Boys golf makes CCS after 12-0 season

After an undefeated 12-0 season as the El Camino division champions, the golf team finished second at the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League finals on April 29, qualifying them for the CCS tournament scheduled for May 8.

The Falcons had a score of 400 with five players for 18 holes at the Coyote Creek Golf Course, coming in close second after Palo Alto, whose team was also 12-0 in its division. 

“We are the league champs in the El Camino division, so when it comes to putting our name on the wall in the gymnasium we can say we won our division,” coach David Gragnola said. “But [league finals are] kind of the tie-breaker that the league uses to figure out who goes to CCS.” 

Top scorers at the match included senior Robert Parden with an impressive score of 70, putting him in first place in the league after round one of finals. Additionally, junior Christian Galvin had a score of 73, placing him in third after round one. Sophomore Robert Gragnola had a score of 83, making him the third best scorer from the team.

“They definitely had a really good night, and they were the biggest reasons why we made it,” David said. “Altogether, we did exactly what we were hoping to do, which was to qualify for CCS.”

Round two of league finals on May 1 determined the best of the 32 golfers in the league. Parden shot 69, making his total for both rounds of 36 holes, 139. As a result, Parden won the individual league title by 10 shots. Galvin scored a 76 in round two, tying for second place.

In order to prepare for league finals, which coach Gragnola described as “their big round of their high school career,” the team put in countless hours of practice. 

“We played the course we were going to play [the day before leagues]. The players made some notes so that they can do the best they can,” the coach said. “Other than that, we do have some practice competitions during practice to get the guys competing when there's pressure so they are used to pressure.”

After the team’s successful performance at league finals, they look forward to competing at CCS at the Rancho Pinato golf course. Because they placed second, the Falcons will be advancing to CCS both as a team and individually. 

In preparation, the coach said the team plans on conducting more practice tournaments to make sure they are ready for the big day.

Compared to last year, coach Gragnola said the team’s scores have been improving, and he hopes for the best at CCS.

“I think this year everybody that played on the team’s average scores were a little lower than last year, so our team is better,” he said. “With [Parden] as a senior, this will be one of our best opportunities to show CCS we have some good quality golf from Saratoga.”