He led the Bishop Brady Giants to their first championship win since 2005 last season, but for head coach Jason Bird, the game is still about making strides and staying positive on the course.
Bishop Brady finished last year with a 28-2 record and beat out its competition in the state championship by a significant margin.
Making sure that Bishop Brady’s golfers are mentally prepared and focused during competition will be key to finding that same success. After all, golf, Bird said, is “the hardest game.”
“They don’t need, necessarily, swing instruction, but we want everybody to play bogey golf and play their best golf throughout the year and just improve every year and enjoy the game,” Bird said.
The team is returning a young core of golfers who all found immense success last year. Most notably, junior Mady Savary posted the lowest average score (37.8 average per round) in the division last year and was named Division III Player of the Year.
She led the Giants in the state championship and shot a 75 at Rochester Country Club, three strokes over the par 72 course. Savary also found individual success as she finished second at the New Hampshire girls’ state championship and sixth in New England.
The Giants will also have returning senior Alex Pelletier, juniors Peyton Cone and Luke Bedard and sophomore Chase Connor.
Pelletier is the team’s captain, and Bird described him as a mature and good-natured leader who “will lead the group with consistency and focus.”
Bedard, Connor and Cone were all crucial to the team’s win last year, and with added championship experience, they’re going into the year with laser focus.
The team will add three juniors into the mix — Sean Dunn, Will Lindberg and Joseph Rawnsley — who will all bring different personalities to the team as they push toward their best golf.
Coach Bird and his team are looking ahead to some crucial match-ups early in the season. September 9th in Plymouth will be a good gauge for the season, Bird said. He sees the team’s last regular-season match in October at ConVal as another big event.
“The key is for us to have fun and really enjoy the game because I want them to play it forever, and I just want to be a small piece of that,” Bird added.
Coaches from teams across the Monitor’s coverage area shared their outlook on the upcoming season below:
Concord
Division: I
Coach: Mark McDonough (9th year)
Last year: 24-2, first place regular season
Returning starters: Zach Nelson, jr.; Parker Lamb, so.; Jack Brien, so.; Michael Barry, sr.; Tyler Morin, sr.; Sean Mulkeron, jr.; Kale Washburn, sr.; Ben Vachon, sr.; Logan Hayes, sr.
Top newcomers: Henry Diaz, fr.; Cameron Bobrow, so.; Caden McCormack, fr.; Garrett Courchaine, fr.; Sean Fuller, fr.; Seth Bartlett, fr.; Blake Campbell, fr.
Outlook: “We are looking forward to another great season ahead for the CHS golf team. Despite graduating several starting players, there are high hopes for the team during this rebuilding year. It’s always a goal to have the team advance to the state championships and we look forward to being competitive in the upcoming matches.”
Teams to beat: Windham, Bedford, Exeter, Hanover, Dover
Bow
Division: II
Coach: Matt Davis (third year)
Last year: 24-4
Returning starters: Jacob Gancarz, jr.; Brady Anderson, jr.; Sean Walton, jr.; Aidan O’Keeffe, jr.; Brendan O’Keeffe, sr.; Cavot Blaney, so.
Top newcomers: Merrick Blaney, fr.; Jules Cusson, so.; Alex Perry, so.; Joe Khudain, sr.
Outlook: “I think that we have a really solid team that will continue to grow and get better each day throughout the season. We are in a good spot with course management, and with some work on our short game and putting, I am hoping to see our scores drop.”
Teams to beat: Portsmouth, St. Thomas Aquinas, Souhegan
Merrimack Valley
Division: II
Coach: Joe Dougherty (third year)
Last year: 13-16
Returning starters: Tyler Baker, sr.; Bode Wood, sr.; Colton Magoon, so.; Logan McCullen, so.; Tristan Pierce, sr.; Konnor Silveria, sr.; Brady Smith, sr.
Top newcomers: Billyjack Braley, so.; Mason Crete, so.; Brayden Laroche, sr.; Brayden Theberge, fr.
