Minuteman High School Varsity Golf Team Wins State Vocational Golf Tournament

By Greg Donovan

Last year, the Minuteman High School varsity golf team competed in the State Vocational Golf Tournament and posted a third-place finish, the best in school history. As luck would have it, Coach Greg Donovan’s team had no seniors, so they were primed to do well again this year. The only question was how well.

On October 8, five members of the varsity squad - seniors Andrew O’Connell (Stoneham) and Connor Marchant (Burlington), along with juniors Liam Moore (Medford), Alex Surdan (Acton), and Danny Tanner (Woburn) - ventured to Gardner, Mass., to do what no golf team in Minuteman history had ever accomplished. The team was ready, loose, and poised to compete against 23 other vocational schools from around the Commonwealth. The veteran Minuteman team tackled the par 71 golf course for the better part of five hours, and then the scores began to roll in.

The Minuteman golf team knew that because three of their golfers had broken 80 (O’Connell – 77, Moore – 77, Surdan – 79) they had a real chance at a fine showing. After the scores were posted and validated, the Minuteman varsity golf team learned that it had won its first State Vocational Golf Championship.

The tournament results will show that Minuteman had won the lower division (the tournament is broken into two divisions based on school size), but the Minutemen had actually produced the lowest score of the entire tournament, large or small, solidifying a remarkable feat. This week the Minuteman golfers are setting their sights on the CAC League Tournament, which will be played on Friday, October17 at Hillview Golf Course in North Reading.

Other members of the team were juniors Nick Caldwell (Woburn), Ryan Connearney (Medford) and Jason English (Woburn), and freshman Chris Leary (Lexington). Coach Donovan would like to thank all of them for their contributions to the team this year, as well as his assistant coach, Al St. George.

Greg Donovan is a member of the English faculty, drama instructor, and head golf coach at Minuteman High School in Lexington.

Minuteman High School provides its students with a superb academic and technical education that readies them for professional success and gives them the ability to become contributing members of the community. Minuteman’s rigorous, challenging curriculum prepares students to excel in an increasingly competitive 21st century global economy. In addition, Minuteman has numerous services available for the public at reasonable cost and of outstanding quality. Please visit www.minuteman.org for more information on Minuteman High School.