Harwood wins second straight golf title

October 9, 2026 | By James Biggam | Times Argus Staff Writer 

In the world of academia, C’s get degrees.

Front row l to r: Chase Ladabouche, Seve Cohen, Ryan Lacey. Back row: Coach Kevin Russell, Advisor Akhil Kaplan, Seva Kaplan, Head Coach Brian “BMac” McCarthy, Jack Lacey, Braedon Bellows, Pyke Nelson. Not pictured: Coach Erik Nelson. Courtesy photo

On the golf course, that same mentality at key moments helped Harwood snag its second straight Division II state championship Thursday.

Even though HU’s four-person team total of 331 was far from the team’s best showing this year, it was good enough to hold off second-place Middlebury by three strokes. The Highlanders relied on their advanced course management to exercise damage control during a handful of make-or-break situations when minor mistakes could have ballooned into big numbers.

Pyke Nelson paced the Highlanders with a 9-over 79. He was trailed by teammates Jack Lacey (82), Chase Ladabouche (83), Ryan Lacey (87) and Braedon Bellows (87).

There were many days this fall when all five of those golfers were long off the tee, aggressive with their approach shots and turning in scorecards filled with birdies and pars. But Thursday presented a unique challenge during a windy day at Middlebury’s Ralph Myhre Golf Club, where laying up in the fairway or intentionally going for a two-putt at times were a saving grace.

While other teams were ambitious with many shots, the Harwood athletes played with a meditative pace and resisted some urges to cut corners over trees or blast their drives as far as possible. The cerebral Highlanders wound up being the yogis with the bogeys. And that forward-thinking emphasis on caution was ultimately the secret to success.

“There were a lot of high numbers all the way around,” Head Coach Brian McCarthy said. “We literally limped in. Braedon Bellows was having a really nice round, and he was 6-over on the last three holes. But he still finished with an 87 to score for us. Pyke had a few rough holes but pulled through. Chase was solid and Jack Lacey came up big as our No. 3 guy. We just outlasted everyone else. It was windy and Middlebury is not a course you can overpower. There were a lot of tough pin placements and a lot of three-putts. Some people watching the 18th hole did see a birdie the whole time they were there.”

To be exact, it was a grand total of 25 bogeys by Harwood that helped lock up the program’s fifth championship. And nothing came easily for a Highlander squad that was in trouble early as multiple competitors had rocky starts.

After beating Middlebury by 17 strokes last week at the Country Club of Vermont, Harwood was more worried about Stowe and U-32 after both Raiders finished a single stroke behind McCarthy’s team at the D-II qualifier. As U-32 and Stowe also struggled at Ralph Myhre, Middlebury’s top golfers quietly moved up the leaderboard.

The Tigers had only advanced to the state meet three times since winning their second crown in 2002, but at the midway point Thursday they were only two shots behind the Highlanders. Rowdy Malcolm (80) and Reaney McKinley (81) led the way for Middlebury, which showcased lots of balance in its lineup. Jason Sperry (86) and Ryan Brouillard (87) rounded out the scoring for the Addison County squad and teammate Watson Malcolm was close behind with a 92.

“Middlebury had some good rounds this season and they also had a couple blowups,” McCarthy said. “They came to our place last week and they’d never played our place, and we beat them by almost 20 shots. We were solid with a 321 at qualifiers, but I was afraid we were going to back up – and we did. And Middlebury played well. A stroke here or a stroke there was the difference.”

Left to right: North Country Invitational first place: seniors Jack Lacey and Braedon Bellows, and juniors Pyke Nelson and Chase Ladabouche. Courtesy photo

Third-place U-32 finished at 342 and was followed by Stowe (357), Lyndon (360), Hartford (373), Bellows Falls (426) and Green Mountain (428). U-32 sophomore Bubba Chamberlain (77) earned medalist honors for the second straight year while carding one birdie and a dozen pars. Chamberlain was supported by teammates Liam Weller (86), Chase Lafaille (89), Rainier Dryfoos (90) and Isaac Tucker (94).

Stowe’s top golfers were Jaxson Ruane (85), Owen Samuelsen (87), Cameron Bradley (88), Daniel Donza (97) and Bentley Stazzulla (99). Leading the way for Lyndon were Josh Gaskin (81), Brent Wells (89), Miles Patridge (93), Boris Chen (97) and Haven McHugh (99).

Thursday marked the fifth time Harwood captured a boys golf title, following up previous crowns from 2012, 2017, 2018 and 2025.

The Highlanders claimed runner-up honors in 2008, 2010 and 2016 in addition to placing third at the state meet nine times.

Nelson started Thursday’s round with two pars that were followed by a birdie, four bogeys, and a double-bogey for a front-nine 40. He got back in the groove by making six pars and three bogeys for a back-nine 39.

“Pyke was only one stroke behind Bubba, who I consider to be the best golfer in the state,” McCarthy said. “And the top five Division I numbers weren’t that far ahead of the top five Division II numbers, which is rare. Pyke is a very strong-willed and talented athlete in general. But he’s exceptional with golf in particular. He went from being a premier soccer player to a premier golfer in just a few years.”

