Golf: LL Section 1 – Cedar Crest Finishes the Job, Capture Third Straight Section 1 Championship

 

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Cedar Crest Finishes the Job, Capture Third Straight Section 1 Championship

Cedar Crest entered Wednesday’s final Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 1 match in control of its own destiny.

One day after rallying to edge Manheim Township by a single stroke at Conestoga Country Club, the Falcons carried a three-win advantage over the Blue Streaks into the section finale.

They left no doubt.

Cedar Crest fired a 300 at Four Seasons Golf Club to finish 12 strokes ahead of Manheim Township and sweep the Section 1 field. Hempfield took third at 315, followed by Penn Manor at 332, Ephrata at 342, and Elizabethtown at 343.

With the victory, Cedar Crest completed the Section 1 schedule at 29-1 and secured its third consecutive Section 1 Championship.

The title continues an impressive run for a program that entered 2026 with some significant questions to answer.

Cedar Crest shared the Section 1 championship a year ago, but graduation took two major pieces from that team in Dylan Ramsey and Carson DiBiaso. Ramsey had been a four-year varsity contributor and one of the league’s top golfers, while DiBiaso also provided an important presence near the top of the Falcons’ lineup.

What remained was a talented but younger core that needed to take another step.

They did.

Throughout the six-match Section 1 schedule, Cedar Crest received contributions from up and down the lineup. The Falcons won the first three section matches, suffered their only loss in a fifth-score tiebreaker against Manheim Township at Bent Creek, then responded by beating the Blue Streaks by one stroke Tuesday at Conestoga.

Less than 24 hours later, Cedar Crest completed the championship run with perhaps its most decisive statement of the stretch.

Sophomore Bryn Brandt once again led the Falcons, firing an even-par 72 to share medalist honors with Ephrata’s Makenna Heckman.

For Brandt, the round capped an outstanding Section 1 season. The sophomore, who finished eighth in the PIAA Class AAA Girls Golf Championship as a freshman, was consistently at or near the top of the leaderboard throughout the section schedule.

Sophomore Rory Smyth was just one stroke behind with a 73 (+1), finishing third overall. Senior Davin Kolter added a 76 (+4), tying for fourth, while sophomore Drew Gebhard completed Cedar Crest’s four counting scores with a 79 (+7).

Senior Jackson Seidel added an 80, while junior Luke Usinger finished with an 87.

Wednesday’s 300 was a fitting finish to a section season defined by the Falcons’ depth.

Cedar Crest didn’t simply replace what it lost from last year’s co-championship team. The Falcons found a new combination that consistently produced results, with Brandt, Smyth and Gebhard continuing their development and veterans Kolter and Seidel providing important rounds throughout the schedule. Usinger also emerged as another contributor capable of supplying a counting score when needed.

The result was a 29-1 record and an outright Section 1 championship.

Now, the focus shifts to the postseason.

Cedar Crest will take the momentum from its championship run into the Lancaster-Lebanon League Championships next Tuesday at Four Seasons Golf Club, where the Falcons will look to extend a season that has already produced another piece of hardware.

 

 

 

 

Team Results

Place	Team	Score	To Par	Match Record
1	Cedar Crest	300	+12	5-0
2	Manheim Township	312	+24	4-1
3	Hempfield	315	+27	3-2
4	Penn Manor	332	+44	2-3
5	Ephrata	342	+54	1-4
6	Elizabethtown	343	+55	0-5

Cedar Crest Results

Bryn Brandt (So.) – 72 (E), T-1st
Rory Smyth (So.) – 73 (+1), 3rd
Davin Kolter (Sr.) – 76 (+4), T-4th
Drew Gebhard (So.) – 79 (+7), T-9th
Jackson Seidel (Sr.) – 80 (+8), T-12th
Luke Usinger (Jr.) – 87 (+15), T-27th

 

Top 10 Leaderboard

Place	Golfer	School	Score
T-1	Bryn Brandt	Cedar Crest	72
T-1	Makenna Heckman	Ephrata	72
3	Rory Smyth	Cedar Crest	73
T-4	Charlie Sheehan	Manheim Township	76
T-4	Luke Bahling	Hempfield	76
T-4	Joe Bilson	Manheim Township	76
T-4	Davin Kolter	Cedar Crest	76
8	Landon Chandler	Hempfield	77
T-9	Owen Knouse	Hempfield	79
T-9	Drew Gebhard	Cedar Crest	79
T-9	Ian Huber	Manheim Township	79

 

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Full Results

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Final Section 1 Standings

Place	Team	Record
1	Cedar Crest	29-1
2	Manheim Township	25-5
3	Hempfield	20-10
4	Penn Manor	10-19-1
5	Ephrata	7-22-1
6	Elizabethtown	0-30