Sweeping the greens: Revere/Malden co-op golf team captains reflect on triumphs, camaraderie

By Dom Nicastro

The Revere/Malden golf program clinched its first Greater Boston League championship with a 44.5-27.5 win over Lynn Classical at Kelley Greens last month. It was the culmination of a tremendous body of work for the team on the links this fall. According to coach Brandon Pezzuto, it was the first time either program has won the GBL championship since 1981, over 42 years ago. The team finished 9-1-1.

The Advocate caught up with captains of the historic team – Ryan Coggswell of Malden, Saul Kruckenberg of Malden and Ollie Svendsen of Revere – for a Q&A. Here are the Qs we asked the golfers:

1. Tell us your position, how many years you’ve played golf and any particular stats/other individual accomplishments you are proud of.

2. What was the message you were sending to the team at the beginning of the season as captain?
3. The team was so consistent and clutch in big matches. What were the consistent parts of the team that led to such competitiveness?
4. What was the biggest team win and why?
5. What was it like working under this coaching staff?
6. What is your message to the team about keeping this program momentum going?
7. What’s next for you athletically and academically?

Ryan Coggswell of Malden

1. I played the seventh and eighth spot for the majority of the season. This was my third season playing golf, as I started when I was a sophomore. I am proud of winning the Spirit of the Game Award for the team last year for exhibiting honor, integrity and respect.
2. At the beginning of this year, I wanted to let our team know that this was our shot. I let them know that this was the end of our three-year growth. The first was a rough season with a lot of new players. The second showed much improvement and gave the team experience. This one, the third, was primed to be our shot at a championship.
3. We were clutch in the big matches because we were the most well-rounded lineup in the league. Every player from 1-8 was going out there and competing. We even had guys coming off the bench due to injury and winning those matches as replacements. When the top of the lineup struggled, the back end would pick them up with big victories and vice versa.
4. The biggest team win of the season came in our last GBL matchup with Lynn Classical. Our fate was in our own hands, with a win clinching the league title while a loss meant that Lynn English could win their last two matches and take it. As a team, we competed from top the bottom. The entire squad came out to play and shut them down 44.5-27.5 to take the championship home. As a team, that was probably the best match we played as a whole.
5. This coaching staff was excellent. Coach Malatesta from Malden has not only incredibly improved our golf game but taught us how to be great human beings. I can only say the same about Coach Pezzuto and Coach DiPlatzi from Revere, who introduced us to the delicious Grand Slam from The New Deal. This coaching staff was the perfect mixture of fun, respectful, kind, caring and helpful. I credit these three coaches for the past few years of improvement in the program as they have truly developed every single player on the team.
6. My message would be to go out there and recruit more kids. We want more kids to learn the game and keep the program numbers up so it never has to fold. For the other kids on the team, I would tell them to stay driven toward success and keep listening to your coaches on how to improve your game.
7. Personally, I will be playing for the Malden High baseball team in the spring, but my competitive golf career is coming to an end. Next year, I plan on attending a four-year university for nursing.

Saul Kruckenberg of Malden

1. This year I spent the majority of the season as an alternative player. This is the first season I haven’t been in the starting lineup so it was a bit of a change but it was still wonderful as that meant that our program had gotten better, and we were much more competitive. I started playing my sophomore year and spent most of sophomore and junior season in the middle of the lineup. It was a wonderful few years, and I’d say that my biggest achievement with the team was growing the program and building a team that was so much like family.
2. As this was my last year with the program, I started the season just trying to make sure all the players knew that this group of young men had potential to become friends for life. I knew we had a shot at leading the GBL, and I thought one of the best ways to strengthen our team was to strengthen our friendship. I tried to emphasize the power of family throughout our team.
3. An attribute that led to our ability to stay clutch and consistent this year was trying to stay focused and not get down on bad holes or matches. Being able to come back from a bad streak is a fundamental skill needed in golf. Our team this year was much better at forgetting about the bad holes in the past and just slowly working our way to small victories. These small things helped us finish strong in all of our matches.
4. By far the biggest win of the season was our final GBL matchup against Lynn Classical. Going into that match we were feeling great. We had had a very strong season and were used to winning. But we all knew that this match mattered the most. Winning against Classical would secure us as the GBL league champions. We all put aside the feelings of victory that we had all season so that we could put our all into one final GBL match. Hearing that we won and were champions was an unmeasurable feeling of joy and victory.
5. This coaching staff is one of the best coaching staffs that I have ever been able to play for. All three coaches were always available to give tips or help us improve all parts of our golf game. I started out sophomore year with only a few times ever swinging a club in my life; I had no clue what I was doing. After these three years I can confidently say these coaches have helped me fall in love with the game, and I will definitely be playing it as long as I possibly can. But these coaches did more than just coach golf; they taught us boys respect, honor and strength. Me and my fellow teammates have become such better golfers and overall humans because of this wonderful coaching staff. There is no one else I would ever rather coach this team.
6. This is a very powerful and competitive team we have here in Malden/Revere. We only have a few seniors moving on and will have plenty of underclassmen that will soon be able to fill in the gaps. I have no doubt that this program will return even stronger next year and will have a great fighting chance to be back-to-back GBL champs. We have some wonderful young talent, and I know that will be even more golfers who join the program and will help continue its legacy.
7. Athletically I will continue playing for Malden on our lacrosse team in the spring. After I finish up my senior year, I will be moving on to a four-year college. While I am not sure what I will study or where I will end up, I know that I will take the love for the game, along with all the wonderful life skills I’ve learned over the years, to whatever comes next for me.

Ollie Svendsen of Revere

1. This year I was up and down the lineup as the season went on. At the beginning of the season I struggled a bit, not playing in the first match. Then I found my swing and kept battling in every match I played in, and it paid off in most of the matches that had some tight final scores.
2. Keep practicing. Golf is arguably one of the hardest sports in the world. It’s not how athletic you are, and you just have to stay in the right mental state. Putting in the work is the most important factor, and we did that as a team while also having a ton of fun.
3. Competition in practices and match play against teammates at practice always kept us in game mode. When it came down to clutch moments, I felt as though we were relaxed and just out there playing the game we love, enjoying it while still being in the zone to succeed.
4. Lynn Classical was a crucial match as it would be the clincher for the team’s first GBL championship in many years for Malden and the first for Revere. We were all a little tense, but we stayed locked in. Shout out to Saul Kruckenberg who came as an alternate and came in clutch as one of our players went down with an injury in the middle of a match. This was a great moment for our team, and we all participated in the win.
5. I’ve known Coach Pezzuto since I was in the sixth grade. He never gives up on a player. He always tries to find a way to make us better whether it is with a game or target practice or a specific swing. Same thing goes with the other coaches, Coach “Mal” and Coach DiPlatzi. Always trying to find little tips and tweaks to get us to our full potential and beyond that. They are champions, too.
6. Keep being the great group of people you are and encourage more people to join. It’s not just all about the game; there’s more to that. Going out to eat after practices or matches, having fun in group chats and play some football in the parking lot after practice. Keep it going.
7. I am currently playing hockey for the Revere-Everett-Malden-Mystic Valley High School team, and I will be playing baseball for Revere High School in the spring. I plan to attend a four-year college; I have not decided where that will be. I am excited for what’s next.