Outlook: “We will field an experienced roster that includes seven seniors, with multiple four-year varsity golfers. Tristan Pierce, Brady Smith and Konnor Silveria will enter their fourth year in the program and look to contribute as veteran leaders. Returning sophomores Colton Magoon and Logan McCullen will hope to provide firepower along with several newcomers.”
Teams to beat: Bow, Oyster River, Souhegan
Pembroke Academy
Division: II
Coach: Josh Coughlin (first year)
Last year: 6-22
Returning starters: Zachary Bemis, sr.; Samuel Demers, sr.; Mason Watts, so.; Josh Amyot, sr.; Colbin Barker, so.; Nate Bussiere, sr.
Top newcomers: Andrew Fitzgerald, sr.; Andrew Turgeon, jr.; Lucas Girouard, fr.; Griffin Watts, fr.
Outlook: “Pembroke is going into the season looking to get better each day and compete during our matches. Looking for some early success to carry into the season and be playing our best golf come October.”
Teams to beat: Portsmouth, Bow, Winnacunnett
Kearsarge
Division: III
Coach: Bob ‘Bubba’ Williams (ninth year)
Last year: 7-22
Returning starters: Joey Taylor, sr.; Leah Le Mothe, sr.; Isaac Knox, jr.
Top newcomers: Lucas Taylor, so.; Noah Stone, so.; Matt Goen, so.; Madden Gagnon, so.;
Lucas Connolly, so.; Leo Mann, so.; Liam Cummings, so.; Sam Whipple, so.; Hazen Weathers, fr.; Griffin Judkins, fr.; Grafton Grieco, fr.; Greyson McKenna, fr.
Outlook: “We’re a young team with very little ‘match’ experience, so wherever we finish in the mix will be what it is. The enthusiasm to do well is contagious amongst the teammates pushing each other to excel and improve on every shot. So, let’s see what happens, maybe we can sneak a few wins when it’s least expected!”
Teams to beat: Bishop Brady, Derryfield, Plymouth. “In our case, everybody and anybody.”
Belmont
Division: IV
Coach: John Mattes (third year)
Last year: 5-17
Returning starters: Max Ryder, jr.; Jacob Akerstrom, jr.; Jordan DeFrancesco, jr.; Jasper Sottak, jr.; Alex Rowley, so.; Jack Binder, jr.
Outlook: “We have been on a steady path of rebuilding the program ever since emerging from COVID two years ago. This season should prove to be our most successful yet.”
Hillsboro-Deering
Division: IV
Coach: Brian McGinn (11th year)
Last year: 9-13
Returning starters: Gavin Ford, sr.; Lennon Seymour, sr.; Cadence Smead, jr.; Colin McGinn, sr.; Cooper Gelinas, so.; Owen Bober, so.
Top newcomers: Owen Boyle, fr.
Outlook: “The goal for this year is for the team to make the state tournament as a team. A second goal is for at least two players to make it to the weekend tournament for individual state tournament.”
Teams to beat: Mascenic, Woodsville, Hopkinton
Hopkinton
Division: IV
Coach: Ted Wells (second year)
Last year: 13-11
Returning starters: Coley Wells, jr.; Aidan Clay, so.; Becket St. Cyr, so.; Chet Behner, so.; Jacob Lanman, jr.
Top newcomers: Devin Allen, jr.; Molly Hodgdon, jr.
Outlook: “Our goals are to grow, to have fun and to make State Champs. We missed States last year by a few shots in just one match, so this year we’re hoping to make it. Our young team played hundreds of rounds this summer and is much improved. Despite losing two excellent seniors last year, we are a stronger team because of this growth and the addition of junior Devin Allen. I love that we have four athletes (Allen, Wells, Clay, and St. Cyr) fighting for the top spot! They’re making each other better each day.”
Teams to beat: Mascenic, White Mountain, Gorham, Sunapee