Even a quick trip down memory lane Thursday appeared to tire Tom Fournier out, and it’s that feeling, he said, that helped make a very tough decision at least a little bit easier.

Fournier, the only varsity boys’ lacrosse coach Lewiston High School has had in its brief foray into the sport, submitted his letter of resignation this week, ending the high school tenure of the reigning KVAC coach of the year.

“It’s certainly been a fulfilling journey,” Fournier said. “Just seeing this grow from the beginning, to where it is now, it’s very fulfilling. I’m walking away very happy.”

Fournier had success with the program from the beginning, and for the last few years, getting to the Eastern Maine final has become an expectation of the very young, but very proud, program.

“(Fournier) brought this program to new heights,” Lewiston athletic director Jason Fuller said. “We definitely appreciate his years of service with us, and we wish him the best in his next endeavor.”

Fournier picked up the game coaching his young sons through the youth system as fourth- and fifth-graders, and followed them through their high school careers.

“Being new to the area, (the youth program) needed coaches,” Fournier said. “I just kind of grew up from them, and my kids went through the system, and I stayed on for another two years.”

After a couple of years as a club sport, the final one with Fournier as a volunteer assistant, the Blue Devils’ program graduated to the varsity level. Right away, the team had success, and solid players.

With a dearth of athletes, even though many of them had never picked up a lacrosse stick, Fournier found that Lewiston had a perfect system to foster solid lacrosse players.

“It’s not like in hockey, where you’d better start skating early or you’ll be way behind,” Fournier said. “This is a sport you can pick up very late and, with a little work, get very good at it very fast. If you’re a good athlete, and you can run, that’s half the battle.”

Unfortunately, not everything Fournier dealt with at Lewiston was fun and exciting. Nearly two years ago, Fournier had to comfort and console his team as they lost one of their own, recently-graduated Matt Manley, in a Christmas Eve car accident.

“He was such a great kid, and he had a smile that would light up the room,” Fournier said. “To see him go that young was devastating, and we still talk about it to this day.”

Fournier said whether or not he’s officially affiliated with Lewiston lacrosse, the team’s alumni game, named in Manley’s honor, will continue.

“Once a year, we will gather on that field and play that game in Matt’s memory, for sure,” Fournier said.

On the field, Fournier most recent three seasons have been the program’s best, including one trip to the state final and three total trips to the Eastern Maine final.

“We’ve had 16 or 17 first-team all-conference players,” Fournier said. “It’s been a great, great chapter in my life.”

In recent years, Fournier, who operates Gipper’s Sports Grill in Auburn, also took on an assistant’s role with the Bates College men’s lacrosse team.

He said Thursday that he will continue to help out at Bates, but everything together would have been too much.

“I’m getting a little older,” Fournier said, laughing a bit. “It overlaps a little bit, and there are some days where it was nine hours of lacrosse, so it was a lot.”