State Champion Linganore High Boys Track and Field

After claiming the Class 3A boys indoor track and field team championship with just eight athletes, two of them, senior Ricky Johnson and junior Jake Brown, and the coach of the Lancers, Bill Eckard, are this week's guest on The Final Score podcast.

The trio chats with host Greg Swatek about how the Linganore boys were able to pull off such an improbable championship with such a small team. The Lancers didn't win a single event and scored only 31 points, and yet it was still good enough for a one-point win over second-place Oakdale and their first state team indoor championship since 2019.

What did the team expect going into the state indoor meet? When did the athletes start thinking that winning the team championship possible? Why is it such a close-knit team? And how does this result propel the Lancers into the outdoor season this spring?

All of these questions are answered over the course of the discussion, which also revealed some questionable dietary choices after practices and meets.

Prior to this discussion, FNP sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg to share thoughts on the epic men's hockey final at the Olympics and preview the upcoming high school basketball playoffs. They also touch on Mount St. Mary's opening its first season of girls flag football this weekend and Hood College's run to the NCAA Division III Tournament in men's basketball.

J.R. Rawlins, Urbana High Girls Basketball Coach

As his team prepares for the upcoming playoffs, Urbana High girls basketball coach J.R. Rawlins is this week's guest on The Final Score podcast.

Rawlins talks with host Greg Swatek about the very competitive and tightly packed girls basketball landscape in Frederick County and how his talented team at Urbana fits into the mix.

He talks about how he got his start in coaching and his time spent as a basketball referee in the county and the respect he has for both jobs. And he outlines the road ahead for his team at Urbana and what he expects as the Hawks head into the Class 4A West regional playoffs.

Prior to that conversation, FNP sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg  to discuss Middletown's state championship over the weekend in the Class 2A wrestling duals and the end of the high school basketball regular season in Frederick County.

Rob Havenstein, Linganore Grad, Now Retired L.A. Ram

After saying goodbye to the NFL after 11 seasons with the Los Angeles Rams, Linganore High graduate Rob Havenstein is this week's guest on The Final Score podcast.

Havenstein, who has been the stalwart right tackle on the Rams' offensive line for more than a decade now, explains to host Greg Swatek why he decided to retire after making 161 starts for the Rams over the last decade-plus.

When did he know? What factors played into the decision? What was the most memorable game he played in? Who was the toughest defensive player he had to block? What will he miss the most now that he is not playing? And what are his future plans?

Havenstein addresses all of those questions and more, as he reflects on his long career.

Prior to that discussion, FNP sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg to talk about the Frederick County Public Schools' swimming and diving championships, the Monocacy Valley Hockey League championship game and other observations about the high school basketball scene in Frederick County.

Tim Abercrombie Jr., Linganore High Boys Basketball Coach

With his resilient team finding ways to rally and win, Linganore High boys basketball coach Tim Abercrombie is this week's guest on The Final Score podcast.

Abercrombie talks with Greg Swatek about what he appreciates most about his team of 10 players, who often lack the size and athleticism of their opponents. Linganore also has the tendency to get off to slow starts and fall behind by double digits in games. Yet the Lancers have an equal knack for finding their way back into games and ultimately prevailing in the end.

The coach explains how this is all possible, how having such a small team benefits them in many ways and whether he's had to adjust his expectations over the course of the season.

Prior to that conversation, FNP sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg to the depth of the girls basketball scene in Frederick County, Hood College's Jevon Yarbrough, one of the leading scorers in Division III basketball for the nationally ranked Blazers, and some big games on tap on the high-school boys hoops landscape.

Korey Kauflin, County Champion, Urbana High Boys Track

After winning three individual races and anchoring a winning relay last week in the Frederick County Public Schools Indoor Track and Field Championships, Urbana High senior Korey Kauflin is this week's guest on The Final Score podcast.

Kauflin chats with host Greg Swatek about his season and how a race two week ago in Virginia Beach changed his overall outlook on it and set the stage for him to win the 500-meter dash, the 1,600 run, the 800 run and anchor the winning 4x800 relay at the county championships.

He also talks about how and why he started running and the overall impact it has had on his life. He discusses the cross county season last fall and Urbana's dominant run to the Class 4A boys team championship, and he discusses his future in the sport and what he would like to accomplish before he graduates from high school.

Prior to this conversation, FNP sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg to talk about how the winter weather and school closures are impacting the schedules of all Frederick County basketball, wrestling, swimming and diving and indoor track and field teams.

