High school golf notes: White's hard work rewarded by Wachusett; Seniors shine for Westborough

Wachusett senior Ayden White arrived at Bedrock Golf Course last week, ready to tee it up in a high school golf match against Westborough.

Before the match began, however, as the team huddled together, Mountaineers coach Nick Guerin teed up a special surprise announcement for White.

“I told everyone that I had decided to add Ayden as the team’s third captain,” said Guerin. “We have two excellent senior captains in Perry Flagg and Jason Manxhari, who provide great leadership and I’ve always believed in having only two captains, but I really felt that Ayden, because of his solid performances on the golf course and his high-level character, deserved to be the third captain.”

High fives and congratulations from White’s teammates followed Guerin’s announcement, which stunned the senior, who joined the varsity team as a sophomore and has risen to the top of the lineup this fall, averaging 40 for nine holes and helping the Mountaineers clinch a postseason berth.

“Ayden has rallied around every single kid on this team and has helped us all be bigger and better,” Guerin added. “He’s backed it up with his play on the golf course, and he even does the small things that many people wouldn’t notice, like just talking to a freshman on the putting green and asking about what’s going on in his life. I wanted to acknowledge those kinds of gestures because they actually mean a lot.”

White said he never expected to be named captain but was thrilled with the decision

“I try to boost the team morale,” said White, who admitted that he was known more as a “hockey guy” when he made the junior varsity golf team two seasons ago. “And last year on varsity we had a great group of guys and ended up having a very good season.”

Manxhari, who met White when they were both sophomores on the team, said he was so happy that White was named as the third Wachusett captain.

“I’m very proud of Ayden,” said Manxhari. “The positive vibe he gives all of us is really amazing, and personally he’s made a major impact on my life being such a good friend. I’ve never had a friend like him and I thank him so much for that.”

Added the long-hitting Flagg, who carded a 1-over-par 36 in a win over Leominster at Gardner Municipal last week, “I was hoping that we could have three captains and very happy that Ayden joined us. He really deserves it.”

The Mountaineers, with additional strong play from talented freshman Ricky Narain, are currently 9-5, following a unique tiebreaking victory over Leominster last week that longtime coaches Guerin and Leominster coach Daryl Robichaud had never witnessed.

Tied at 201 after the top five players’ scores from each team were counted, the Mountaineers and Blue Devils were still tied at 244 when the sixth players were added. Then came the seventh player and Wachusett senior Aiden McCarthy’s 43 gave his team a three-shot win and a qualifying spot in the upcoming Div. 1 Central Mass. tournament.

“Aiden was playing in only his second varsity match ever and he really came through,” Guerin said.

Seniors lead Westborough

With six wins in nine matches the Westborough Rangers have been led by senior captains Brendan Estaphan, James Kaminski, Connor McDermott and Aaron Schwartz.

Estaphan, who carded an even par 36 last week along with teammates Kaminski and senior Tyler Nelson, is also an accomplished tennis player and a T&G All-Star in that sport.

Asked about tennis/golf commonalities, the left-handed hitting Estaphan said, “I really believe it’s the mental part of the game in each. In both sports I’m very competitive and I hate to lose, but I’m more successful when I’m relaxed and just stay in the moment, shot to shot.”

Robichaud meets Pano — again

On August 20th, on her 19th birthday, Alexa Pano, who was born in Westborough, won for the first time on the LPGA Tour, defeating Gabriella Cowley with a birdie on the third playoff hole of the ISPS Handa World Invitational in Northern Ireland.

Sandy Robichaud, the former Westborough girls' golf coach and current Rangers boys’ coach, watched all the excitement on TV, rooting for the young girl she recalled meeting about 16 years ago at the former East Coast Golf Academy in Northborough.

“I was working there at the time, and her father, Rick, walked in to the practice range to hit some golf balls, and with him was Alexa, just a little girl then taking it all in,” said Robichaud, who, a few years later, was watching Alexa on Netflix in “The Short Game,” a popular documentary about young golfers.

Robichaud never forgot meeting Alexa before she moved to Florida as a young girl and began her amazing golf journey, ascending as one of the country’s top amateurs before joining the professional ranks.

And just a few months ago their paths crossed again when Robichaud was golfing at The Haven CC in Boylston and Alexa and her father were also playing the course while visiting the area.

“It was great seeing Rick and Alexa, and she even gave me some valuable putting tips this time,” Robichaud said.

Tournament dates, locations set

The postseason tournament schedule has been released by the MIAA and shapes up this way:

Div. 1 Central Mass. Championship at Pleasant Valley CC (Oct. 23 at 10 a.m.) and West Championship at Westover Municipal (Oct. 23 at 10 a.m.)

Div. 2 Central at Maplegate CC (Oct. 24 at 9 a.m.) and West at Crestview CC (Oct. 23 at 10 a.m.)

Div. 3 Central at Kettlebrook GC (Oct. 24 at 10 a.m.) and West at Southampton CC (Oct. 24 at 9 a.m.)

State Championships: Div. 1 at Greathorse (Oct. 30 at 10 am.); Div. 2 at Thorny Lea GC (Oct. 30 at 9 a.m.); Div. 3 Oct. 31 Location and Time TBA.

—Contact Jay Gearan at sports@telegram.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @tgsports.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Wachusett golf team rewards senior's hard work with captain role