MATTAPOISETT — The Bishop Stang golf team is on a tear.
The Spartans are 9-0 after Monday’s 228-237 victory over Old Rochester at The Bay Club, won their second consecutive Martha’s Vineyard Invitational Championship over the weekend, and placed third at the prestigious Cape Cod National Golf Club High School Invitational last week when senior captain Matt Costello won medalist honors with a 1-over-73.
So what’s the ceiling for this Spartan golf team?
“Our goal is a state championship,” coach Tom Kennedy said after Monday’s win against the defending state champion Bulldogs. “I feel we have just as much talent as we did last year when we came up one stroke short for the championship. We’re a really deep team that’s playing very well.”
“That’s our only goal,” Costello said. “A state championship. That’s it. One hundred percent because of our team chemistry. Everyone’s there for each other. Depth is so important and any of our players can shoot good any day.”
The Spartans have the mix all high school golf teams are looking for. They are strong at the top with Costello and Matt Oliveira as the top pairing, and have quality players in the 4-8 spots.
Monday against Old Rochester, Costello led the team with an even-par 35, followed by Oliveira (36), Michael Zeller (38), Noah Cormier (39), Talbot Lown (40) and Jeremiah Matos (40).
“They’re a state championship-caliber team,” Old Rochester coach Chris Cabe said about the Spartans, who have handed the Bulldogs (6-2) their only two losses of the season. “To win it, all the stars have to align, like they did for us last year. They have a great chance to win it all.”
BULLISH ON THE BULLDOGS
Old Rochester is one year removed from a state championship of its own and is fielding a young team without a senior among its top six players, but that doesn’t mean it’s a rebuilding year for the reigning champs.
The Bulldogs stand at 6-2 with big matchups this week with SCC rivals Dighton-Rehoboth and Apponequet.
“Our goal is to win the league first then see what we can do on the state level,” said Cabe, whose Bulldogs have won the SCC Blue Division the last three years. “We got some big matches this week. Wins there would solidify us atop the league.”
Junior Peter le Gassick has been leading the charge this season. He carded an even-par 35 Monday afternoon to tie Costello for medalist honors and has been dropping his scores drastically since the season started.
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“The first week, he was shooting 38-39s. He’s been coming along very well,” Cabe said.
“I hit a lot of greens today and am trying to make fewer mistakes every time out,” le Gassick said. “I was pretty consistent today. The whole team played pretty solid. We kept up with one of the best teams in the state, so we have nothing to be mad about.”
Brady Mills carded a 38 to place second for the Bulldogs, followed by Jack Czerkowicz (40), Connor Galligan (40), Logan Franco (41) and Luke Pierre (43).
“Brady has consistently been in the upper 30s for us,” Cabe said. “And Jack Czerkowicz has been very consistent in his first year. We feel good about the team moving forward.”
SPARTANS STRONG AT THE START
Costello leads the team on and off the course as a senior captain. Committed to play golf next year at UConn, Costello carded three birdies on Monday (Nos. 4, 6, and 8) and shook off a double-bogey on the first hole to card an even-par round.
“I wanted to stay focused and not get too ahead of myself,” Costello said of his rough first hole. “Take it one shot at a time. It was nice to bounce back after the rough start.”
Oliveira wasn’t far behind, just one stroke off the leaders, and notched a birdie on the third hole for his best score of the day.
“I started out good. Had a ruffle late but finished strong,” Oliveira said. “It was great to see my teammate (Costello) get three birdies to get us some momentum in our group. Then we saw more low numbers coming in as the others were finishing.”
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“They’re both great players,” Kennedy said. “They have great course management. They play all year, play competitively all year round. When they come to me in the fall, they’re all ready to go. And they’re both gentlemen. They play the game the right way.”
The Matts, as Costello and Oliveira are called, lead the Spartans from the top two positions, but this team is far top-heavy. Zeller and Cormier carded rounds under 40 on Monday while Matos and Lown were one stroke away from breaking 40.
“Jeremiah (Matos) and Talbot (Lown) with those 40s, that’s what sealed the deal for us today,” Oliveira said. “Michael (Zeller), Noah (Cormier), Nate Mello have gotten so much better this year than last year. Nate just shot a 73 on the Vineyard. We have a lot of confidence in him and in our whole team. We have a great leader in Costello, he has all our backs. I think we just have to keep our foot on the pedal. We need to focus every day and focus on every match.”
This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: Bishop Stang golf captures second win over Old Rochester