Zach Thomas, Oakdale High basketball legend, Newest Member of Frederick Flying Cows

After signing with the Frederick Flying Cows last weekend, former Oakdale High basketball star and Frederick County's all-time leading scorer Zach Thomas is this week's guest on The Final Score podcast.

The Flying Cows are Frederick's professional basketball team set to begin play in March in the United States Basketball League after two very successful seasons in The Basketball League {TBL). Last season, the won the Southeast Conference championship and reached the TBL's final four.

Thomas chats with host Greg Swatek about his decision to sign with the Cows and how the opportunity came about.

He talked about his continued desire to play after spending two years in the coaching ranks, serving as an assistant for legendary coach John Calipari at the University of Kentucky and a player-development coach for the NBA's Charlotte Hornets.

Thomas also recounts his professional basketball journey since graduating in 2018 from Bucknell University, where he was the Patriot League Player of the Year as a senior. He has played professionally in Belgium, Italy, Ukraine before the Russian invasion, Poland, Finland, Sweden and Cyprus.

What were his favorite and most memorable stops? What are his goals and priorities as he begins to play for the Flying Cows?

Prior to that conversation, FNP sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg to talk about Hood College's recent ascension into the Division III Top 25 for men's basketball, as well as the high school boys and girls basketball scenes in Frederick County and key results that have recently transpired.

Cam Dorner, Oakdale High Graduate, NFL Draft Prospect

After declaring his intention to enter the NFL Draft last week, former Oakdale High football and basketball star Cam Dorner is this week’s guest on The Final Score podcast.

Dorner chats with host Greg Swatek about his decision to declare for the draft. What led up to it? Who helped it make it? What were the deciding factors? And what was going through his head right after the announcement?

He talks about why football was more suited for him than basketball and how he feels his skills measure up on the next level.

Dorner played three seasons at nearby Division II Shepherd University and one at Division I North Texas outside of Dallas, where he helped the Mean Green earn Top 25 status and come within one victory of reaching the College Football Playoff this season.

How did his time at those schools mold him into the player he is today? And how was he able to quickly rise to the challenge of being a receiver for both?

With the North Texas pro day ahead and a possible invite to the NFL scouting combine next month, what is Dorner expecting from the pre-draft process and what has he heard in this preliminary stage about if and when he might be selected?

No Oakdale football player has even been drafted before or landed on a main NFL roster.

Earl Blake, Urbana High Wrestling Coach

For the first podcast of 2026, former three-time state champion and first-year Urbana High wrestling coach Earl Blake is this week's guest on The Final Score.

Blake, who wrestled for Linganore, chats with host Greg Swatek and FNP sports writer Alexander Dacy about his recent foray into coaching and how it feels to now be working for the arch rival school of his alma mater. 

During the discussion, he reveals the incredibly philosophical side of his personality and life that drove his wrestling career to incredible heights, 156 wins and three-state titles in high school and a full scholarship to compete at Kent State University.

He also talks about how he was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and losing that scholarship, which forced him to grapple for the first time with a life without wrestling. 

Just 25 years old, Blake talks very candidly about his struggles with depression and self-identity and reveals some seldom-shared details about his life, including being completely abandoned roadside in Idaho and his car catching fire on the return trip home.

Dave Crawmer, Urbana High Boys Basketball Coach, Top Frederick County Sports Stories of 2025

For the last Final Score podcast of 2025, FNP sports writer Alexander Dacy and host Greg Swatek offer up their lists for the top 10 Frederick County sports stories in 2025. 

How similar or different are their lists? Is there any consensus on what they felt were the county's biggest stories of the past year?

Then, Urbana High boys basketball coach Dave Crawmer joins Greg to talk about his young team this season and its big win over Frederick High School on Dec. 19.

What are the keys for the Hawks this season? How does this season compare to some recent ones? And what are Crawmer's expectations for them?

Plus, Crawmer talks about his involvement with the Shoot 360 basketball training facility on Ballenger Center Drive, next to the News-Post building, and life as a golf pro at Lakewood Country Club in Rockville.

Trey Coates, Tuscarora High Wrestling Coach

After hosting a coed duals tournament and an individual girls tournament last weekend, Tuscarora High wrestling coach Trey Coates is this week's guest on The Final Score podcast.

Coates chats with host Greg Swatek about Tuscarora's Clash at the Creek tournament, which is in its third season for the boys and its second season for the girls.

After being one of the leading champions for girls wrestling on the local scene, what was it like for Coates to see close to 300 girls wrestling in his gym at Clash at the Creek? How does he look at the progress and the impact that girls wrestling has made in recent years?

Also, what goes into hosting not just one wrestling tournament, but two in the span of a few days? And how does Coates look at the wrestling scene in Frederick County overall?

