With dual meet wins over Howell High School and Colts Neck High School this spring, this isn’t your typical Freehold High School boys golf team.
The Colonials are emerging as one of the Shore’s better dual meet teams, and their relative youth is good news for Freehold and bad news for their opponents.
“I started three freshmen last year,” head coach Jason Blum said. “They’ve continued to get better.”
Freehold’s top two players are sophomores Lewis Wright and Russell Herbert. They’ve been a very formidable duo, shooting near par in dual meets.
“They are playing extremely well,” Blum said.
Wright is long off the tee and is good around the greens, Blum noted. Herbert was just 85 pounds last year and is starting to fill out. He’s driving the ball farther this year to help him score better.
Herbert tied for 33rd at the Monmouth County Tournament held at Hominy Hill in Colts Neck with a 41-44-85 on April 21. He qualified for the April 28 Shore Conference Tournament (SCT), which was played on the Colonials’ home course at Charleston Springs in Millstone Township.
Wright missed qualifying for the SCT by a single stroke with his 40-46-86.
Freehold finished 11th with a team score of 356. In sixth, Howell (335) was the only Freehold Regional High School District team to finish ahead of the Colonials.
Herbert and Wright came to Freehold as experienced golfers. Chris LaBarbara, the other sophomore who started as a freshman, and Wright are best friends. Wright got LaBarbara to play the game, and all three entered Freehold last year ready to make an impact.
A senior newcomer has solidified the Colonials’ lineup. Jeremy Belfer played baseball during his first three years at Freehold. However, he played golf in the summers. This year, he decided to give up the diamond for the links, and it has been the golf team’s gain. He’s been the team’s No. 3 in dual meets.
These Colonials have depth as well. David Amico, Matt Cotroneo and Dhruv Mandal have taken turns in the fifth spot.
“All have had scores that count,” Blum said.
Mandal is a freshman, while Belfer and Cotroneo are seniors.
Freehold also has something else going for it this year — chemistry.
“The kids really enjoy playing together,” Blum said.
With a 6-2 dual meet record, the Colonials are just one win away from qualifying for the state playoffs for the first time in school history.
“The kids are pretty excited about it,” the coach said.
They can also be excited about being in the race for the Shore Conference B North Division title. They trail the two teams that beat them, Wall High School and Ocean Township High School, but have return matches against those teams that could shake things up.
Freehold will play Ocean at Charleston Springs on May 7 and Wall at the Shark River Golf Course in Neptune on May 13.