On May 11, the boys golf team concluded their season at the NJSIAA Tournament of Champions, placing 13 out of 39 competing teams. The Blue Devils had a 10-1 record on the season, and also competed in several tournaments: Red Devil Invitational, Green Knights Invitational, Blue Devil Invitational, Wall Invitational and the Peddie Swing Against Cancer Invitational. In all five, the Blue Devils placed in the top seven and on top of it all, took home the title at the Union County Tournament.
The Blue Devils had a lot to play for this year, as last year’s roster ended with a 7-1 record, placing very well in the same tournaments that they had played in this year. As opposed to last year, this year’s roster was much younger and more inexperienced. However, the younger players stepped up and filled in roles that seniors from last year had left behind.
Senior captain Ben Barshtak was sidelined this season due to an injury and this left a major hole in the team. Head coach Ryan Daly said, “Losing Barshtak was a major loss for us. Barshtak is someone who contributed to last year’s Group 4 State Championship run in a big way. He was the most improved player two years in a row, and I was really going to lean on his experience this year.”
Despite the unfortunate timing of Barshtak’s injury, Westfield still started the season strong. The Blue Devils opened their season scoring second in the Wall Invitational with a score of 324. Then the team took down Morris Knolls with a score of 155-176 and beat Oratory Prep 170-170 with a tiebreaker through a match of cards. However, the team fell to Scotch Plains-Fanwood 149-159 in the following match, but this only gave the Blue Devils fuel as they started to play some of their best rounds.
Barshtak said, “It was a bit of a rough start to the season. We really didn’t place too well in too many tournaments early, but we started to pick it up later. We wound up winning counties and sectionals.”
Junior Chris Smok attributed the team’s success to the way the team bonded off the course. Smok said, “We won counties, and then we had a great sectional run, so I think we built our team chemistry after everything, compared to last year, where our chemistry was decent. I think this year was more about working as a team rather than individually.”
Though a rough start, the Blue Devils put the pieces together in time for the rest of the tournaments and produced a season to remember. As for the program moving forward, four seniors will leave, allowing for lots of continuity in the coming years from the younger players. Barshtak said, “I think the positive is the fact that everybody’s young and they’re just gonna continue to grow, so while we had success right now, that success is gonna continue.”
