This year’s boys Varsity golf team has been off to a solid start despite having many newcomers to the roster.
The team is made up of four seniors, Co-Captains Austin Perkins and Jordan Cipriano, and new additions in Ronan Culligan and Stryckland-Whitney Ligon. The other starting varsity player this season has been sophomore Aansh Buduguru, a terrific addition to the varsity squad who has contributed in every match.
In the six spot, Coach Jimmy Oxsalida has rotated through several guys, including sophomore Brady Powell, senior Ishaan Bafna, and even seventh-grader Colin Oshaugnessy got a shot at varsity.
So far this season, the matches have been up and down. Starting on March 30, the Wyverns showed out at Gilette Ridge for their first home match of the season against a solid Hamden Hall roster. Despite a valiant effort, which included an outstanding 31 (-5) for Perkins, the Wyverns just fell short.
The following week on April 8, the Wyverns fought valiantly against Hotchkiss, which included a strong 35 (-1) from Perkins and a 40 (+4) from Cipriano, and the Wyverns gave an extremely talented Hotchkiss roster a run for their money. On April 11, the Wyverns picked up their first win, defeating Kent, and then, two days later, went 2-0 in a tri-match against Gunn and Loomis, which featured an incredible 37 (+1) from Buduguru.
After this little hot streak, the Wyverns went through a bit of a rough patch, falling short in their quad-match at a tricky course in Hop Meadow and also falling short in their quad-match at Wallingford CC.
However, despite this, the team remains optimistic as they enter the most important part of their season.
“The tournaments are what matter most,” Oxsalida said. “We need to play our best golf in these events; playing strong in these events defines our season.”
The team has several huge tournaments coming up, beginning on April 22 in the 9-hole Suffield Invitational, where former Wyvern Alex Braunstein won last year. Additionally, in the near future, the Wyverns have the Coppola Cup on April 23, and April 30, and arguably the biggest and most exciting event of the year, the Newport Invitational, on April 25, at Newport Country Club. “These events define our season,” Perkins said.
It is very important that we play our best golf here and show that we can compete. Personally, I look forward to these events every year because I get a chance to compete with the best of the best.”
The Wyverns have what it takes to place in any of these tournaments, and if they all get hot, they can be a team to look out for.
We wish the Wyvern golf squad the best of luck as they enter this critical stretch of their season!
