North Arlington

BY EDWARD KENSIK
CORRESPONDENT | SOUTH BERGENITE

NORTH ARLINGTON – The North Arlington golf team continues to make strides for a school that is not really known as a golf institution.

Vikings head golf coach Daniel Farinola ticked off the accomplishments this year: racking up a 15-8 record, finishing third in the NJIC Division 1, fourth in the NJIC Tournament at Valleybrook golf course, third in the Viking Invitational at Weequahic Golf Course and qualifying for the third year in a row for the state tournament.

Farinola, who will not return to coach the golf team next season, said that making the state tournament for the third year in a row was a great accomplishment for the Vikings. “We were happy to qualify this year, especially after graduating two starters from last season. Our main goal of the season was to qualify for the tournament for a third time in a row, so just making it in was a great experience.”

Farinola is looking forward to spending more time with his family, but he will miss the great work ethic of the North Arlington students on the links. For the last three seasons, North Arlington’s golf team has had at least a .600 winning percentage.

“I hope I have left a lasting impression on every golfer I coached over the last nine seasons, and I hope that they have received a life-long love for the game of golf,” said Farinola, who also credited some of the success to his assistant coach Jesse Dembowski for the last two seasons. “North Arlington golf has never been about wins and losses in my mind. It has been to give the students of North Arlington access to a sport that they can enjoy for a lifetime and to enjoy a sport that can even further their careers since many deals and meetings in the business world are done on the greens instead of conference rooms.”

The North Arlington head coach knew in his final season that he had another good team on his hands early in the year when they defeated Eastern Christian, 198-202, on April 12. “It really set the tone for the season,” said Farinola. “That match made us 3-0 at the time and assured us that we would be competitive again.”

This season North Arlington had three golfers named to the All NJIC 1 team: juniors Tyler Sheffler and AJ Ford on the second team, and senior Marvin Caballero on the honorable mention team.

Farinola likes a lot about Sheffler, who had the best average for the season with a 45. “Tyler is very consistent,” said Farinola. “He’s almost always in the fairway.”

In Ford the North Arlington head coach likes his long shots and coolness on the course and his average a score of 51, second best on the team. “AJ is a long hitter off the tee and makes really deep tee shots,” said Farinola. “He has a perfect mentality and does not get frustrated on the course.”

Caballero moved up to the top spots on the team after being an alternate last season. He averaged a 59 score for the season. “He worked very hard to get on the team,” said Farinola.

While they didn’t collect honors, the likes of senior Louie Davio, who averaged a 52, and senior Andrew Fernandez, with a 57, made plenty of contributions to the Vikings.

“Louie has a great short game, especially chipping around the greens,” said Farinola. About Fernandez he added: “He was a first-year golfer (after playing baseball for three years) and was very coachable and a competitor.”

 

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