Despite a cold, rainy day on the links, the Hanover High and Lebanon High golf teams had strong results at their respective NHIAA state team championships on Tuesday, as both landed in the top half of the scoreboard and placed one golfer each in Saturday’s individual finals field.
The Division I Bears finished third at 41-over-par 401, nine strokes behind first-place Bedford, at the final held at Canterbury Woods Country Club in Canterbury, N.H.
Senior Julian Hart led Hanover with a 5-over 77, tied for eighth overall, and punched his ticket to individuals on Saturday at Beaver Meadow Golf Course in Concord.
Other Hanover scores included seniors Ben Ames and Hayden Clapp and sophomore Bruce Johnson, who each shot 80; seniors Cooper Sobel, Jamie Coughlin and Michael Anderson, who all came in at 84; and sophomore Thomas Cramer, who shot an 87.
“We were pretty happy. You know, we were tied for fourth coming into the state tournament, and to finish third is a good result,” said Hanover head coach John Donnelly in a telephone interview.
“Obviously, we were hoping for more but third is respectable, and it’s the same score we shot last year and the same position we came in last year. So we’re consistent, if nothing else,” he added.
Donnelly acknowledged that it rained the entire round, but he said the biggest impact wasn’t the precipitation; it was the temperature.
“It was actually more the cold than anything else,” he said.
“The course was fine; it just was keeping the hands warm. And obviously, it’s the same for everybody, so certainly not an excuse. But the scores were definitely higher than they would have been on a nice day, for sure.”
Ultimately, Donnelly called the season a success and shared his excitement about Hart qualifying for individuals.
“We had a really good senior class, a lot of really strong players and a lot of leaders. So it was a fun, fun year, and I think overall a successful year,” he said.
At Bretwood Golf Course in Keene, N.H., for the Division II final, the Raiders finished fourth (42-over 402) in what coach Joshua Flanders, in a telephone interview, called a “good day.”
“We had some adversity. It was a little colder and wetter than we played any of our matches in this year. … But the boys, the boys battled hard,” he said.
“We brought a very young team to states that included three freshmen, two sophomores, one junior and two seniors, and certainly met expectations after an eighth-place finish last year in Division III. To come back and be fourth in Division II, I think that’s a very strong showing.”
Senior Andrew Berndsen was Lebanon’s top finisher and qualified for individuals, finishing tied for ninth at 4-over 76.
The Raiders’ other scores came from freshman Erikson Lowery (79), senior Nate Crane (80), freshman Anthony Hayward (81), sophomore Cooper Davis (82), sophomore Walker Young (89), junior Jacob Grace (89) and freshman Jaxson Flanders (100).
The Lebanon coach, who said that his team plays in “the most competitive division in New Hampshire golf,” shared excitement for the future, considering his young squad’s finish.
“We’re really excited about the future. I think these boys are going to do nothing but continue to develop and perform, and then we have some exciting folks joining our program next year, coming out of eighth grade into the freshman season of high school,” Josh Flanders said.
“I think the future of Lebanon golf is bright, and I’m super excited and very pleased with what the boys were able to put together for us this year.”
