Christian Brothers claims NJSIAA team title; Wall wins individual Championship
Photo (l-r): CBA's Randall Lazzaro, Brendan Hansen, Jack Wall & Finbar Bonner
Jack Wall and Brendan Hansen each shot two-under-par 70 – the low scores of the day – to lead Christian Brothers Academy to its third straight New Jersey Interscholastic Athletic Association Boys’ Tournament of Champions victory on Monday, May 20, at the par-72, 6,612-yard Hopewell Valley Golf and Country Club in Hopewell.
Wall defeated Hansen with a par on the second playoff hole to take Tournament of Champions individual honors for the second year in a row. Last year, he edged Ahkil Giri of Moorestown in a playoff.
CBA outscored Bergen Catholic, 306-313 for the overall and Non-Public A titles. Under coach Jim Jacobsen, Bergen Catholic has won 10 T of C’s and been runner-up 12 times.
In other groups, Williamstown won Group 4, 322-325 over Watchung Hills; Erik Stevens of North Hunterdon (71) was Group 4 champion.
Moorestown won Group 3, 326-339 over Chatham; Johnny Bush of Cranford, the 2018 NJSGA Junior champion, shot 71 to win the group.
Rumson-Fair Haven took Group 2, 345-349, to best West Essex; Andrew Rush of Morris County Tech was individual Group 2 champion with an 80.
Midland Park bested Pascack Hills, 340-350, to win Group 1. Spencer Chatfield of Pascack Hills was Group 1 champion with a 79.
In Non-Public B, Newark Academy was victorious, 335-349, over Montclair-Kimberley Academy; Jesse Goodman of Dwight-Englewood shot 76 to win the group title.
Wall, the runner-up in the 2018 NJSGA Amateur Championship and the 2017 NJSGA Junior Championship, spoke glowingly of his high school career. “These past few years have been pretty incredible,” said Wall, who will compete in the U.S. Four-Ball Championship this weekend with Hansen as his partner. “These have been the greatest four years of my life. We’ve grown really close as a team.
“Hopefully, I left a mark on how to be a good teammate,” said Wall, who also advanced to the U.S. Open Sectional at Century and Old Oaks on June 3. “I really didn’t want to play Brendan in the playoff. We’re really happy with coming here and winning as a team. This is what we wanted all year long, to get the team win.”
Said Hansen: “We had a great run, winning three of our four years. Everyone on our team has grown a lot. We are great friends, not just golf teammates.”
