STATE COLLEGE — Cole Powell never waivered. The Scranton Prep sophomore played two days of solid, steady, flawless golf. As a result, he is a state champion.

Powell shot 3-under-par 69 in Tuesday’s second round to finish with a 7-under 137 and capture the Class 2A title at the PIAA Golf Championships at the Penn State University Golf Courses. He defeated a hard-charging Anthony LaBoda of Fairview by two strokes. LaBoda used two eagles and four birdies to shoot 7-under for the day.

Luke Sikora of Greensburg Salem, who began the day one shot behind Powell in second, finished third, three shots behind.

“I’m feeling a lot of relief and a lot of excitement,” Powell said. “I played some very solid golf the last two days. Hit a lot of greens, hit a lot of fairways, which definitely helped. Anytime I missed a green, I got up-and-down about 90 percent of the time, which definitely was one of the biggest parts to getting me to where I am.”

Scranton Prep teammate Ben Boyanoski shot a 2-over 74 to wind up with a 4-over 148 and finish ninth, good enough for a state medal. The top 10 plus ties receive medals.

Two girls from District 2 also earned medals.

In Class 2A, Arden Brunn from Holy Redeemer finished ninth with a 12-over 156 (79-77). North Pocono’s Lyla Jones placed seventh in Class 3A with 6-over 150 (76-74).

“Cole played great. I think he handled himself really well out there,” Boyanoski said. “I’m really happy for him. He’s put in a lot of hard work and it finally showed.”

Playing the White Course, Powell got off to another good start. In Monday’s first round, he birdied two of the first three holes. On Tuesday, he birdied three of the first four holes.

“That really got my confidence going and helped the rest of the round,” Powell said.

His lone mistake came when he bogeyed the par-4 No. 9. But he responded with a birdie on the par-5 No. 10, then parred out the rest of the way.

“Nine is a tough hole; a short par-4 a little to the right with a bunker coming to the left side of the fairway,” Powell said. “It’s hard to get a ball in play. The green’s tight with a lot of slope. It’s tough to judge the speed. I didn’t hit a good putt and missed the next putt for par. I was frustrated making bogey, but the next hole I bounced back.”

Meanwhile, LaBoda was keeping the pressure on with his play. Powell said he learned about LaBoda’s rise up the standings on hole No. 11. Boyanoski, who played in the same foursome with LaBoda one hole ahead of Powell, said he thought that was a good thing.

“I think that helped Cole. When you’re playing good, it’s better to keep your foot on the gas. When you let up is when you make mistakes,” Boyanoski said. “I think someone chasing him helped keep his mind sharp and his focus heavy.”

Added Powell: “I knew he was coming at me. That definitely put something in me to keep on firing and finish out strong.”

Taking a two-shot lead to the par-5 No. 18, Powell stuck his third shot about eight feet from the hole. He two-putted for par to secure the title and set off a celebration with Scranton Prep teammates, parents, family and friends looking on.

“Coming up 18, I was really just thinking about getting on the green and two-putting,” Powell said. “I wanted to make the (birdie) putt obviously, but I wanted to win, so I decided to lag it up and tap it in for par.”

Boyanoski, meanwhile, had five bogeys and one birdie in his first 10 holes. But in his final eight holes, he had six pars and birdies on Nos. 11 and 15 to put himself in position top earn a medal.

“The goal to start the day obviously was to come from behind and win,” Boyanoski said. “After a rough front nine with a few poor shots and bad breaks, my goal switched to just medaling. I was following (Powell) how he was doing and I just forgot about how I was playing. I was able to shoot 35 on the back and finish with 74. When I looked at the leaderboard and saw I was top 10, I was excited.

“I birdied 15 and that kind of got me going for the last three holes. I missed good opportunities on 16, 17 and 18, but I was still able to sneak into the top 10.”

On Wednesday, Powell, Boyanoski and the rest of their Scranton Prep teammates will try to repeat as Class 2A state champs in the PIAA Team Championships. Abington Heights boys and girls will also be competing in Class 3A, while Tunkhannock is in the Class 2A girls field.

Originally Published: October 21, 2025 at 5:29 PM EDT