Nashua's James Pleat is the remaining local left in the State Am heading into today's quarters and semis at Rochester Country Club. (File photo)

And then there was one.

Nashua’s James Pleat will compete as usual on the next-to-last day of the 122nd NHG State Amateur Championship at Rochester Country Club, reach the quarterfinals with wins Thursday in the Rounds of 32 and 16.

However, other locals weren’t so fortunate. Once it got to the Round of 16, Pleat was the only one left. He downed Candia Oaks’ Harvin Groft 4 and 2 in the Round of 16, and that was after he dispatched Salem’s William Miele 3 and 2 earlier in the day in the Round of 32. Miele, like Pleat, plays out of Nashua Country Club.

In his later match, Pleat birdied the first hole and took advantage of a Groft bogey on the second to grab the immediate two-hole lead. He more or less grabbed complete control with a birdie on the par-3 seventh and got birdies on 12 and then 16 to end it.

Pleat, seeded eighth, will now take on The Shattuck’s Damon Salo, seeded 17th, in this morning’s quarterfinals. Salo upset top seed and co-medalist Justin Grondahl 4 and 3 in the Round of 16. The winner of Pleat-Salo will meet the winner of the quarterfinal match between No. 20 Concord’s Gavin Richardson and No. 5 Ryan Scollins of Bald Peak Colony Club in the afternoon semis.

“I just didn’t make any mistakes,” Salo said. “I putted really well, I kept the ball in play, and put the pressure on him early.”

His strategy has centered on smart putting and course management, saying, “You have to be smart with the putter and leave yourself in some good spots, and I’ve been doing that. From here on out, I just need to keep playing better and better golf. So, I just need to stay positive and stay calm.”

Earlier in the day, NCC’s Nate Crowley fell to Rochester’s Jamie Ferullo 1 up. Nashua’s John Devito fell to New London’s Rob Henley 2 and 1. Henley, the defending champion, then lost to Scollins in the Round of 16.

Nashua’s Austin Baker fell 8 and 6 to Atkinson’s Matthew Gover in the early round, as did Souhegan Woods’ Kevin Gaynor of Amherst, 1-up to Carter Browning of Londonderry, who plays out of Passaconaway. Browning later fell to Beaver Meadow’s Josiah Hakala in 20 holes in a marathon Round of 16 match.

From Beaver Meadow Golf Course, Hakala added another clutch performance to his growing amateur resume. One year removed from a run to the Semifinals, the 18-year-old fought through 20 holes in the Round of 16 to defeat Carter Browning (Passaconaway CC). Browning pushed Hakala to the limit before finding trouble in the trees on the second extra hole, opening the door for Hakala to secure the win. With the victory, Hakala continues his impressive match play history, eyeing another deep run with his name now etched once again among the tournament’s final eight.

ALL IN THE FAMILY

Older brother Cam Salo joins Damon in the quarterfinals after a 2 & 1 win over Will McLaughlin in the Round of 32, and another tightly contested victory in the afternoon. With McLaughlin flipping roles and serving as caddie for Cam during the Round of 16, the Salo-McLaughlin combo proved strong….

Gover’s return to the knockout rounds is notable, he reached the semifinals in 2019 and brought that experience back into play this week. He said, “I didn’t set any goals and have no expectations for myself. I’m just playing my game and seeing where that stands up. Right now, it’s on to the quarterfinals, which is very, very nice.”

Again, today’s quarters: Damon Salo will face James Pleat, Gavis Richardson will go up against Ryan Scollins, Josiah Hakala will face Mat Gover and Jake Nutter takes on Cam Salo.

(NH Golf’s Kate Billings contributed to this report.)