Londonderry High School golf coach Scott Sicard isn’t having to hunt for things to be excited about this autumn as his Lancers get their 2015 season rolling. He’s finding plenty right in front of him.
The LHS team started its new campaign with a split on its home links at the Passaconaway Country Club in Litchfield on Friday, Aug. 28.
The Lancers shot a 215 as a group to finish in the middle of the victorious Exeter High Blue Hawks (score of 202) and the third place Owls of Timberlane Regional High in Plaistow (253).
The Lancers’ veteran leaders Jason Coburn and Dan Pleva led the locals’ charge with their strong scores. Exeter’s Jameson Person had the low individual score of 37, but Pleva was right behind him in second with a 39.
Coburn helped the Londonderry High cause by shooting a 43, Nick McCann and Brian Boyle each finished with a 44, and Dalton Shields registered a 45 for the host team.
Sicard’s squad stepped into the 2015 campaign after posting a sub-par 7-13 mark as a crew last fall.
Seniors Coburn, Pleva, and Marc Landry are all intent on leading the Lancers to success.
“Jason looks better than he ever has and is playing with more confidence than I have ever seen him play with,” said Sicard of Coburn. “I am excited to see what he is going to do this year.”
The coach also finds plenty of reasons to be impressed with Pleva, saying, “He is methodical in his approach and preparation for each shot that he takes, and he is a student of the game. He looks for perfection in what he does on the course and expects the best of himself during every round that he plays. He should have a solid season this year and help anchor the team with Jason Coburn.”
Sicard has watched as Landry “…has progressively gotten better each year he has been with the Lancers. If we can get him into the low 40’s this year consistently, he will help ground our team match to match.”
Among the juniors, Nick McCann has been a model of consistency for his squad, posting the same score in all three days of tryouts and playing well in last week’s season opener as well.
Sicard thinks Shields has the talent and ability to go low during a round, and he thinks the 11th grader is “going to be one of the keys of our success this year.”
Junior Jack Cowette is new to the LHS program this fall, and Sicard said, “He showed flashes of potential during tryouts and I am interested in seeing how he develops over the course of the season.”
His fellow 11th grader Tommy Dutra has been playing golf for Londonderry squads since middle school, and he has moved up from time on the junior varsity team to the varsity squad this autumn.
“Tommy is methodical in his approach from shot to shot. I am also interested in seeing his growth now that he has made the varsity team,” said Sicard.
Sicard has also been impressed with the play of freshmen Boyle and Anthony Cavallaro, and Boyle made his presence felt pretty impressively right away with a strong showing in the season-opening match.