VASSALBORO – St Dominic Academy golf coach Michael Lacombe set a score for his team at the Maine state team golf championships at Natanis Golf Club on Saturday.
The good news is that the Saints broke the 330 goal for the top four scores with a 329. The bad news is that they were still 18 shots from the Class C champions, the Mattanawcook Academy Lynx, who shot 311, which was the lowest four-person total for any class.
It’s the second straight year St. Dom’s finished as runner-up to the Lynx. The Saints went undefeated during the Western Maine Conference regular season schedule.
“You put up a score like that, it’s very hard to beat,” Lacombe said. “It’s hard for another team to overcome. Hats off to them, it’s great scoring, with the two lowest (scorers) in all of the classes.”
The Saints’ four scorers were consistent: Markella Gammaitoni and Antonio Parisi each shot an 81, Justin Keany fired an 82 and Janelle Bryant shot an 85.
“My guys did a great job again this year,” Lacombe said. “I had put down a number, 330 coming in. We did (that), we brought it in at 329, and they did did an awesome job. I am very proud of them.”
Logan Thompson shot the low round of the day, a 68, to lead the Lynx, while Max Woodman shot a 74, on the Arrowhead course. Those two scores were the first two posted for Mattanawcook. The question for the Lynx was how their three and four players would do after struggling on a few holes Saturday.
Conor McLaughlin shot an 83 while Jeff Garfield had an 86.
“They struggled a little bit on the back,” Mattanawcook coach Ryan Libby said. “They started on the front and they had a pretty good stretch on the front, and they ended up going onto the back — they didn’t have a good stretch on the back.”
McLaughlin shot a 48 on the back nine, and Garfield shot a 45.
Winthrop finished third in Class C with a team score of 347. Zac Robertson shot an 81, Charlie de Hass an 85, Brogan Plossay an 88 and Ben Thomas a 93.
“I am very happy with that number from that group of kids,” Winthrop coach Lonney Steeves said. “It could have been a little bit better, but not much better. The numbers shot by the first- and second-place teams, we weren’t going to get there today.”
Finishing fourth in the Class C tournament was Mountain Valley Conference champion Dirigo. The Cougars finished three shots behind Winthrop at 350. Jacob Gaudin fired a 76, Mason Corriveau an 84, Mike Kersey Jr. an 89, and Greta Friburger and Chandler Redmond each fired an 101.
“We were a little higher than what we were hoping for, that’s for sure,” Dirigo coach Mike Kersey Sr. said. “We were hoping to do better than that, but it was tough. It was a slow day, things were going slow. The kids played well, the kids had fun. It’s always a good time coming down to the states.”
Finishing fifth was Houlton at 358, and George Stevens came in sixth with a 362. Greenville (390) took seventh, Forest Hills (400) was eighth, Hodgdon (426) came in ninth, and rounding out the last two spots in Class C were Central Aroostook (447) and Machias (498).
The Class A tournament went down the stretch on the Tomahawk course, as Gorham and Mt. Ararat each scored a 317. Gorham won the tiebreaker because its fifth player, Cam Stevens, shot an 82, while Mt. Ararat’s fifth player, Steve Schuman, had a 96.
Mt. Ararat’s top players, Caleb Manuel and Cam Cox, shot 73 and 75, respectively. For Gorham, Ryan Kaczmarek shot a 77, and Lucas Roop shot a 79.
“It ended up in a tie, and each one of my players played to their potential, and it came down to the tiebreak,” Gorham coach Rick Altham said. “The played steady, they played within themselves, and it was a lot of hard work to get here.”
Finishing third was Falmouth (322), and Scarborough was one shot behind in fourth place. Greely finished fifth at 327, and Cheverus in sixth at 311. The 2015 Class A champion, Thornton Academy, finished seventh with a 334. Edward Little finished eighth with a 341, while Camden Hills was one shot behind in ninth. Messalonskee fired a 351, and Lewiston came in 11th with a 372.
EL’s Ryan Raby had an 81 and Ben Cassidy had an 84. Aaron Perkins and Deryk Belanger each fired an 88. Lewiston was led by Alex Robert, who shot an 82, and Stephanie Rodrigue, who had an 83. Joe Bisson finished at 103, one shot ahead of Jayden Wilson.
In Class B, Erskine Academy’s consistency on the Tomahawk course won the state title. Aaron Pion finished with a 77, while Justin Browne, Robert Harmon and Connor Paine each shot an 80.
“Our guys have only been separated by a few shots all year,” Erskine coach Mark Bailey said. “Any of them can play No. 1. It’s a testament to our depth and how hard these guys worked.”
Erskine shot a 317. Cape Elizabeth finished second with a 325. while Old Town finished third at 331. Yarmouth was two shots behind Old Town for fourth. MCI (347) finished in fifth, and Lake Region and Mount Desert Island tied for sixth with 359s. Fryeburg (365) came in eighth, one shot ahead of Gardiner. Waterville finished 10th with a 380 and Hermon was one shot behind that in 11th.
nfournier@sunjournal.com
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