Liberty?s golf team accomplished something even more impressive than winning the Class 1A/2A state public school title on Wednesday ? it made history.
The Lions shot a team total of 315 on Wednesday to go with the 318 they recorded on Tuesday to finish with a score of 633, the lowest ever by a school in the state?s smallest classification. The Lions left the course at the University of Maryland as the first golf team from Carroll County to win the Maryland Public Secondary School Athletic Association title because they were unfazed by the intermittent rain fall that doomed the rest of the field.
“They wanted it bad,” Liberty coach Paul Bangle said of all-senior lineup. “It hasn’t really set in for them yet.”
But when it does, the Lions undoubtedly will realize they posted one of the greatest seasons in state history. Prior to winning the state title, the Lions claimed the county title, the Monocacy Valley Blue Ridge Division crown and Region 1 tournament championship.
Frank Cinquegrani and John Rosecrans shot two-round totals of 153 and 155, enabling the Lions to finish atop the eight-team field. Liberty?s Justin Catlin and Tyler Bush totaled 158 and 167 to secure the victory ahead of defending state champion Glenelg (639), Century (643) and Easton (658).
The closest a Carroll County team came to a state title in the event?s 36-year history was a pair of second-place finishes by Westminster in 1985 and 1999, and another by Liberty in 2002.
In the boys? tournament, Alex Hoffman from Middletown claimed the title over Bel Air’s Brandon Powers, when Powers missed a three-foot putt for par on the second playoff hole. Powers had a chance to win the state title on the first hole, but pushed his four-foot putt wide right. After Hoffman (141) and Powers (141), Kyle Gebhart from Stephen Decatur took third with 142, followed by defending state champion Josh Eure from South River (143) and Sherwood?s Jack Bonifant (144).
“I just wasn’t making the putts,” Powers said after the playoff. “I just missed it.”
On the girl’s side, Eleanor Roosevelt’s Caroline Sweet took first by shooting a single-round record 68 for a two-day total of 140. Sweet was followed by defending state champion Lauren Smith of Arundel (150), Smithsburg?s Haeun Lee (150), North Point?s Mackenzie Cutter (154) and Mount Hebron?s Suh Huang (156).
“Everyone had to play in the same weather,” Smith said. “I needed myshort game and it wasn’t there.”
In the 3A/4A team standings, Whitman fired a classification-record 295 on Wednesday to take the state title with a two-day score of 596, which is also a state record for that classification. Wootton and La Plata tied for second with 608, followed by defending champion Churchill (611), Arundel (603) and C.H. Flowers (634).
“I told them before they started: ?This will be the last round of high school golf you will play,?” Bangle said. “Why not go out with a bang?'”
