In the last leg of competition for the Witherspoon and Lovell trophies, Ben Ho ’11 dropped a tricky ten footer on the final hole en route to a solid score of 78. It was a tough day at Portsmouth Country Club, as low scores were hard to find, but Ho’s consistent play plus a near hole in one put Andover in a position to mount a comeback on the huge lead that Exeter had amassed over the last two legs. Going into the day, Andover was 40 strokes behind in stroke play and needed a perfect sweep in match play in order to have any chance to catch a deep Exeter team. Coach Faulk stated last week that Andover would have to have five players shoot around level par if the team was to have a chance. From the beginning of the day, it was clear that Andover would have to accomplish the improbable if it were to steal the trophies away from Exeter. While Ho came in with a solid score, the rest of the team struggled, as the subtle greens at Portsmouth Country Club beguiled the Andover golfers. James Poss ’10 had a great week leading up to the final matchup of the season after tying for second two weeks ago at Olde Newbury. However, inconsistent ball striking plagued him throughout his round and he ended up losing his match to Exeter’s number two. However, Andover did not go out without a fight as the very bottom of the ladder played extremely well. Charles Pecora ’12 shot an excellent score of 88 and beat his Exeter opponent easily, as his consistent play proved too much to handle. Pecora said, “My accuracy was dead on off the tee today, and that proved to be crucial as the conditions were rough with the fog and the long holes.” Chris Kerrigan ’11 also took down his Exeter opponent at the number seven spot, shooting a good score of 91. Coach Brian Faulk said, “We lost to the powerhouses [Deerfield and Exeter] again this year, but we improved our record overall as we beat Belmont Hill, Tabor, and St. Mark’s. Captain Jim Ricker ’09 was consistent as always, and Roo Hamilton ’09 had some sparks where he played stellar.” Faulk looks forward to next season’s play. He said, “With a solid core established this season and some great new additions arriving next year, we should be able to give Exeter and Deerfield a run for their money. It will be exciting to see how everything plays out.”
