Mouth of the River

Everything has changed for Oyster River High School’s golf team over this past year: a new coach, the team’s seniors leaving, and a heightened pressure to perform. But the one thing that hasn’t changed is their strong will to win.

The golf team has seen success over the past few years, consistently placing within the top eight in the division. However, since the 2021 team, coached by the late Paul Bamford, brought home the title, there hasn’t been another victory. With Bamford’s passing, and the senior core of the team graduating, performing at the state championship is a new challenge. With state championships today, October 15^th, the team is hoping to reach new heights and bring the title home to ORHS.

This new year has brought new opportunities and challenges for the team. Nick MacGregor has taken over the coaching role for the late Paul Bamford. Bamford was the former varsity head coach and led the team to a state championship in the 2021 season. MacGregor, who just finished his first-year teaching at the school, had already been established with the JV and Varsity teams and was well prepared to assume the position. “I was really excited for the opportunity to get to coach them this year, knowing that we [have] a really solid group that could make a run for the state tournament,” said MacGregor.

MacGregor credits the team for helping him adjust to being a head coach. “It helps knowing that you have these players already in place who know their game super well… it makes my job a lot easier, where I’m just trying to be the mental coach, helping them stay in the game.”

Jackson Follis (’25) landed himself the #2 spot this year. “Last year there was about three people ahead of me who I could rely on to have a better score than me, but now this year there is more pressure.”

With states championships looming, MacGregor is trying hard to keep the players’ minds clear. “I think for the players who have been to playoffs, it’s hard not to look ahead… but I’m trying not to have them look ahead too far, trying to focus on the things that we need to improve right now to get us into the best position to play our best golf come playoff time,” said MacGregor.

Follis commented on the energy surrounding the state championship, especially with the new core of the team. “I think most of our team will handle the new pressure well, but the state championship is a completely different game, and anything can happen.”

This year finished up with the team in 6^th going into state championships. Teagan Nadeau (’26), the team’s #1 spot player, has had experience with playoffs in the past. This year, she says not much has changed about her mentality. “Obviously we are a very different team, we have a lot of new players, and we are just looking to complete our own goals, and not worry about a baseline we had in the past,” said Nadeau.

The team hopes to keep their streak of solid performance heading into state championships today, Tuesday October 15^th.

-Ian Hilfiker

Photo courtesy of Meagan Rinko