A Well-Earned Team Win

The Martlets traveled over hill and dale to the far side of Springfield, Massachusetts for a tri-match with the Salisbury Knights and Wilbraham and Monson Titans. The Martlets came out on top in a thriller with Salisbury, besting the Knights by a single stroke. The weather was a bit overcast and getting chillier by the minute with a light wind – a classic early spring golf day. The Titan’s home course is over a hundred years old, and typical of old, classic New England courses sports a tight, tree-lined layout with small, tricky greens. Plenty of balls found the trees, and at times this old coach thought he might have wandered into a woodpecker sanctuary – such was the repeating sound of golf balls of towering pine trees. But the Martlets hung tough, and got the job done. The Martlets were led by Blake Burke ‘25 and Bryan Carey ‘24, each posting an impressive 40. Nick Dowling ‘24 and Jack Fichtorn ‘26 were right behind them, contributing a pair of 41s. Rounding out the scoring for the Black and Gold were Grant Owen ‘24 posting a 46 and Matteo De Luca ‘24 with a 48. The end of the match had real excitement: with the first four groups in, Salisbury led by 5 strokes and the Martlets were on tenterhooks. But Carey in the five-spot put the Martlets up by 3, and it was left to Owen, who gritted out a bogey 6 on the last hole in full few of both teams to secure the win (Owen’s Salisbury counterpart parred the last to post a 44, so Owen’s final 4-footer was essential). Carey also had the shot of the day, holing a 35-foot putt to save par on the second hole. Congratulations to Salisbury’s Thomas Molloy, who was medalist with at 38. Overall, this was a good example of how every stroke matters and the team deserved the wins. Next up for the Martlets: the Berkshire Bears at home on Saturday. No word on the Golf Channel coverage yet, so get to Hop Meadow early to reserve your spot around the closing holes. See you on the tee!