By Bob Nuse, Sports Editor
For the past two years, the Montgomery High School boys golf team has returned from the Central/South Group IV sectional tournament with a championship trophy.
The Cougars will head back to Linwood Country Club on Monday with hopes of winning a third straight title. That challenge may be a bit tougher this year with some newcomers in the lineup. But Montgomery coach Joe Bassford still likes his team’s chances to earn a top two finish and a trip to the Tournament of Champions.
“Our team is playing solid golf,” said Bassford, whose team is 7-4 and coming off a fourth place finish at the Skyland Conference Tournament. “We have three guys who never played varsity and three that have. So we are going through some growing pains. We have been playing solid golf at our home course, Mattawang.”
Andrew Kotler is back as the Cougars’ top golfer, finishing second at the Skyland tournament. He finished tied for fifth at the sectional tournament last year and will be one of the contenders for an individual title this year.
“Andrew has played really,” Bassford said. “He shot a 76 at the Skyland tournament. He played really well in the second half of the round and shot a really good score.
“I know our section is tough. There are some really good teams, but we feel we are a contender and we have as good a chance as anyone. It is about putting it all together on that day and putting ourselves in position to win. There will be a lot of tough teams down there. I don’t feel like we have played out best golf to date. I think it still is head of us where everyone puts it together on the same day.”
Jake McCarthy, a junior who shot a 73 at the High Bridge Hills tournament, is back this year. As is senior Mehul Singh, who has been on the varsity since he was a sophomore. He shot a 76 at High Bridge Hills, where the team finished second.
“We finished second there,” Bassford said of High Bridge Hills. “That was our best showing of the year so far. We put ourselves in position to win. We were four strokes out of first. That was an example of how we can play when we all put it together on the same day.”
Tim Walker and Brian Thompson are two newcomers to the varsity who are playing well. Abdullah Vohra is a freshman who Angelo Magliochetti they have played solid.
"This would be three in a row for us down there," Bassford said. "We’ve won the past two at Linwood. It will be tough. I tell the kids it means nothing that we on the last two. We just have to focus and play the best we can and we’ll see what happens."
