Golf: An Impressive Move

Following back-to-back state championships, the Prep golf team made a major move to a different season for the 2022-2023 school year. After the 2021 spring season in which the Jesuits won a Division I State Championship for the first time in 26 years, Connecticut golf teams were given the choice of playing their golf season during the fall or the spring. Prep initially decided to remain with the rest of the SCC and played in the spring for the 2021-2022 school year, but during that year the Jesuits realized that most of the traditional golf powerhouse schools had moved to the fall season, and that left the Prep team with little competition outside of traditional SCC rivalries. Traditional Division rivals like Greenwich, Staples, Ridgefield, and northern schools like Simsbury and Conard had all played in the fall.

Fairfield Prep chose to move to the fall for the 2022-2023 academic year to take advantage of a greater level of competition. In addition, most of the teams that had moved to the fall were also the teams that carried both a varsity team and a junior varsity team. As coach Bob Bernier explained, “We needed to put ourselves in the best season to continue to build our program. When the state split into two seasons, we saw our JV schedule dry up to only a few matches in the spring. Couple that with a smaller pool of varsity teams, we just needed to move to find competition more appropriate for the caliber of our players.”

Prep’s move to its inaugural fall season was certainly not a disappointment. Playing an independent schedule (the rest of the SCC schools continue to play in the spring season), the Jesuits resumed longstanding rivalries, with the likes of Darien, Greenwich, Warde and Ludlowe, and added new relationships with Conard, Wethersfield, Glastonbury and New Canaan. By the end of the regular season, Prep’s varsity was the top-ranked team in Connecticut, having played a full schedule of 16 matches; in addition, the JV team was able to expand its schedule to 14 matches, including an invitational tournament hosted by Avon High School, won by the Jesuits.

At the Division I State tournament, the Jesuits got off to a solid start, with most of the team hovering around even par on a difficult golf day. When the wind and rain refused to end, and the course conditions deteriorated to a level that closed the course, Prep and the rest of the teams were forced to halt play and return a week later to start all over again. In the second go-around, Prep did not enjoy the same success, but battled all day. In the end, the Jesuits finished fourth, a mere six shots behind the champion

Will Huntington and freshman Robby Rosati were named the team’s Most Outstanding golfers. For his leadership and excellent play all season, senior Mark Valus received the Coach’s Caden Piselli (pictured) was named the team’s Robby Rosati was also named to the Division I

With the graduation of Huntington, Valus, and fellow seniors Rajan Khanna, the team moves forward having graduated every member of the 2021 and 2022 state championship teams. The excellent core of returning players will look to continue Prep history of success with success of their own. As Coach Bernier added, “We can’t wait. We will look to build competitive spring and summer tournament schedules for all of our players and come back in the fall more than ready to compete in the high school season.”

By Bob Bernier, World Languages Teacher, Golf Coach