A Championship Built Together: Brewster Golf Celebrates Its Fifth Straight MAISAD Title

Behind another conference title is a team that believes in one another, a coach who has helped generations of students grow, and a Lakes Region community that makes the experience 
possible.

The congratulations were already arriving on the ride home.

As Brewster’s golfers returned from the October 28 MAISAD Championship at Fox Ridge Golf Club in Lewiston, Maine, former players were calling their teammates and successors. Alumni and parents were reaching out to Coach Byron Martin. Across generations, Bobcats were sharing in the celebration.

Carson MacDonald, Charlie Martin, Owen Novelline, Mason Patriarca, Keller Peacock, Ebbin Perkins, Matteo Sollazzo, and Jacob Troubh had brought home Brewster’s fifth consecutive conference championship, adding their own chapter to a tradition that extends well beyond the course.

The team arrived in Maine following an undefeated league season shaped by several close matches. As temperatures climbed into the 40s, Brewster’s six championship competitors took on Fox Ridge’s challenging layout and demanding greens.

Led by captain Charlie Martin, the Bobcats established an early lead. Through nine holes, Ebbin Perkins was tied for first individually, Charlie held the second-lowest score, and Jacob Troubh was playing his best golf of the season with the third-lowest score. Keller Peacock, Carson MacDonald, and Matteo Sollazzo contributed solid rounds as the team headed into the back nine.

Brewster finished with three of the day’s four lowest scores, securing a commanding victory and a record-setting fifth straight MAISAD title. The team’s sixth-position golfer delivered its second-lowest score, a powerful example of the depth that made this championship possible.

“Our bread and butter, and what won it again, is the depth,” Martin said. “We have kids that work hard at all spots. Every part of the team’s important.”

For Martin, now in his 33rd year at Brewster, that belief connects this team to the players who came before it. When the calls began on the ride home, he could hear how much the tradition still meant to them, and how proud they were to see it carried forward.

A Coach Who Said Yes
Brewster’s competitive golf program began with a few interested students, encouragement from their families, and a coach willing to give something new a chance.

Martin’s background was in soccer and tennis. His own introduction to golf came during graduate school at St. Lawrence University, when a group of hockey players invited him to join them. He enjoyed it, eventually bought clubs after arriving at Brewster, and began helping with the school’s recreational program.

Later, when students and parents asked for competitive golf, he agreed to help launch a team. The plan was to do it for a year, then find another coach.

That one year became a defining part of his Brewster career.

Getting started took persistence. Martin searched for players, found opponents, and asked people to help. Former Head of School Mike Cooper helped establish a relationship with Lake Winnipesaukee Golf Club, giving the young program an extraordinary place to practice and compete. Local professionals offered instruction. Faculty members volunteered their time. Community members opened their courses to Brewster students.

Martin remembers those contributions with gratitude. His pride in the program is matched by his appreciation for the people who have helped it grow.

Today, his coaching emphasizes course management, understanding the game, recognizing individual strengths, and helping students make thoughtful decisions. This season, local golf experts and members of the Wolfeboro community, Bob Hughes and Dick Totarto, were also among those contributing their time and expertise.

“Realistically, we are all helping each other,” Martin said.

A Father, a Son, and a Team
For Martin, this championship season carries an especially personal significance: the opportunity to coach his son Charlie through his senior year.

Before arriving at Brewster, Charlie told his father he wanted to play varsity golf. Martin encouraged him toward the developmental program. Charlie had a different goal.

He wanted to earn a place on the team.

He worked for it, made varsity as a freshman, and quickly established himself among its leading players. That first year included a hole-in-one and a six-under-par nine-hole round that set a Brewster record.

Yet when Martin talks about coaching his son, he returns to Charlie’s care for his teammates.

“What I was most privileged to see was his ability to work with others,” he said.

Martin described Charlie as a talented teacher, someone willing to share his technical knowledge and help another player find an adjustment or understand an idea. Alongside former teammate Will Hunter and other student leaders, Charlie has helped sustain a culture of encouragement and shared improvement.

There are other longstanding connections within this year’s roster. Martin coached Carson MacDonald and Keller Peacock in middle school lacrosse, years before getting to coach them as senior golfers. Watching those relationships grow across different teams and stages of adolescence has made this season particularly rewarding.

The result is a team whose strength reaches beyond individual scores. Players help one another prepare, work through challenges, and keep improving. Each has a role in carrying the program forward.

An Extraordinary Place to Play and Learn
Fall golf at Brewster is a special experience.

Afternoons unfold across the changing landscapes of New Hampshire’s Lakes Region, where students encounter different courses, different conditions, and new decisions with every round.

This season, Martin said, Brewster golfers played 10 different courses.

Lake Winnipesaukee Golf Club, the varsity team’s home course, provides an exceptional championship setting. Kingswood Golf Club offers a classic Donald Ross design within a very short distance of campus. Bald Peak Colony Club has become another valued setting for rounds and practice, while relationships with Province Lake, Indian Mound, and other regional courses broaden students’ experiences.

These opportunities have grown through years of relationship-building, and through the way Brewster students conduct themselves when they arrive.

Martin teaches his golfers to appreciate the privilege of playing these courses. Respect for the grounds, consideration for others, and gratitude toward the people who welcome them are expectations of representing Brewster.

Those lessons give real meaning to the school’s commitment to place-based education. The surrounding community becomes part of students’ education, offering opportunities to develop judgment, independence, responsibility, and relationships.

The annual Winnie-Cat tournament is a particularly joyful expression of that connection. Now in its sixth year, it pairs Brewster golfers with Lake Winnipesaukee club members for an 18-hole tournament followed by a reception, dinner, and awards. Students and members get to know one another through a shared love of the game, strengthening the community around the program.

A Tradition Worth Joining
The program’s growth is easy to see.

Martin once searched for enough students to put a team together. This year, approximately 32 students came out for varsity and junior varsity golf, with JV now in its second year. Both teams are coeducational, reflecting the program's continued growth and opportunities for students.

Some players have continued their competitive careers in college. Tyler Berkman ’25 went on to NCAA Division I golf at St. Bonaventure, and Martin noted that Will Hunter is now playing at the Division III level at McDaniel College.

For students who love golf, Brewster offers the chance to pursue that passion within a school community that knows them, challenges them, and supports their growth. The program brings together competitive athletics, meaningful relationships, and an exceptional setting—an experience that helps students discover what they can accomplish and what they can contribute.

“We are about fun,” Martin said. “We are about the love of the game.”

That love was evident in the calls and messages on the ride home. It lives in the alumni still following the team, the community members sharing their time, and the students helping one another become better players.

Congratulations to Carson, Charlie, Owen, Mason, Keller, Ebbin, Matteo, and Jacob, to Coach Martin and the coaching team, and to everyone who helped make this fifth consecutive championship possible. You have given the Brewster community so much to celebrate and the next generation of Bobcat golfers a wonderful tradition to carry forward.