Porters boys’ golf defeats Tuckers for first time in over a decade

Perhaps no one was more appreciative of Greenport/Southold’s boys’ golf victory over Mattituck on Thursday afternoon than Jeff Ellis.

It was the first time the Porters defeated the Tuckers in his 11 years as head coach.

“It’s a good win for us,” Ellis said after his team recorded a 7-2 win at Laurel Links Country Club. “We’ve just been kind of up and down in terms of consistency. I know that they can shoot good scores. They just haven’t done it on a consistent basis. But today they all seemed to play some of their best golf. So, we’ll take it.”

Ellis said he had no information before he took over the coaching reins, so the streak might be even longer.

The Porters (2-3) won four of the six head-to-head matches in the Suffolk County League VII encounter. They were awarded three match points for finishing with a lower score (225) than the Tuckers (233).

“I’m happy for them, proud of them,” Ellis said. “Not an easy course to play either, for a group that’s used to playing Island’s End all the time.”

Ellis noted that the Porters also combined for 225 shots in a 9-0 loss to Riverhead on Sept. 15.

“So, hopefully we’ll build off that,” he said. “They’re starting to get in their groove a little bit.”

Second-seeded junior Owen Buonaiuto led the way for Greenport, shooting a 40 to defeat Brennan Daly (47).

Buonaiuto was happy with his play.

“I shot pretty solid,” he said. “There’s a couple things I could have done better, like my putting.”

Buonaiuto said that the key to his success was “keeping the ball in play and not having to take extra strokes by dropping. My approach shots are pretty nice.”

In other Greenport wins, No. 3 Chase Horne downed Jadyn Wilsberg, 45-49. Fourth-seeded Brady Treharne beat Hunter Johnson, 45-51, and sixth-seeded Clint Cornell edged Brody Walling, 51-52.

“They’ve had some really good team,” Ellis said of Mattituck (2-3). “Coming into this year, I thought this was going to be my best team. I’ve had some really good golfers, kids that have qualified for counties, but I’ve never had a group that could compete team-wise. Those first four guys are the best we’ve had as a group. We’re going to get them back for one more year.”

Junior Sam Quartararo, Mattituck’s top seed who set a school record (34) at Laurel last week, had the best round on the front nine with a 38. His Greenport opponent, junior Mickey Smith, shot a 44.

“In his three rounds, he is one under the par [36], which is pretty good on this golf course,” Mattituck coach Paul Ellwood said. “This is a first-class golf course; this is a championship golf course. You could play a tournament here, a professional tournament. It’s that good. Difficult.”

Ellwood added: “He’s consistent. Some days he’s always striking the ball well. Some days he scores better than others.  He’s one of the top players in the league.”

Smith realized he would be challenged. Quartararo competed at the state championships in June.

“I didn’t expect to win because I know he’s a great golfer,” Smith said. “He shot really well today. I wish him best.”

Ellis gave Smith credit.

“Mickey tried to keep it close because Mattituck, team-wise, all those strokes matter,” he said. “If you can keep it close in the one spot, you’ve got a chance to win.”

Which the Porters did.

Greenport’s goals this fall are reachable.

“Just to qualify for the counties,” Smith said. “Hope the team does well. I’m just trying to help the team.”

Mattituck’s Jack Connel defeated Clint Cornell in the fifth-seeded match, 48-57.

Freshman Gretchen Ocker, one of the first girls to compete for Mattituck in years, competed in an exhibition match because of a bothersome wrist. Ocker, who shot 53, has a 2-2 record as one of the top six golfers.

“She’s been in the top six every match so far,” Ellwood said. “Today I gave her a break. She said she still wanted to play, but in case it started hurting, she would have been able to stop playing and not affect the team. She’s got a great swing. She plays the boys’ tees. She has been holding her own … We hope to get her in the girls tournament in the spring.”

“She’s doing great.”

Ocker and her teammates will get another opportunity to compete against Greenport at Islands End on Thursday, Sept. 24 at 4 p.m.