By Jason Brisbois, Staff Writer
Consistency has led to excellence for the Manchester Essex golf team in 2024.
With just a pair of matches left in the regular season, the Hornets have amassed an impressive 10-2 record and were still in contention for the Cape Ann League Baker Division title at the start of the week.
So far, this group has fulfilled the promise that coach Bill Melvin saw in them back at the start of the season in late August. In fact, this team is the best the coach has overseen in his four years at the helm of the Hornets.
“It’s definitely the most success we’ve seen, and I would say it’s the best team,” explains Melvin. “Golf is so popular with kids now, I think it’s the natural progression of the game. More kids are playing, they’re getting better and I think we’re starting to see the results of that. We also happened to kind of strike gold this year, with 8-10 kids playing good varsity golf.”
Consistency has been the key for this group, something crucial to the unique team format provided at the high school level. The top six scores out of eight players determines a team’s point total and the difference between winning and losing a match.
“You can’t really afford to not be consistent,” says Melvin. “Keeping six out of eight scores, if more than two guys have an off day, that can really hurt you. We are looking for consistency match in and match out, and to see players core in the mid-twenties to thirties, to put you in a good spot to win a match.”
The Hornets seem to have hit that mark in nearly every match this season. The most recent example of this was when Manchester Essex scoring 156 to beat both Ipswich (150) and Rockport (134) to win their third Cape Ann Classic in the last three years on Oct. 4. Medal-winner Matt DeOreo scored a season-high 36 to lead all scorers, with Jack Lawler scoring 29, Gray West scoring 26 and Graham Lewis hitting 21.
“We’ve won that three years in a row now, and I’m not sure that’s been done before,” says Melvin. “We did it against two teams on the upswing in Ipswich and Rockport, and we were able to eke out a victory and reach another really important goal that we had going into the season.”
On Oct. 2, Lawler led Manchester Essex to a 158-140 win over Lynnfield at Essex County Club with 31 points, while West and Jake Zschau scored 28 apiece. The day before that, it was a 174-127 win over Winthrop, with Lawler once again leading all scorers with 32, and DeOreo and Matt Graeter right behind him with 31 each.
“Senior Jack Lawler has been absolutely terrific this year, he’s averaging over 29 points a match,” explains Melvin. “Matt DeOreo, a junior, has also played well. Jake Zschau has been terrific, and Gray West, a captain, has had another really solid year. He’s probably our most consistent golfer. Graham Lewis has been a welcome addition.”
The consistency continues even deeper into the lineup. In all, the team includes Jack McCavanagh and Gray West (co-captains), Jack Lawler, Matt DeOreo, Jake Zschau, Matt Graeter, Graham Lewis, and Connor Dickson.
“Jack McCavanaugh never scores less than 20 points in a match, he’s very consistent,” continues Melvin. “Connor Dixon, a first year varsity player, has shined. Matt Graeter - a senior and four-year varsity player - has been steady week in and week out.”
The Hornets seemed to find that consistency in a tight, 195-192 win over Essex North Shore Agricultural and Technical around mid-September, a turning point for the squad.
“Every player played really well,” says Melvin of the win. “It boosted player confidence that they can play that well against a decent team and come out on top.”
Newburyport was poised to offer one of the stiffest challenges of the year for Manchester Essex on Oct. 9, pitting the top team in the CAL Kinney Division in the Clippers against one of the best in the CAL Baker in the Hornets. A day later is the season finale against Georgetown.
If Hamilton-Wenham - the current CAL Baker Division leader - stumbles and the Hornets continue to win, Manchester Essex has a chance to take home the division crown. Even if that doesn’t come to pass, the top golfers from the team will participate in the Cape Ann Cup (Oct. 15 at Far Corners Golf Course in Boxford) with the team’s two highest-scoring golfers from the regular season representing their team. On Oct. 18, the Hornets will have their six best golfers take part in the State Championship, where a top-three finish guarantees a team a spot in the state finals.