Jack Lacey kicked things off with back-to-back bogeys before turning things around with a string of three consecutive pars. After another par and two bogeys, he wound up with a triple-bogey on No. 9 to make the turn at 42. Lacey had a short memory after a double-bogey on the 10th hole and carded pars on six of the next seven holes to go along with one bogey. Although every Highlander struggled on the 18th hole, Lacey limited any major damage by making another birdie for a back-nine 40.

“Jack is a gamer,” McCarthy said. “He started out slow. But he’s played enough golf and enough competitive sports at a high level. He’s a baseball pitcher. And pitchers are out there all by themselves sometimes. I think he equates that with golf and it worked today.”

Ladabouche’s tough start quickly put him 5-over following two double-bogeys and a bogey. A much-needed birdie on the par-3 fourth hole provided a key spark that helped him fire a front-nine 41 following four pars and another double-bogey. The junior settled for bogeys on five of the first back-nine holes, with a birdie on the par-3 14th hole providing a bit of mental relief. A par on No. 17 and a double-bogey on the last hole resulted in a 42.

“Chase has one of the biggest hearts I’ve seen in golf,” McCarthy said. “He didn’t say anything for about a half hour after we were done and then he told me he didn’t feel good. So I don’t think he was 100%. ...But I’ll take an 80% Chase all day and all year because his passion for the game is huge. He’s a golf purist from top to bottom, and he has so much love and respect for the game.”

Ryan Lacey faced early struggles and attempted to keep his head in the game following a triple-bogey on the first hole and a double-bogey on the third hole. Five pars during a six-hole run were just what the doctor ordered and he produced a front-nine 43 despite a double-bogey on No. 8 and a bogey on No. 9. His back-nine 44 featured three pars, four bogeys and two double-bogeys.

Harwood golfers pictured with Head Coach Brian McCarthy at the Oct. 1 Stowe Invitational: Freshman Bronte Richards and senior Emma Aither. They finished third in their state competition on Oct. 6. Emma qualified for New England’s. Courtesy photo

“I met Ryan when he was a freshman on the driving range at Sugarbush,” McCarthy said. “He was lacing the ball and I asked him, ‘Why aren’t you playing golf?’ And he said he did bass fishing. So I told him that he should do both. And last year he signed up and decided to go that route with both sports. He had some good numbers last year, but we were top-heavy and our top five or six golfers didn’t falter late in the season. And this year Ryan would come up and play nine holes before bass fishing practice. And as a senior, he earned the last spot on our team for states after our practice round.”

Bellows enjoyed a nice run of early success, thanks to a pair of pars, two bogeys and a birdie over the first five holes. Despite back-to-back double-bogeys, he finished the front nine with a par for a 40. The multi-sport star birdied the 10th hole and made par putts on the 12th and 15th holes. His round unraveled a bit with a bogey and four double-bogeys, resulting in a back-nine 47. But Bellows’ resilient effort was still impressive as he shaved off three strokes off his score at D-II qualifiers.

“Braedon is a senor captain on the basketball team and he was our fourth scorer along with Ryan,” McCarthy said. “He struggled at the end, but he got it done.”

Bellows and the Lacey brothers are seniors along with teammates Levi Wilson, Questwell Phillips and David Rodgers. The Highlanders also have seven juniors, six sophomores and three freshmen. “The strength of the team is sophomores and juniors,” McCarthy said. “We left Seva (Kaplan) and Seve (Cohen) at home today, but they will complement Pyke and Chase next year. We also have a lot of other talented juniors who will be seniors next year. I expect guys like Nate Rundle and Finn Lewis and Jackson Linnevers to come in strong next year by playing of lot of golf in the summer.”

Harwood has now produced a championship in one sport or another for seven consecutive seasons across the academic calendar, dating back to boys soccer title in 2023. The Highlanders are two-time defending champs in boys hockey, boys lacrosse and now boys golf.

Nelson was a youth soccer standout and followed in the footsteps of three older siblings who were All-State players on the pitch. Their mother was a NCAA Division I player and their father was a UVM basketball star whose pro career included stints in the Netherlands and also the Barre Auditorium with the Vermont Frost Heaves.

Last year it would have been easy for Nelson to carry on the family tradition and try out for Harwood’s boys soccer team, which carried a 34-match winning streak into the 2025 season. Instead, he decided to make a full-time commitment to golf along with his older brother Steele and other soccer stars like All-League midfielder Eli Herrington.

The maverick move wound up paying dividends, with the Highlanders shooting a 326 at last year’s state meet to beat second-place Lyndon by 14 shots. This season involved some rebuilding after the departure of many talented seniors, but depth was a huge strong suit for the team and there was lots of internal competition every week to earn spots behind Nelson and Ladabouche in the starting lineup.

“(McCarthy) looks at the scores at matches in practice and just bases it off that and people’s commitment to the team,” Nelson said.

With some many potential returners next fall, Harwood had a solid chance to become the third Division II team in Vermont to pull off a three-peat. Lyndon accomplished the feat in 2007 and Fair Haven claimed its fifth straight title in 1991.

“Someone asked me about (a three-peat) and I said that I’m nowhere near ready to think or worry about that yet,” McCarthy said. “That possibility is there, but I’m just glad we got two in a row and I want the kids to savor this and enjoy this. And most of them have basketball, hockey, baseball and lacrosse before the next golf season, so they have a whole lot of things going on between now and then. And who knows? Hockey and lacrosse could both three-peat before we do. And that’s OK with me.”