Despite waiting until the final week of the regular season to qualify for the MIAA Division 2 Sectional Tournament, the Golf team proved that they belonged: first finishing second at sectionals and then fourth at the State Championship at Blackstone National.
After suffering a number of agonizingly close defeats during the dual meet season, Walpole finished second at the Bay State Championship on Thursday, October 10 with a 72-36 win over Braintree. The Rebels, therefore, secured a spot in the Division 2 South Shore Sectional Championship at Easton Country Club.
“It was a pleasure to play with these guys,” said junior Captain Mike Mazzotta. “We gave a great team effort considering not a lot of people thought we were even going to make sectionals.”
At sectionals, a tournament the boys were never predicted to be in, Walpole finished runner-up to Oliver Ames, who scored only one point lower than Walpole (311). The Rebels edged both Hopkinton (312) and rival Medfield (312) for the final spot at states.
Bay State League All-Star Jack Donnelly led the charge for the Rebels, shooting a team low 76–which was tied for sixth amongst all golfers. Fellow BSL All-Star and Captain Rob Boush shot a 79, and sophomore Timmy Bender shot a outstanding 77 to lock up a second place finish for Walpole.
“We were very fortunate to get second place at sectionals,” said Mazzotta. “It came down to one point, but everyone did their job.”
On a cool, blustery Monday afternoon, in the State Championship at Blackstone National in Sutton, the Rebels shocked the Massachusetts high school golf world: finishing fourth out of 11 teams in the field. The cinderella WHS Golf team shot a 324 total at the Division 2 event.
The elder Boush and junior Andrew Abbott highlighted the event, posting a 79 and 80 respectively.
“It’s a great accomplishment for our team, we worked hard all season,” said Mazzotta.
For a postseason the Rebels had no business being in, it was a huge success. Walpole will return five out of the top six next season, so expect great things from this group–maybe even a state championship banner.
