The Golf Team has had a historic season here at Bernards High School, putting together one of the best seasons in the school’s history. Headlined by an incredible senior class and sophomore Noah Ochab, who has ranked as high as the #1 player in the state, the team has averaged a 162 in their fifteen matches so far, five strokes better than the previous season. The seniors on varsity include twins Hayden and Cutter Kreikemeier, Fin Spitaleri, Charlie Giebel, Simon Bramwit, and Andrew Och. Juniors Garrett Senior and Bobby Burke as well as sophomores Noah Ochab and Andrew Tropp have also made appearances on the varsity team. 

The season began with a tough 1-5 record against very talented teams, each loss being by an average of under 3 strokes. The team bounced back with a five game winning streak amidst a 7-2 stretch. The lowest scores of the season came in matches against Somerville and West Morris, a 151 total among the top four players, six strokes better than the top score from the 2023 team. 

The team finished with a phenomenal 3rd place at the Skyland Conference tournament, scoring a 320 through 18 holes. Led by Noach Ochab’s 74, the team averaged an 80 among the four participants, Hayden and Cutter Kreikemeier, Fin Spitaleri, and the aforementioned Noah Ochab. 

This third place finish was enough to qualify the squad for the state sectional championship, which was played on May 6th at Berkshire Valley Golf Course. The team suffered a brutal defeat at the hands of a tiebreaker, eliminating BHS from contention in the state-wide tournament on May 13th. However, Noah Ochab’s 75 was enough for 4th place overall and a spot in the NJSIAA Tournament of Champions.

Starting on hole three, Ochab started off with a rough stretch of holes, and sat at +3 after his first six holes. However, once he made it to the 9th tee box he started to heat up. The sophomore eagled the par 5 9th hole, starting a -6 stretch over the next ten holes. The -3 finish was enough to make a four man playoff with some of the best players in the state. Ochab’s run unfortunately came to a premature end on the first playoff hole, leaving him with an incredible 4th place finish. 

Following the great performance, Coach Spautz was very pleased with his player, saying that “[he] was incredibly proud and happy with Noah’s performance,”. Thinking back to the first time he saw Noah play, Coach Spautz claimed he “always knew he could do great things”. 

Although the season is wrapping up, there are still a few matches remaining, including some intersquad matches taking place over the coming weeks. At the start of the year Coach Spautz was hoping for the team to have a “very good” season, and without a doubt they did.