St. Dom’s started the state team golf championships in an unfamiliar role — underdog.
By the end of the day, the Saints had earned the right to keep the same role they’ve had the last two years — Class C champions.
The Saints did it by the narrowest of margins on Saturday, defeating Winthrop by a single shot amidst near-perfect playing conditions at Natanis Golf Course in Vassalboro.
“I told the guys we were the underdogs for the first time in a long time,” St. Dom’s coach Kevin Cullen said. “They played amazing today.”
It is the fifth state title overall for the Saints. Falmouth won the Class A championship while Camden Hills took the title in Class B.
Each team has five players tee off, with the highest score being dropped at the end of the day. The Saints quartet of Mike Richard (75), Justin Keaney (84), Mitch Lorenz and Andrew Marcous (85) totaled 329, one stroke ahead of Winthrop and eight ahead of third-place Houlton.
“Mike Richard, our captain, shot the best tournament competition round of his life,” Cullen said. “Mitch Lorenz birdied the last hole to win it, essentially, and Andrew Marcous went out and played great. But probably the biggest surprise was my No. 5 guy, freshman Justin Keaney. He made eight putts of 10 feet or more.”
Winthrop had the low individual scorer on the day, Taylor Morang, who shot a 2-under 70. Anthony Owen (84), Adam Hachey (85) and Zach Steele (91) also figured in the scoring for the Ramblers.
“We got off to a good start,” Winthrop coach Lonney Steeves said. “Anthony Owens had a nice day. Adam Hachey had a real good round. All of the guys played very well, but on the bus on the way back, everybody could think of that one shot, that one putt, that one shot (that might have made a difference).”
“It’s probably harder to take a one-stroke loss than had it been eight or 10,” Steeves said.
Even if Winthrop had made up the one-shot difference, St. Dom’s fifth, Mike Bryant, had the lowest tiebreaker score with a 96.
“I didn’t expect this. I hoped for it, but I didn’t expect it,” Cullen said. “Every one that we’ve won (previously), we’ve won by a lot (including 23 strokes over Houlton last year). We lost to Winthrop twice and Wiscasset once and the great thing about these guys is every time they said ‘What do I need to do to get better?’ I told them it’s up to you how much better you want to get, and their perseverance and work ethic were amazing.”
Falmouth won by seven strokes in Class A. Oxford Hills finished fifth, 15 shots back, while Edward Little was eighth, 32 shots off the pace. Bangor’s Drew Powell (72) had the top individual score. Cam Letourneau of Oxford Hills (78) and Edward Little’s Brandon Dubuc and Kyle Karkos (83) were the top locals.
Camden Hills won Class B by 13 shots over Cape Elizabeth and MCI, with the Capers winning second place on the tiebreaker. Maranacook’s Luke Ruffing posted the top individual score with a 71. Connor Drouin’s 88 led Oak Hill to a 12th-place finish.
Many of the golfers will return to Natanis next Saturday for the state individual championships.
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