The Chargers are coming off an 18-win season, but lose a couple keys pieces from their 2017 team.
Timber Creek Regional High School’s golf team has broken down barriers the last two seasons.
In 2016, the Chargers won their first-ever Olympic Conference National Division title. Last season, Timber Creek repeated as division champions and finished with a record of 18–6.
This year, Timber Creek is looking for a third straight division title despite losing two of its top three golfers from last year’s team.
Head coach Joseph DeVecchis has seen how far the program has come over the past few seasons and credits the team’s success to a solid work ethic.
“The returning juniors and seniors, they played all winter,” he said. “They didn’t care how cold it was, I would see them at Valleybrook or they would be on the putting green at Scotland Run.”
The team’s strong work ethic can be found in the team’s top two returning players. Senior Dan Murphy is expected to lead the Chargers this season. Murphy shot an average nine-hole round of 41 last year and DeVecchis has seen him grow more confident as his high school career has progressed.
“Last year, we had a very good team and there was a lot of competition within our own team,” DeVecchis said. “Dan was always in competition with those guys. Now, he’s the guy and he knows that. This is his team now.”
Timber Creek’s other top returning player is senior Alexandra Williams, one of the better female golfers in South Jersey. Williams has established herself as a fixture in Timber Creek’s lineup and has finished in the top-30 of the girls’ Tournament of Champions every year of her high school career.
“She’s an integral part to our team,” DeVecchis said. “She’s so consistent. I know what I’m going to get out of her every round.”
Timber Creek is looking for a few players to step into the starting lineup this year, such as Nick Kelly.
“He played a little bit of varsity last year,” DeVecchis said of Kelly. “He was another kid when he came in as a freshman his size hurt him. Now, he’s growing into his body.”
DeVecchis expects there to be lots of competition for the other starting varsity spots later in the preseason. Timber Creek has not spent a lot of time on the golf course due to winter weather. The Chargers have instead spent a lot of time at Big Swing Golf Center in Washington Township, where they’ve taken advantage of a covered driving range and indoor golf simulator at the facility.
“We’ve been getting some swings in there,” DeVecchis said. “Half the kids are on the range, half the kids are in the simulator.”
Despite all of the preseason challenges, DeVecchis believes his team will be ready when the season opens in April. He believes the Chargers are capable of putting together another winning season in 2018.
“With high school golf, you need four,” he said. “If you have four that can shoot consistently, you can compete with anybody. It’s really going to be if we can find that fourth and fifth piece to make an impact.”