By Susan Jenior

Staff Writer

Preview capsules for the 2025 high school boys golf season.

FIELD FALCONS

COACH: Scott Bower. First year coaching boys (coached girls last season).

CONFERENCE: Metro Athletic Conference.

HOME COURSE: Sunny Hill Golf Course, Brimfield.

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Seniors Nicholas Cultrona, Joseph Conroy, Aiden Graham and Jayden Huskins.

DEPTH: “Newcomers are a ninth grader, Isaac Waldeck, and a sophomore, Jaxon Whitmire. Isaac shot a 43 after the second time playing on our home course and Jaxon shot a 46 as well, being unfamiliar with the course. We are excited here at Field after we’ve doubled the team size this season,” said Bower.

EXPECTATIONS: “I want the seniors to have a blast finishing off their high-school career and to set a good example for the younger guys,” said Bowers. “We’re really focusing on mentality this year and tackling that part of our game.”

19^TH HOLE: “Our goal this year is to, first and foremost, enjoy the sport,” said Bower. “We need to use the decisions we make and mentality of the sport to make each student a more confident player and person.

GARFIELD G-MEN

COACH: Jake Britton, second season, 8-8 record.

CONFERENCE: Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference Gray Division.

HOME COURSE: Sugar Bush Golf Club, Garrettsville.

LAST SEASON: 8-8.

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Seniors Hunter Anderson, Caleb Sheer, Lukas Workman, Garrett Warnick.

DEPTH: “We have two newcomers, Carter Hoover (senior) and Harrison Kissel (freshman). Carter is within our top five,” said Britton.

LOOKING FORWARD TO: “The G-Men are looking forward to our Karpis Tournament,” said the coach.

EXPECTATIONS: “The athletes have improved significantly from last season. We are looking forward to this year,” concluded Britton.

MOGADORE WILDCATS

COACH: Chris Mossa, 20th season, 245-79 career record.

CONFERENCE: Independent.

HOME COURSE: Paradise Lake Golf Course, Suffield.

LAST SEASON: 13-3, 6-2 league.

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Seniors Tyler Pendergast and Jude Thiry; juniors Max Shannon, Jackson Lanham and Blake Waterhouse; sophomore Brock Thiry.

DEPTH: Juniors Noah Hopkins, Gavin Gardner, Landon Shaffer, Mason Storey and Cayde Ramirez; sophomore Max Simone.

LOOKING FORWARD TO: Warren JFK, Louisville, Ravenna’s Yank Heisler Invitational, Springfield Invitational, Summit Cup verses Springfield.

EXPECTATIONS: “We have two seniors, eight juniors and two sophomores. We have lots of experience, maturity and depth,” said Mossa.

19^th HOLE: “Being independent this year is tough for the team, but we strive to be extremely competitive in all events and make a run at districts,” said Mossa.

ROOTSTOWN ROVERS

COACH: Keith Waesch, 29^th year, 444-135 career record.

CONFERENCE: Chagrin Valley Conference Valley Division.

LAST SEASON; 13-6 overall, 4-4 PTC (3^rd place).

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Senior Ryan Wolf, sophomores Drew Just and Nathan Waesch.

“Ryan earned his second letter last fall and is probably the most consistent player on our team,” said Waesch. “Ryan hits a lot of fairways and rarely has to write a big number on the scorecard. Drew and Nathan both earned valuable experience as freshmen. They work very hard on their game, play in some tournaments, and I expect them to improve tremendously this fall.”

DEPTH: “We have 13 kids in the program this fall,” said Waesch. “Of those 13, we could have as many as eight or nine kids qualify to play in a varsity event this season. Senior Caleb Stevens played in a few matches during his junior season. Junior Anthony Pratt has made strides in his game. Sophomores Troy Kopac and Brayden McColloch will both be making their varsity debuts, while freshman Sam Klem has had a great summer and earned a varsity spot to start the season.

“Jake Wenzlawsh (Sr.), Aiden Battaglia (So.), Brayden Lisi (So.) Jack Turner (So.) and Liam Miller (Fr.) are all working hard to improve their game as well.”

LOOKING FORWARD TO: “We enjoy playing in 18-hole events and competing against area teams,” said Waesch.

EXPECTATIONS FOR THE SEASON: “This season will be unlike any other in recent years,” said Waesch. “We are joining the Chagrin Valley Conference and are looking forward to seeing how we stack up against those programs. My goal is for this young team to keep working hard and improving throughout the season.”

19^TH HOLE: “Of the 13 players on our roster, 10 of them also play baseball.”

SOUTHEAST PIRATES

COACH: Mike Jenior, 10^th season.

CONFERENCE: Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference Gray Division.

HOME COURSE: Olde Dutch Mill Golf Course, Lake Milton,

LAST SEASON: 13-5 overall, 10-4 MVAC.