Prior to that, FNP sports writer Alexander Dacy joins Greg to discuss holiday plans and the high school basketball scene in the county, including a big victory for the Urbana boys over Frederick High, as well as momentous wins for the Linganore boys and girls over Oakdale.

John Keimig, Middletown High Boys Basketball Coach

With the Middletown boys looking like the county's top basketball team and poised to make a run at a potential state championship, Knights coach John Keimig is this week's guest on The Final Score podcast.

Keimig chats with host Greg Swatek about how the Knights are handling the lofty expectations with most of their team back from a season ago when they took eventual Class 2A runner-up New Town to double overtime in the state semifinals.

What are Keimig's fondest memories from that playoff run? What does he like the most about this current team? Who are the key players? And what will it take for Middletown to win its first state title in boys basketball in March?

Prior to that conversation, FNP sports writer Alexander Dacy joins Greg to discuss the boys and girls basketball scenes in Frederick County and what lies ahead during the holiday weeks.

State Champion Linganore High Football

After Linganore High football rolled to a 56-17 victory over Oakdale in the Class 3A championship game last Saturday in Annapolis to claim its seventh state championship, coach Rick Conner, senior running back Bradly Matthews and senior receiver/defensive back Chase Perry are this week's guests on The Final Score podcast.

The guys chat with host Greg Swatek about the season, which will certainly be considered among the best in Frederick County history. The Lancers finished 13-0. They pulled out a close win at Mervo, the eventual 4A-3A state champion, in Week 1 and were hardly challenged the rest of the way. 

What made this team so special? How did it come together so well? And what is it's future after reaching the state mountaintop once again?

Matthews, Frederick County's all-time touchdown leader (80), and Perry, the team's leading receiver, discuss what playing football at Linganore meant to them, as well as their futures. Matthews will play football next year at Georgetown University, while Perry will play baseball at the University of North Carolina-Asheville. 

Prior to this conversation, FNP sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg to recap Linganore's big win over Oakdale in the second state football final between Frederick County teams and look ahead to the high school basketball season.

State Champion Linganore Field Hockey

After ending a 32-year state championship drought for Frederick County field hockey teams, Linganore High School is featured on this week's Final Score podcast, as head coach McKenzie Ridgely, star goalie Allena Jaworski and junior midfielder Addison Ridgely join the program.

The trio chats with host Greg Swatek about the Lancers' 4-3 victory over Westminster in double overtime back on Nov. 8 in the Class 3A championship game at Stevenson University in Owings Mills and the dramatic way it unfolded.

Jaworkski recalls stopping a Westminster penalty stroke in the first quarter that flipped the momentum in her team's favor. Addison Ridgely describes how the game-winning sequence, involving an almost accidental goal from senior forward Jordan Zimmerman, evolved. And McKenzie Ridgely talks about the overall resilience of her team, after Westminster produced the tying goal with roughly 20 seconds to play in regulation, and why it was able to play its best when it mattered the most.

The discussion also covers the very unusual way the Jaworski became a goalie, as well as her future in the sport and the future of the team.

Prior to that conversation, FNP sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg to discuss Linganore and Oakdale meeting in an All-Frederick County state football final for the second time in three years. Is this the Linganore team that finally breaks the recent string of losses in state football finals? And can Oakdale find a way to keep it competitive after being blown out by the Lancers during the regular season?

State Champion Urbana High Boys Cross Country

After leading Urbana to the Class 4A team championship in boys cross country on Nov. 8 at Hereford High School, coach Jackie Suarez and senior runner Josh Rothery are this week's guests on the Final Score podcast.

Suarez and Rothery chat with host Greg Swatek and winning the championship, which was Urbana's first in boys cross country since 2003 and fourth overall. What made the Hawks such a tight pack of runners? How did they react to winning the championship?

Rothery, who finished sixth overall in 16:47.51, talks about growing up in England and how he got into running. And Suarez talks about the future of the team and looks ahead to the indoor track and field season at Urbana.

Prior to that conversation, FNP sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg to recap the state quarterfinal in high school football and look ahead to Linganore and Oakdale playing in the Class 3A state semifinals this week.

State Champion Lingnanore Girls Flag Football

After Linganore became Frederick County's first state champion in girls flag football, coach Brian Sweene, senior quarterback Lexi Petrie and sophomore receiver/defensive back Makenna Roberts are this week's guests on The Final Score podcast.

The trio chats with host Greg Swatek about the Lancers 26-6 victory over Calvert in the state final at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. What was it like for them to play on that type of stage? What was the significance to them of being the first state champs in county history for girls flag football?

