When Palmer Jackson tapped in for par on the ninth hole at Omni La Costa North Course in Carlsbad, Calif., last weekend, he brought an end to a shining college golf career at Notre Dame.
Now, the turning-professional talk officially can begin.
The grad student and Franklin Regional product tied for eighth — his best finish at the national championships and the best finish in the event in the modern history of the program — with a 1-under-par 287 four-round total.
After an opening 77, Jackson shot 68, 72 and 70 to post a top-10 finish.
“What a way for Palmer Jackson to put an exclamation point on his elite career at Notre Dame,” Fighting Irish coach John Handrigan said on fightingirish.com. “He’s helped set a new bar for what excellence means within our program, and I couldn’t be more proud. He did everything right today and gave himself a chance to win, which is all you can ask for in this game. His mindset this week was world-class, and it showed in his play. He’s forever left his mark on this program and university.”
Jackson, a Byron Nelson Award finalist last year and a member of the Team USA practice squad for the Walker Cup, was a multiple NCAA Division I Ping All-Region player.
He also was a member of Team USA in the Arnold Palmer Cup.
He led the ACC in scoring average and set a team record as a junior with his mark of 70.50.
The former PIAA champion and knuckleballer for the baseball team, Jackson had 24 top-25 finishes in his career, including 11 inside the top 10.
Baseball
Mount St. Mary’s: Sophom*ore Ty Stecko (Norwin) has entered the NCAA transfer portal and will seek to play elsewhere.
Stecko, who has two years of eligibility remaining, hit .226 with eight doubles and 22 RBIs in 43 games.
The corner infielder, who also has played catcher, started 22 games.
Pitt-Greensburg: Outfielder James Domer continued to reap the rewards of a stellar sophom*ore season for the Bobcats.
Domer was a D3Baseball.com All-Region 7 First Team selection after slashing .392/.453/.706 with 29 extra-base hits, including 19 doubles.
He had 34 RBIs and posted an OPS of 1.159.
Domer also received American Baseball Coaches Association Division III All-Region honors and was a second-team All-AMCC selection.
Seton Hill: A pair of Griffins standouts received American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings All-Region honors.
Grad student third baseman Jack Oberdorf (Greensburg Salem) and senior pitcher Aidan Layton were first-team selections.
Oberdorf has earned ABCA All-Region distinction for three straight years. He led Seton Hill with a .364 batting average, 75 hits and 51 RBIs.
Layton went 7-2 with a 3.15 ERA and pitched five complete games while striking out 90 in 88 2/3 innings.
Men’s volleyball
Geneva: Alum Alexis Ritson (Hempfield) will lead the program into its first season of Presidents’ Athletic Conference volleyball.
Ritson was named head coach after she served as interim associate head coach last season.
Ritson, who played at Geneva from 2013-16, has been steadily building her coaching resume, but this will be her first stint as a head coach.
She began as a Geneva women’s assistant coach before becoming an assistant at SUNY Morrisville for a year and then joining Southern Arkansas as an assistant for two seasons.
She returned as a Geneva assistant briefly, and then, in 2022, became an assistant at Duquesne, giving her one year of Division I experience.
Ritson also served as the boys volleyball head coach at Beaver County Christian and led the Infinity Volleyball Club in Ohio.
“Working with the team this past season was a lot of fun, and I couldn’t ask for a better group of guys going into my first season as a head coach,” Ritson said in a news release. “The team has a lot of potential for success in the first year of PAC men’s volleyball, and I am excited to get going when everyone is back on campus in the fall.”
Ritson also will serve as an assistant with the women’s team in the fall.
Women’s lacrosse
Seton Hill: Grad student Makayla Kinter played in the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association Senior All-Star Game on Friday at USA Lacrosse Headquarters in Sparks, Md.
Kinter suited up for the South team.
A four-time IWLCA All-American, Kinter was an All-Region and All-PSAC West player this season and was the PSAC West Defensive Player of the Year the last two years.
Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.
