Raiders break 190 in shooting record low score at Fenway

Breaking 200 seemingly wasn’t enough for the Raiders, as they recorded their best score of the year (and tied the team record) by shooting an impressive 188 against Mamaroneck on May 4 at Fenway.

Leo Chu and Sajiv Mehta were co-medalists, shooting a 36. Nicholas was one stroke behind with a 37, Cole Gerson shot a 39, Ryan Philips had a 40, Reece Schneider had a 43. Mickey Dillion had the lowest score for Mamaroneck with a 43.

Sophomore Chu and senior Lemisch knew the Raiders were capable of such a performance: “We have a lot of really skilled golfers who are dedicated to playing their best and helping this team win,” Chu said, while Lemisch added, “We all want to do our best whenever we go out on the course and play.”

The Raiders were fired up about firing a record score and Chu hopes this is a sign of good things to come. “This season we have struggled to be consistent as a team,” he said. “It’s been tough to have all of us come out and play really well on the same day, but the 188 proves we can do it.”

On May 8, the Raiders defeated Tappan Zee 206-242 at Century Country Club, with Gerson earning the medalist title by shooting a 38. Nicholas was close behind with a 39, followed by Schneider with a 42, Matthew Steuerman with a 43, Thomas Kronenberg with a 44 and Lemisch with a 46. Jamie Padial had the lowest score for Tappan Zee at 45.

On May 9, Scarsdale and Rye faced off at Rye Golf Club in a match that was crucial for Scarsdale as the two teams were neck and neck in the race for the lowest team differential. Scarsdale emerged victorious, winning by nine strokes 202-211.

Chu earned the medalist title, shooting a 39. Justin Liu shot a 40, Nicholl shot a 41, as did Gerson and Mehta. Nicholas followed with a 42. Eddie Molloy had the lowest score for Rye, shooting a 41.

Even after beating Rye in a head-to-head match, Scarsdale’s team differential was only 0.28 strokes lower than Rye’s. With two matches remaining (against Byram Hills on May 10 and Harrison on May 11), Scarsdale needed to lower its scoring differential to secure home course advantage for the championship match.

Last year, the Raiders lost to Bronxville in the Section 1 team championship despite being the top-ranked team. This year, Bronxville handed the Raiders their only loss of the season on April 27, but the Raiders got revenge on May 2.

Coach Andy Verboys seems to think “the burn of losing to Bronxville in sectionals, combined with [Scarsdale] not bringing their A-game [to the first match], allowed [us] to play with more confidence.”

Throughout the season, the Raiders’ goals have remained constant: “Get everyone to qualify for sectionals and reclaim the team sectional championship,” Chu said.

“If we end up qualifying all 12 guys for sectionals, that will be a new team record,” Lemisch said.

The individual sectionals will be May 15 at Waccabuc and May 17 at Trump Hudson Valley. Lemisch hopes the Raiders can send “as many players as possible to states.”

For the returning players on the team, Verboys thinks “most of the guys came out wanting to recapture the team title, and the guys are focused on winning back the section title this year.”