“It was the best record for the Pirates since I have been coaching,” said Jenior. “We finished second in the MVAC Tournament with a season low 324 and third of 14 teams in the Division II Sectional at Windmill with a 335.

“We lost in the fifth man playoff score to qualify for districts. James Morgan earned MVAC Player of the Year award, his second award in a row in two conferences. Morgan also earned First Team All-MVAC for the third year.

“Alex Peelish earned Second Team All-MVAC and Cole Bruno and Ethan Shodd earned Honorable Mention All-MVAC. Morgan became only the second Southeast golfer ever to qualify for the state tournament. Morgan also won the D-II Sectional with a 69 qualifying for districts for the second year in a row and Cole Bruno qualified for districts as an individual becoming the third Pirate golfer ever to qualify for the district tournament,” said Jenior.

RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Seniors James Morgan, Shade Stevens, Braeden Martin; Juniors Cole Bruno, Alex Peelish, Ethan Shodd.

DEPTH: “James Morgan is hands down one of the best golfers in the state across all divisions and will lead arguably the best boys team that Southeast has ever had,” said Jenior. Junior Cole Bruno came on strong at the end of the season last year finishing second in the MVAC and qualified out of sectionals with a 75 at Windmill.

“Alex Peelish, Ethan Shodd and Shade Stevens are all capable of rounds in the high 30s and low 40s on a consistent basis,” added Jenior. “Promising freshmen that will compete for varsity spots include Owen Dombrowski, Logan Blankenship and Logan Shodd, who have all proven that they can post rounds in the low 40s and will all be an important part of our program’s success this season. This will also be the first time the Pirates have fielded a JV team in over a decade. Other program newcomers include Juniors Tristan Finch, Calvan Garrett and Jacob Doty; sophomore Garrett Davis and freshmen Alex Garro, Austin Muldowney and Joe Miller.

EXPECTATIONS FOR THE SEASON: “Like last season, Brookfield will be our big rival in the MVAC,” said Jenior. “We know that to win a conference championship, we will need to defeat them. Our expectations for the season are the highest we have ever been. We return everyone from last year and a team that finished second in the MVAC, tied for third at sectionals and had one state qualifier and two district qualifiers. Our goal is to win an MVAC title, and we have all the pieces to contend this season.”

LOOKING FORWARD TO: “We look forward to continuing historic rivalries with Rootstown and Mogadore. Both of these programs are perennial powers and our kids always enjoy playing each other and seeing familiar faces,” said Jenior.

19^TH HOLE: “With everyone back in the lineup for 2025, this team is very confident and battle-tested. We know that we have what it takes to win a conference title. Golf is a mental game and having that edge will be our x-factor this season,” said Jenior.

“The boys and girls teams at Southeast are very close knit and the majority of them have come up to golf from our elementary school clinic ‘Pirates Play Golf’ and junior programs at Olde Dutch Mill Golf Course to the middle-school team and now competing with each other on the high-school team. That type of camaraderie is very special, and I believe can only happen at a smaller public school like Southeast. It is a strong community with generations of families that can share successes. We are excited to represent our Pirate Community this season,” concluded Jenior.

WATERLOO VIKINGS

COACH: Matthew Flanagan, 13^th season, 120-101 record.

CONFERENCE: Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference Scarlet Division.

HOME COURSE: Paradise Lake Golf Course, Suffield.

LAST SESASON: 7-10 overall, 6-8 league. … Graduated three seniors (Clayton Smith, Mitchell Shepherd) from last year’s team, including MVAC Player of the Year Trevor Simons.

DEPTH: Senior Blade Ascarrunz, sophomores Trevor Flarida and Cole Kaiser.

LOOKING FORWARD TO: “Every season, the Vikings look forward to early season tournament competition at the Karpis Classic at Sugar Bush Golf Course, Yank Heisler Memorial at Windmill Lakes Golf Course and the Joe Eaton Invitational at Tannenhauf.

EXPECTATIONS: “Waterloo will have a very young team this coming season. Blade Ascarrunz will be our lone senior and will be looked to for his experience as a multiple time letterwinner,” said Flanagan. “Trevor Flarida and Cole Kaiser lettered as freshmen last year and will continue their growth from the exposure to high school golf competition. Both have great potential. Sophomores Mason Long and Grayson Griffin and freshman Jayden Eichler are looking to impact the varsity scene this season as well.”

19^TH HOLE: “With our roster being made up of freshmen and sophomores, we will be looking to do a lot of learning on the course. Several of our players have taken part in summer golf programs and will hopefully show off newfound familiarity with the game. We are looking to build a love for the game in our new young players,” offered Flanagan.

Jackson Eichler, class of 2024, will enter his second season at Bluffton University.

Editor’s Note: Schools missing from this preview at the time of this post will be added at a later date when team information is collected.