Lincoln Academy golf wins tight battle for KVAC B title, state bid
Lincoln Academy Claims KVAC Class‑B Golf Title at Rockland
The Lincoln Academy Eagles clinched the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference (KVAC) Class B shootout Thursday night, beating rival teams Nokomis Warriors and Medomak Valley Panthers in a tight contest that finished 162 to 166 to 167. The win secures Lincoln’s place in the Class B state championship at Natanis Golf Course in Vassalboro next Saturday.
Lincoln’s four top finishers posted a combined nine‑hole score of 162, a full four strokes better than the Warriors and three better than the Panthers. In the individual field, Nokomis’s Caden Chretien shot the tournament’s lowest score of 37, with Lincoln junior Drew Nichols close behind at 38. Colin Mitchell added a 39 for Lincoln, while Max Blake and Dylan Lomas posted 41 and 44 respectively. Nokomis’s Atticus Haining, Will Hayes and Jake Paradis finished 42, 43 and 44, and Medomak Valley’s Andrew Flanders and Wyatt Hood were 44 and 45.
“We’ve had a great season,” said Lincoln coach Todd Brackett. “They really have, and they did excellent today. Nokomis has a really good team, and they beat us in the regular season. Medomak, we have a good rivalry with them. We knew it was going to be close.” Brackett added, “If anybody was going to steal it from us today, I thought it was Medomak. Like I said, we just played great today. It was a good day for us out there.”
Lincoln junior Drew Nichols, who finished a stroke behind the medalist, praised his short game. “My short game was really solid,” he said. “Off the tee, I was a little iffy — I actually topped my driver twice, so that was interesting — but with how good my short game was, I was able to get around the golf course… I had a really rough go of it this season, so I’m glad I brought it around here.” He noted that the team’s auto‑bid to the state championship is a welcome advantage, though he also said they would have liked the extra practice round at the KVAC qualifier.
Medomak Valley coach Kevin Richardson acknowledged the home‑course advantage but pointed out that changing greens over the week helped level the field. “In all 10 regular‑season matches that we played (until today), we had the medalist, which shows you that Lincoln and Nokomis both have some really good players,” he said. “We played well all year, and I had a feeling we were going to play well today. We did, but it just wasn’t quite enough.”
The other KVAC teams – Belfast Lions, Leavitt Hornets and Erskine Eagles – remain in the running for state berths. Belfast’s Jason Thurston tied for seventh individually with a 42, while Leavitt’s James Brisson and Erskine’s Blake Morrow and Nolan Pierce finished 44 each. All five schools will have the opportunity to compete for state spots at the KVAC qualifier held Tuesday at Natanis.
A warm October evening saw temperatures climb into the upper 60s on the coast, and earlier winds that had rattled the greens had largely eased. The slightly stronger gusts that returned later in the afternoon added a touch of challenge to an otherwise pleasant round.
Lincoln’s victory caps a season of solid play and sets the stage for a trip to the state championship, where the Eagles hope to carry their momentum forward.
