VASSALBORO — Leavitt Area High golf coach Harry Haylock wasn’t thrilled with his team’s performance at the KVAC qualifier on Tuesday. But from the tone of disappointment came a ray of optimism.
The Hornets had always qualified well, and then performed below expectations at states. So, this year?
“Maybe we’re switching it around,” he said.
Indeed they were. Led by girls’ individual champion Jade Haylock’s 80 and Billy Visconti’s 81, Leavitt scored 330 at Natanis Golf Course’s Tomahawk layout to win its first Class B title. Cape Elizabeth (344) was second, followed by defending champion Yarmouth and Gardiner in a tie for third (351).
In the offseason, the Hornets lost the top girls’ player in the state in Ruby Haylock, now a two-time Maine Women’s Amateur champion. Minus its star, however, Leavitt still flourished.
“After losing Ruby, we just knew how much hard work it would be, and how much hard work it would take to replace her,” said Ruby’s sister, Jade, who won her second straight Class B girls’ individual title. “We’ve just put in all that hard work.”
In Class C, Maranacook got a 2-over 74 from Wyatt Folsom en route to a total of 334 on the Arrowhead course as it won the team title over St. Dominic (343), Dexter (348), Fort Kent (359) and Mattanawcook (372).
“They played great as a team, they have all year, and (we) have six players who can score,” Maranacook Coach Ryan Meserve said. “Our goal was right around 335; we hit it today.”
Leavitt’s score of 337 in the qualifier was not up to its potential, Coach Haylock said. But on a chilly Saturday, shaving a few strokes proved more than enough to earn an elusive championship.
“I think the score could have been better than it was, but it was enough. It finally was enough,” Coach Haylock said. “You know how difficult it is to perform when you’re expected to be the champ. … Lucky for us, we pulled it off.”
Alexis McCormick shot an 83 and Aidan Lind had an 86 for Leavitt, while A.J. Davis carded a 91. The Hornets held off the Capers, led by Sam Ludington’s 79. Gardiner was led by individual runner-up Jack Quinn (73). Yarmouth, which was the favorite to defend its title, had only Quinn Federle (83) and Sebastien Martinez (85) under 90.
“Usually, you can get by with a kid having an off day and someone steps up,” Yarmouth Coach David Cousins said. “We just did not have enough to get it done today.”
The Class B boys’ individual title again went to Freeport’s Eli Spaulding, who carded an even-par 72. Spaulding shot 68 on the same course as a sophomore. This time, he was the picture of steadiness, making 16 straight pars after an opening bogey on 16 before birdieing the 15th to edge Quinn by one shot.
It wasn’t the only Freeport highlight. Reece Perry made a hole-in-one on the par-3 fourth.
“I did feel a little pressure for sure. I knew most eyes were on me,” Spaulding said. “But I knew I just had to stick to my game. … Take every shot one shot at a time, because I knew the opportunities were going to come.”
Spaulding knew where he stood going into the 14th, the first of back-to-back par-5s. He hit a shaky approach to rule out a birdie possibility on 14, but chipped to about 5 feet on 15 and made the putt he needed for his winning margin.
Lincoln Academy’s Kellen Adickes (75) was third, followed by Alex Grant (78) of Nokomis and Cape Elizabeth’s Ludington.
“I certainly wanted to make sure I made that one,” Spaulding said of his final putt. “It was right up the hill. Good to finish on birdie. (That) was awesome.”
Quinn, a freshman, was 5-over after 12 holes, but fought back with three straight birdies on 14, 15 and 16, then added a final birdie on No. 1.
“I knew I could come back. I knew I could turn it on,” Quinn said. “I started to slow my swing down, think a little bit more and take some deep breaths.”
Jade Haylock defended her girls’ individual title by edging McCormick, her teammate.
“It feels awesome. I’ve worked really hard for this,” Haylock said. “It came down to pretty close. I was like ‘Oh, shoot. If she pars out, we tie.’ ”
Maranacook got an 85 from Ben Jewett, an 86 from Brandon Chilton and an 89 from Ethan Chilton to go with the 74 from Folsom, who was 3-under on the front nine, with an eagle on the short par-5 fourth.
“I really liked the course look coming in. I knew if I played well, struck the ball well and rolled some putts, I’d have a pretty good day,” Folsom said. “It was nice to get some birdies and get pretty far under, because I knew the back was a little bit tougher, a little tighter.”
Folsom struggled on his final three holes to open the door for MCI’s Owen Moore, who took the Class C individual title with a 1-over 73. Moore was the Class B runner-up as a freshman in 2020 but failed to qualify last year, and said it was meaningful for him to get some redemption.
“It’s been a long year since last year,” he said. “I came in here ready to play and just have fun, instead of worrying about the score. And I did. I had a lot of fun.”
MCI’s Jillian Plamondon took the Class C girls’ title with a 92.
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