Western Albemarle High School hosted seven teams for the Jefferson District Championship golf tournament at the Old Trail Golf Club on Monday, September 21. Each school put forward their six best players to vie for the title. The first group teed off at 11 a.m. and when the last ball rolled into the cup on the par-4 18th hole, the Warriors took home another championship in what has become a regular occurrence for the team.
The first foursome, consisting of the top-seeded players across the district, battled it out hole by hole, but by mid-round, Western’s star player, Kennedy MacCleery, pulled ahead. She finished the round with a best- of-tournament 67. Watching her on the 18th hole, we saw her hit her tee shot over the creek to the fairway below and to the left of the green about 74 yards from the pin. Her pitch shot up to the green landed 12 feet from the hole and with a 2-putt, finished out her round at 5-under par. In the first group, Nick Martens from Monticello finished even-par at 72, Trimmer Vincel from Charlottesville High School at 73, and Seth Bryan from Orange at 75.
“I birdied all the par-5s,” said MacCleery said, “and my best hole was the par-4 fifth hole. My tee shot put me about 56 yards from the hole and my second shot left me about 10 feet from the hole. I made the 10-foot putt for a birdie.”
Everyone on the Western team finished under 80, with junior James Nolde at 75, sophomore Lucas Crombie at 74, sophomore Kevin Thacher at 78, freshman Mateo Urresti at 74, and Cam Carver at 77.
With each team’s best four scores counted, the Warriors led with 290 followed by Monticello and Charlottesville both at 311. Fourth was Fluvanna with 328, then Goochland at 333. Rounding out the field were Albemarle at 339, Louisa at 340 and Orange at 348.
Western will be competing for the regional championship early in October and is expected to move onto the 2026 VHSL Class 3 State Golf Championship at Cutalong at Tributum Resort in Mineral on October 13. The team was able to play a round at Cutalong earlier in the season.
