DIAA State Championships Day Two: Maple Dale

Kolbjornsen, Lydic, Archmere Academy take hardware

Matt Kolbjornsen started taking golf seriously this past year and there were many times where he wanted to quit.

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Kolbjornsen, a lifelong football player, dedicated his time at Odessa National Golf Club to getting better at the game. 

Kolbjornsen, aided by his nerves of steel, birdied the first playoff hole to hold off Round One leader Jack Homer of the Tatnall School to claim his first DIAA (Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association) Boys’ Championship title Wednesday at Maple Dale Country Club (par 72, 6,109 yards).

Archmere Academy claimed the Team Championship by one shot over Tatnall School and Caesar Rodney with a two-day total of 35-over-par 539. In Round One, the four best scores of the six team members counted toward the team total. In Round Two, the three best of six scores counted.

Kolbjornsen, a senior at Middletown High School, roped a 9-iron on No. 16 (par 3, 149 yards) to five feet to take the title.

“I think this is just a result of all of the hard work I put in and the sacrifices my parents made,” Kolbjornsen, 17, of Middletown, Del., said. “It wasn’t easy. There were a lot of nights where I wanted to quit and give up on golf, but I still kept the faith that I could accomplish something in the game. It is awesome that it all came to fruition.”

He faced an 8-footer on No. 18 (par 5, 508 yards) to win the tournament outright.

“I wanted to make that putt but I just missed it,” Kolbjornsen said. “In the playoff, I knew there was a chance I wouldn’t have another putt to win. So I locked in and focused on making a good stroke. When it went in there was a ton of adrenaline that went through my body. It was sweet to see my teammates and parents douse me in water.”

After the first hole (par 4, 363 yards) of the final round, Kolbjornsen was six back of Homer. He made a double bogey to Homer’s par. He recovered quickly with a chip-in eagle on No. 2 (par 5, 444 yards). From that point on, he made one birdie and one bogey. He finished his round with 12 consecutive pars.

“I was trying to shoot something in the 60s,” Kolbjornsen said. “I knew I was going to have to try to catch Jack Homer and Win Thomas. I was able to steady the ship after a bad start and capitalize on both of their mistakes coming in.”

His steadiness will come in handy later this year. He has his sights set on pilot school, with a school and location still to be determined. But golf isn’t leaving him any time soon.

“I feel like I should see what else I can do in golf outside of high school,” Kolbjornsen said. “When you win something you can’t just stop playing. You have to keep at it and prove you can do it again.”

Lydic takes second title

In 2021, Sarah Lydic started her high school career by claiming her first DIAA Girls’ Championship title at Maple Dale as a member of Sussex Academy.

Three years later, playing for Indian River High School, Lydic ends her high school career with a win. The incoming freshman at Wake Forest University took her second DIAA title with a two-day total of 8-under-par 136 at Maple Dale (par 72, 5,363 yards). She beat Tower Hill Academy junior Sawyer Brockstedt by five.

“I wanted to go out and enjoy my last one of these,” Lydic, 18, of Ocean View, Del., said. “I talked with my coach at Wake Forest last night and she told me to make the day memorable. I didn’t overthink the round. I just went out and did what I know how to do.”

Through six holes, the Indian River senior was 4 under. Highlighted by a 35-footer for eagle on No. 6 (par 5, 430 yards). After mixing three birdies and three bogeys on Nos. 7 through 16, Lydic closed the book on her high school career with birdies on Nos. 17 (par 4, 268 yards) and 18 (par 5, 442 yards). 

“I was kind of shocked at how quickly I started out there,” Lydic, of Bear Trap Dunes Golf Club, said. “ I knew that I would have a couple of mistakes throughout the round but for the most part I played quite well.”

She stuffed a 60-degree wedge from 56 yards to a foot on No. 17 and pured a 50-degree wedge from 90 yards to eight feet. 

“Maple Dale has been good to me over the years,” Lydic said. “I love to hit my wedges and Maple Dale sets up for a lot of them. If you can keep the ball in play, the scoring opportunities are out there.”

Sarah’s sister Hannah, a Division I golfer at the University of Richmond, won the DIAA Girls’ title in 2022 as a member of Sussex Academy in her senior year as well.

“Changing schools once my sister Hannah graduated was hard,” Sarah Lydic said. “I felt like I was alone in a sense. But I had so much support from so many people that I was able to get through that. In a sense, when I start at Wake Forest it might be lonely because of all the new people I’ll meet and places I will go, but I am so excited for the opportunity I have worked hard for.”

GAP

Celebrating Amateur Golf since 1897, GAP, also known as the Golf Association of Philadelphia, is the oldest regional or state golf association in the United States. It serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. The organization’s 345 Member Clubs and 110,000 individual members are spread across Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey and Maryland. The GAP’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.