Hopewell Valley golf
By: Jim Green
Ben Bershad started his season in midseason form.
The Hopewell Valley Central High School senior shot an even par 39 Tuesday to lead the Bulldog golf team to an easy 212-252 season-opening win over Allentown at Hopewell Country Club. The performance was highlighted by a hole in which he chipped in for an eagle from the sand.
"He was on fire today," Hopewell coach Bill Russell said. "I couldn’t ask for anything back at the beginning of the season. He pretty much threw it down on the table and said, ‘This is what I have.’"
Bershad found plenty of support in the play of experienced juniors Alex Laughlin (42) and Areeb Zamir (44), as well as sophomore Travis Wolfe, who shot a 42. With Colonial Valley Conference favorite Princeton opening the year by impressively beating Lawrence 201-236, the Bulldogs were eager to show they will be right there in the mix for county and conference titles.
"That was Travis’ best round of the year," said Russell, who notched his first win as Hopewell varsity coach. "I’m very impressed by that. Alex is getting much better. They both really helped the score today.
"All six of our guys beat their opponent. You can’t ask more than to beat your opponent."
The Bulldogs were supposed to open their season Friday against Trenton, but the Tornadoes had not completed their preseason tryouts, so the match was postponed. The schedule heats up this week, as Hopewell plays host to cross-town rival Pennington on Wednesday and visits West Windsor-Plainsboro South on Thursday. Both matches should provide a solid test for Russell’s group.
"We have a tough week ahead of us," Russell said. "South and Pennington both are going to be tough."
The week gets tougher Monday, when the Bulldogs enter the Cherry Valley Cougar Invitational. Last season, Hopewell finished third in the tournament with a team score of 234, behind Montgomery (230) and Lawrence (232). Bershad was Hopewell’s top scorer with a four-over par 72.
Bershad, Laughlin and senior Dave Coville will definitely play Monday, while the Bulldogs’ fourth spot is up in the air.
"What I really want to see is how the other guys in the league score," Russell said. "Of course, I’m rooting for my guys, and I’d love to see them do well. As a first-year coach, this is great for me because I get to see everyone. There’s no other place I can do that on such a big scale right now."
After his team’s Tuesday performance, Russell is looking forward to some of the bigger CVC matches.
"I’m looking forward to the (WW-P) North match-up and the Lawrence match-up," Russell said. "And I’m really looking forward to the Princeton match-up. This is what I’m ready for, and I’m looking forward to the season. Today (Tuesday) made my confidence level go a little higher."

