Like every other season, the goals for the Howell High School golf team remain the same: win championships.
Under coach Tim Hogan, who is in his ninth year with the program, the Rebels have become one of the Shore Conference’s most consistent winning programs (104-41 in dual meets under Hogan). The Rebels were 15-2 in 2011, winning a fourth straight A North division title. The Rebels want to extend that to five straight this spring and are off to a good start in that pursuit. But things got a lot trickier for the Rebels on April 19 when Freehold Township handed Howell its first loss of the year, 161-165, on the Rebels’ home course, Howell Park. The loss left Howell at 4-1 in the division while Freehold Township improved to 3-2. The difference was non-public
Christian Brothers Academy. The Patriots lost to the Colts, a state power.
Junior Josh Goldstein paced the Patriots’ win over the Rebels by carding an impressive even par 36. Howell was led by Dawson Jones’ nine-hole round of 40.
OnApril 23, Howell played CBA for the first time, losing 147-151, at Howell Park. That loss dropped Howell to 4-2 in division play and into a tie with Freehold Township for first place among public schools.
Earlier this year, Howell defeated Freehold Township (5-2) on its home course, Charleston Springs in Millstone Township.
Freehold Township lost to CBA, 143- 161, on April 25 at Charleston Springs to fall to 5-3 in A North.
With a 153-190 win over Manalapan, Howell (10-2) improved to 5-2 in A North.
Howell’s second match with CBA is set forMay 8 at Bamm Hollow in Middletown, CBA’s home course. Should Howell win that match, it would put the Rebels in a great position to win the A North public school title outright.
At the April 24 Monmouth County Championships, the Patriots again beat Howell, 326-330, as those teams finished second and third behind CBA (304).
Goldstein was the low scorer from the Freehold Regional High School District, finishing third with a round of 76 on the par- 72 Hominy Hill Golf Course in Colts Neck. Howell’s Rick Jakubowski finished fifth (77) and Jones tied for sixth (78).
Seniors Jakubowski and Rebecca Gaona are the cornerstones of the Howell team that is trying to win a fifth straight division title. Both players are four-year starters.
Jakubowski has always played well in big meets for the Rebels. He finished in the top 10 at the Central Jersey state sectional championships and is someone who can steadily shoot near par.
Hogan said Jakubowski has been playing better than his score would indicate. He is driving the ball well and hitting his irons accurately. His putting has not come around yet, and when it does, his coach said, Jakubowski will produce some low scores.
Gaona, the team’s fifth player, is one of the best female players in the state. She qualified for the NJSIAA Tournament of Champions in 2011. She has been a very reliable scorer for Howell in dual meets throughout her career.
Howell’s fine start has overshadowed how much the Rebels lost from 2011.
“We [graduated] three seniors,” Hogan said. “We needed our sixth, seventh and eighth players to improve.”
Mike Kochenash, a senior in his third year with the team, and junior Rob Don, in his third season, have done just that. They have moved into the team’s top five.
“They are really playing well,” Hogan said of last season’s No. 6 and No. 7 players.
Josh Friedman, a junior in his third year, has been splitting time with Gaona at the No. 5 spot. Like Kochenash and Don, Friedman has improved his game.
The Rebels have been reinforced by promising freshman Dawson Jones, who has been everything Hogan expected. He has been the team’s low scorer throughout the season.
“He just has a perfect swing,” Hogan said of Howell’s freshman standout. “He has been playing tournament golf for years and he has been prepping for this all his life.
Matt McCammon and Christian Collins are two other freshmen who may contribute this season, and at the same time they represent the program’s future.