Golf Looking to Improve Upon Stellar 2014 Season

The Pirates Golf program has a new head coach, but the goals for the program will be the same in 2015 as they were in 2014; win a division title.

The 2014 season, the last under head coach Rick Masi, was a stellar one for the program.

Golf went 14-2,went undefeated in division play, secured a Patriot Division championship, and won the Group 1, South sectional championship.

New head coach Bret Jenkins spoke to how talented the 2015 team is.

“There are 4-5 returning starters from the 2014 team, plus a starter from Moorestown who moved districts. There are some really solid freshmen, so there is a lot of talent on this team.”

As usual, Moorestown, Burlington Township, Delran and Holy Cross will be some of the toughest opponents for golf in 2015.

“Obviously, any of the opens, the Garden State Cup, the Burlington County Open and then the sectional matches. It is going to be some pretty exciting stuff,” Jenkins said.

The top three for the team this year will be senior Dave Gall, senior Matt Haddon and junior Tim Jones.

“The three of them, at the moment, look like they will finish in the top three,” said Jenkins.

As a first-year head coach, Jenkins laid out his goals for 2015.

“This is an amazing group of kids and Coach Masi has left an incredible program. My job, really, is to manage the kids. Make sure we are doing the right things on the course. Our talent is going to speak for itself.”

With a 14-2 record, there is not much to look for in terms of improvement, but Jenkins noted how some of the golfers look stronger this year compared to last.

“They are hitting the ball a lot further. It seems to be a little more consistent. The team is also a little bit deeper this year. Last year there were 6 or 7. This year, we are 8 or 9 deep. The boys are stronger and more mature and I think that’s really going to help the team improve this year from last year.”

The rallying cry for this season, which has been started by some of the golfers, has been a state championship.

But, Jenkins has tried to temper some of that down a little bit. “It is so long away and I want to make sure we are focused on each match. You have to show up well in sectionals before you can get to states. I understand where it is coming from. They deserve to have that type of mentality. But, I know, if you ask any one of them, they are going to say their goal is a state championship. I would like to hit a few stepping stones before we start talking about that, but that definitely is on our list of goals.”

The 2015 Golf season at Cinnaminson High School begins on April 1 with a match against New Egypt.