By Kevin Sjoberg
Sports Reporter
FORT FAIRFIELD — The Tiger varsity golf team will be gunning for its third consecutive regional title when the Aroostook League Championship is held Friday at Limestone Country Club.
Aroostook Republican photo/Jon Gulliver
Megan Jellison of Fort Fairfield traps a pass during a match against Ashland Monday evening. The Tigers would prevail against the Hornets 1-0.
Fort Fairfield, under coach Larry Gardner, lost no seniors from last year’s squad which placed fifth in the Class C state meet. The team also added a talented freshman in Robbie Watson.
The Tigers are undefeated on the season so far, but Gardner said there is still plenty of room for improvement.
“I know we can play better as a team,” said Gardner, who is in his fifth season in his second go-around as the Tigers coach. He also coached the team from 1977-‘81.
“We’ve been a little inconsistent, but hopefully we will start to play our best as regionals approach,” he added. “We have four solid golfers and are trying to find that fifth one out of a group of 12 players, which are really good numbers for a small school.”
Watson, the youngest player on the team, still has the most tournament experience as he has compiled strong performances in the junior circuit the past few summers. He is the Tigers’ No. 1 golfer.
Seniors Billy Weissman and Landon Towle are the Tigers’ top veterans and both are capable of stringing strong rounds together. The team’s current No. 4 golfer, sophomore Noah Bernard, has displayed great potential.
Dereck Dufour, another senior, has shown the most improvement among FF golfers since the season began.
“All five have played well at times, but again need to be more consistent,” Gardner said. “They need to be able to manage their game on the course and not just get up and hit the ball without having a thought process. Each one has been a medalist at a meet, so I could certainly interchange any of them.”
Dufour is the current No. 5 golfer, but is being challenged by Brandon Clark, Tyler Churchill and Will Adams for that slot. Clark was the team’s fifth golfer a year ago.
Rounding out the Tiger roster are Colin Cassidy, Carter Shaw, Nate Guimond and Jordann Coiley, a sophomore who Gardner said has a shot at qualifying for the state championship individually on the girls’ side.
Gardner said Fort Fairfield has come a long ways in the past five years, when it did not even field a team due to a lack of numbers. “To go from that to where we are now has been a real positive thing,” he said.
He said Friday’s tournament will be a challenge, as the Tigers underperformed when it competed there in a regular season match Aug. 25.
“It’s a long nine-hole course with small greens, unlike our home course at Aroostook Valley Country Club, and we did not score very well,” he said. “We will have to play a lot better than we have over there if we are going to win.”
The Tigers practiced at Limestone Saturday and are scheduled to play in a four-team meet there today in preparation for Friday’s competition, which begins at 9 a.m.
The Tigers and the Ashland Hornets competed in a meet held at Portage Hills Country Club last Tuesday. Fort Fairfield kept its perfect record intact by winning in stroke play (6.5-4.5) and medal play (193-202).
Watson led the way by shooting a 46, while Dufour had a 48 and Weissman a 49 for the Tigers. Noah Bernard had a 50 and Landon Towle carded a 53.
Ashland’s Mark Corella was the medalist with a low round of 45. Dylan Cyr-Cormier of the Hornets came in with a 48.
