Golfers getting into the swing of things

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NAUGATUCK — The Greyhounds continue to drop their scores on the golf course, an encouraging sign for head coach Peter Kovalski.

“We are seeing the scores come down a bit,” Kovalski said. “We were right there with Woodland. A couple of strokes here and there would have made the difference and put that match in the win column.”

The Hawks won that match, 226-230, April 29 at Oxford Greens. Joe Macary and Ryan Hunt shot solid rounds of 52 to lead the Greyhounds. Derek McGrath came in with a round of 60 and Zach Crosswait shot a 66 to account for Naugatuck’s scoring.

The match followed a loss to Holy Cross April 24 where Hunt and McGrath both shot season-lows with a 44 and 46, respectively.

“It was really encouraging to see the way we hung in there with Woodland,” Kovalkski said. “Oxford Greens is a tough place to play. We just need to keep focusing on taking the shots that we are capable of and not going for the out-of-the-way hard shots.”

Naugy knocked a couple strokes off its game April 30 in Torrington in a 170-228 loss. The foursome all broke into the 50s with McGrath leading the way with a 53. Macary finished with a 56, Crosswait shot 58 and Hunt finished it up with a 59.

Naugatuck picked up a pair of forfeit wins over Wilby and Kennedy on May 1 at Western Hills in Waterbury when neither team could field a foursome. The Greyhounds dropped their score again, though, with a round of 221.

Macary matched his season-low with a solid round of 51. Hunt (54), McGrath (55) and Crosswait (61) rounded out the scoring for Naugatuck (3-6).

The Greyhounds shot a 202 versus Sacred Heart on Monday, according to scores reported on ciacsports.com, their best round of the year.

Naugatuck will hosting Seymour on Thursday. Next week, Naugatuck will head to Orange Hills Country Club in Orange to face O’Brien Tech on Monday.

Locals compete at Woodland Invitational: The Greyhounds and Hawks both competed May 2 at the seventh annual Woodland Invitational at Oxford Greens, an 18-hole event featuring 16 teams from the Naugatuck Valley League, South-West Conference and Berkshire League.

Joel Barlow won the event with a team score of 364, followed by Newtown at 366 and Pomperaug at 371. The event medalist was Newtown’s Dave Brestovanski with a 6-over-par 78.

Naugatuck placed 11th as a team with a score of 423. McGrath led the way with a 97, while Macary had a 107, Hunt a 109, and Crosswait a 110.

Woodland coach Bill Carangelo, who organized the event with Woodland athletic director Brian Fell, elected to send out a twosome, junior Tom Conway and freshman Mark Barbarito, instead of an inexperienced foursome. Barbarito shot a 112 in his first 18-hole scholastic event. The Hawks paired with a duo from Sacred Heart.

Carangelo said he hopes to continue the tournament next year despite the impending retirement of Fell, with whom he started the event in 2013.

“It was a great day for golf,” Carangelo said.

Hawks earn match victory: Woodland earned its second match victory of the regular season April 29 by edging Naugatuck, 226-230, at Oxford Greens. Conroy was the medalist with a 46, while Barbarito fired a 54, Skylar DeFazio shot a 62, and Jackson Bradley a 64.

Conroy was also the medalist in the Hawks’ 200-228 loss to Seymour on May 1. He shot a 42 to lead the field, while Barbarito posted a 50. Mike Bunce earned a scoring performance for the Hawks with a 65 as Woodland fell to 2-3 on the season.

The Hawks dropped a match, 186-226, to Torrington on Monday. Conroy led the way for the Hawks with a 47. Barbarito shot a 53 and Bradley and Bunce both shot a 68.

Woodland will play Wolcott Tuesday. The Hawks will host Kennedy and Wilby on Thursday and St. Paul on Monday. Woodland will face league favorite Holy Cross on May 14.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated from the version published in the May 9 edition of the Citizen’s News to include information on matches played after press time.