It was a double-edged sword for the St. Dom’s golf team when, athletically, the school left the Western Maine Conference for the Mountain valley Conference.

On one hand, gone was the every day competition and the tournament atmosphere of playing top schools, many of which are in Class B. Gone, also, was the one-time hockey rivalry turned golf battle between the Saints and WMC foe North Yarmouth Academy.

On the flip side, the Saints got new courses to see, new opponents to compete against, and they got a reprieve from seeing those pesky NYA Panthers in the conference qualifying tournament.

The Saints have shown no signs of slowing down this season, either. Armed with an arsenal of talent, St. Dom’s remains unbeaten in MVC play this season. At this point, coach Kevin Cullen said, the focus has already shifted to the long-term goal of preparing to play in the larger tournaments.

“I don’t like to look anymore about being on top in each individual match or in the conference,” Cullen said. “If it works out at the end of the season, that’s great.”

The Saints’ biggest competition so far this season has been themselves.

“We have so much just within the team,” Cullen said. “We have eight guys battling it out for the top five slots. We have six guys for the final three spots who are all within 10 shots of each other for the season, and it’s going to come down to the last couple of weeks to see who’s going to goes to states with the team.”

Rebound season

Dirigo High School isn’t exactly steeped in golf tradition, particularly weighed against the successes of the school’s other athletic programs in recent seasons.

But this year is turning into something special for the Cougars.

Through six matches, the Cougars are unbeaten at 6-0, this after a 2-8 campaign last season.

“It’s unreal how much they’ve come around in the last year,” Dirigo coach Seth Fournier said. “Last year, our best team stroke total at home was in the low 200s, and I know we didn’t break 200. This year, our three totals at home have been 171, 172 and 171.”

And it’s not just the friendly confines of Oakdale Country Club helping Dirigo along. Top golfer Justin Conant has seen his average dip from 44 or 45, to 40 or 41.

“He had a 37 in one match, and a 39 in another, and more often than not he’s been the medalist at the matches we’ve played,” Fournier said. “He’s really taken a leadership role on the team out there.”

Looking ahead

There’s still a hint of optimism in Jim Lunney’s voice amid all the reality. Lunney, who lost three returning Telstar golfers before graduation — two to another sport and one to a job — and another who was a senior last season, realizes that this season, while not a wash, isn’t likely going to produce a state title for the Bethel-area school.

“The lack of numbers is showing up now,” Lunney said. “We’re down to five players on the team now, but we’ll have them all back, and hopefully some others next year, too. I don’t want to say that we’re done this season, and we still have a chance to do well if all of them have a career round at the same time.”

Lunney pegged his team as a potential third-place finisher in the MVC’s north division, and the Rebels are sitting at 2-4 through six matches.

“We’ve talked about it, and the kids are getting frustrated at points because they’re not shooting what they want to be shooting,” Lunney said. “But it’s all about taking small steps sometimes. They’re hanging in there, and if we can work with them and get them to play over the summer, too, we’ll be on the right track.”