TMHS Golfers Suffer A Setback

The battle for superiority in the Merrimack Valley Conference Division 3 golf standings got a little complicated on Monday as Dracut High School handed golfers their first loss of the season, 13.5-6.5, at Hickory Hill Country Club.

"This was a chance for us to see where we stood in the MVC Division 3 with Methuen and Dracut, unfortunately now all three teams have beaten one another and everyone is 1-1 against each other," said

Tewksbury held its own in the first group won two up, and Mike Casey lost, 4 and 3. The pair halved the best ball point and the match was tied 2.5-2.5 after one group had finished.

Juniors Pat Doherty and Derek Petti kept the Redmen right in the thick of things in the second group, as both Doherty and Petti halved their matches. Dracut, however, took the best ball point and led 5.5.-4.5 after two groups.

"Patrick really did a nice job of hanging in his match today and winning two of the final three holes to grab a point out of the individual match after being two down with three holes to play," Sullivan said. "Patrick is a gamer, he was battling and fighting his swing all day. He just wasn't where he has been lately but he was able keep working at it and grab a point for the team.

"Derek Petti has been playing well as of late and also did a good job fighting in his match," Sullivan added.

kept the Redmen within striking distance in the third group, carding a 41 to win his match one up. Grinley was three down with four holes to play but roared back to win all four of the remaining holes.

But TMHS sophomore Jeff Giasullo ran into the hot hand of Dracut's Andrew Gys, who shot an impressive 39 out of the No. 5 spot in that group. Giasullo had been unbeaten through Tewksbury's first three matches, but Gys prevailed, 4 and 3, and when Dracut took the best ball point the Middies led, 8.5.-6.5.

"It was just a tough day for Giasullo," Sullivan said. "He ran into a buzz saw in Andrew Gys today. It was a learning lesson for him today, to go on the road and play in foreign territory. He will be better for it down the road."

Grinley's win was his third in three matches this season.

"Being the only senior in the program and on the varsity team, Pat has done a tremendous job this season," Sullivan said.  "Pat came out here (to Hickory Hill) and played on his own this weekend and we believe that helped him to be successful today, especially when the chips were down and he was behind."

Thanks to Grinley's heroics, the Redmen had a chance to win the match if they could have taken four out of five points in the final group. It didn't work out that way, however, as Ryan Muise lost 2 and 1 and Eric Hunter lost, 3 an 1.

"This was a role reversal for us," Sullivan said." Typically we are the ones with a strong back end and finishing group. That has been a trademark of ours here the past two years and has started as a trend again this year, but today it just wasn't to be.

"Overall we learned a lot from today's match and it will help us learn how to go on the road and be ready to play when we get off the bus," Sullivan added.

The Redmen, now 3-1 overall and 2-1 in the MVC, will be back in action against MVC powerhouse Billerica on Wednesday at Billerica Country Club.

"This will give us a good measuring stick to see where we are with the very best team in the league and potentially one of the best five teams in the state in Division I golf," Sullivan said.