Ledlow, Ramsey 99
Dan Madonia, River Dell 99
Preston Tsui, River Dell 99
Nico Alfano, Mahwah 99
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: St. Joseph golf wins battle of Bergen powers at Arcola Invitational
