Roaders golf caps best season in school history with third place, two medalists at states

Oct. 27—COLLEGE PARK — Before the season, Brunswick golf coach John Yoho told his team he would retire if his team won a state championship.

Though a tall task for one of Maryland's smallest schools, one that had never been to the state final in program history, this group of Railroaders seemed determined to send their coach off in style.

They won the Frederick County championship. They finished second in the district and CMC championships. And Wednesday at the University of Maryland Golf Course, they nearly took home a state championship.

Brunswick placed third, eight strokes behind 1A/2A champion Poolesville. It was by far the best result in school history, though one that ultimately fell just short of Yoho's retirement benchmark.

"I guess I have to come back," he said, laughing.

But Yoho and his players were thrilled with the final result, which included two individual 1A/2A boys medalists: senior Hank Adams, who finished second with a two-day total of 146, and his twin brother, Luke, who tied for fourth with a 149.

"It's a testament to these guys putting in the hours. That's the thing with golf: You have to put in the time, put in the hours to shoot lower scores, and they've done that," Yoho said. "We're happy with a top-three finish, and I think that says a lot for a 1A school like Brunswick."

Hank Adams repeated as the silver medalist, finishing six strokes behind winner Noah Wallace of North East. Adams, like the rest of his Roader teammates, put together a better championship round than his semifinal round on Tuesday.

He regularly landed drives of about 300 yards, and his putting came around at the end of the round. Adams finished with three birdies in the final five holes.

"I'm glad I closed well for the last round of high school. I would've been pretty mad at myself if I had completely fallen apart," he said.

The same went for his twin.

Luke Adams improved his score with precise putting on the early holes, which briefly put him into a provisional tie for the overall lead. Though he eventually fell back into a tie for fourth, he was pleased with his progress from a 15th-place finish in 2021.

"Last year, I struggled on the greens. This year, I knew them better, and I putted a lot better," Adams said. "Really, both my rounds this year, they were really similar. Hitting the ball into the trees and trying to make par on most holes."

Though the Adamses led Brunswick, the team received solid contributions from junior Alexandra Swam and sophomore Colin Pearre.

Swam carded a 172 to finish seventh among 1A/2A girls, 31 strokes behind Poolesville's Olivia Cong, who won the flight. Pearre rounded out the Roaders' totals with a 176.

Those two will be tasked with leading Brunswick next year, carrying the success of this team forward and recruiting new players to replace the Adams brothers.

"We definitely have two very big holes to fill with Hank and Luke graduating," Yoho said. "But we hope our success over the last couple of years will draw some future golfers who are willing to put in some work."

And maybe those new golfers will be the ones to send Yoho into retirement.

Urbana finishes 10th

Urbana, the defending 3A/4A champion, sputtered on Wednesday and finished 10th as a team. Minh Le led the Hawks with a 151 to finish 10th overall. Rylan Bravin had a 156, Mason Jenkins carded a 166 and Kaden Caretti shot 190.

Two additional Frederick County players qualified for the finals as individual entries — Thomas Johnson's George Carter Smith and Oakdale's Will Scott. Smith finished with a 160, and Scott shot a 157.

River Hill's Benjamin Siriboury set a state record with a two-day total of 132 (10-under) to win the 3A/4A boys flight. The Hawks' Helen Yeung carded a 136 to win the 3A/4A girls flight. River Hill also won the 3A/4A team title.