Petrie and Roberts also talk about why they decided to play girls flag football, and Sweene explains why he decided to coach it. How far has the team and the sport come in the three years it has been played on the high-school level in Frederick County? What does the future look like for the team and the players?

Prior to that conversation, FNP sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg to discuss soccer state finals for the Brunswick boys and the Oakdale girls, a state volleyball final for Urbana and Middletown's shocking forfeit out of the high school football playoffs. They also look ahead to this week's state football quarterfinals for Linganore, Oakdale, Urbana and Walkersville.

Ben Arneson, Linganore, National Wrestling Hall of Famer

After being inducted into the Maryland Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum last weekend in Annapolis, Linganore High graduate Ben Arneson, a former state-championship coach for the Lancers and Urbana High School, is this week's guest on The Final Score podcast.

Arneson chats with host Greg Swatek about the induction ceremony and what it meant to him to be selected for the Hall of Fame. They talk about how and why he wanted to become a wrestling coach and how awkward it was for him initially to be coaching at the chief rival of his alma mater, Urbana.

They talk about his fondest memories and what his future plans are not that he has stepped away entirely from coaching wrestling. They also discuss the Linganore football team and its prospects of winning another state title this season, as Arneson is an assistant coach for the Lancers.

Prior to that conversation, FNP sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg to recap a momentous weekend for Frederick County teams in the state playoffs. 

They discuss state championships for Linganore field hockey — which ended a 32-year drought for county teams — Linganore girls flag football, a first for the county, and the Urbana High boys cross country team — which won one for the first time in 22 years. They also look ahead to state soccer finals for the Brunswick boys and Oakdale girls, a state volleyball final for Urbana and preview the second round of the high school football playoffs for six county teams.

Antoine White, Mount St. Mary's Women's Basketball Coach

With the season underway and armed with a contract extension, Mount St. Mary's women's basketball coach Antoine White is this week's guest on The Final Score podcast.

White chats with host Greg Swatek about his contract extension, which was just announced by the school this week and keeps him as the coach through the 2030-31 season. He talks about coming to the Mount as a coaching intern from the College of Southern Vermont, where he played for former Mount men's coach Dan Engelstad.

Coach White moved quickly up the ranks to the top assistant coach and then became head coach prior to the 2021-22 season. He promptly led the Mount women to a Northeast Conference championship and an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

What were his first impressions of the place? Why was now the right time to extend his contract?

The Mountaineers opened their season Tuesday night with a 83-49 loss to Richmond, which is ranked No. 24 in the country. What were his impressions of that game? What are the keys for the Mount women this season as they try to win their first Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference championship?

Prior to that conversation, FNP sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg to discuss the fall sports playoffs for Frederick County teams, which include state semifinals for field hockey, soccer and girls flag football, state cross championships this weekend at Hereford High School in Parkton and the first round of the regional football playoffs.

Chad Dickman, Hood College Men's Basketball Coach

With the season-opening tournament a week away and a big exhibition game this week, Hood College men's basketball coach Chad Dickman is this week's guest on The Final Score podcast.

Dickman chats with host Greg Swatek about the Blazers hosting an exhibition game this week against Mount St. Mary's. It's incredibly rare for a Division III team to host a Division I team in men's basketball. And Mount St. Mary's hasn't played a basketball game in Frederick since 1936.

So how did the game come about? And how thrilled is Dickman to be hosting the game?

He also talks about the upcoming season at Hood. The Blazers were picked in the preseason coaches poll to finish second in the Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth behind Alvernia. What are the keys to success for them? Who are the players to watch? And how many 3-pointers does Dickman want them to attempt per game?

Prior to that conversation, FNP sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg to look at the high school regional playoffs for fall sports in Frederick County and preview the final week of the high school football regular season.

Donny Lind, Mount St. Mary's Men's Basketball Coach

As the start of another season approaches, Mount St. Mary's men's basketball coach Donny Lind is this week's guest on The Final Score podcast.

The Mount opens the season Nov. 4 at West Virginia. Prior to that, the Mountaineers play an exhibition game at Hood College, which marks both the rare visit of a Division I team to a Division III school and Mount St. Mary's first game in Frederick in its 117-year history of playing basketball.

Lind chats with host Greg Swatek about how the Hood game came about and why they chose to play it in Frederick. He also talks about the Mount players being financially compensated for the first time through revenue sharing and how Name, Image and Likeness initiatives have impacted the program.

And Lind discusses how reaching the NCAA Tournament and winning a game in the tournament last March boosted the program and its fortunes heading into this season.  

Who will be the players to watch this season? And what are the coach's expectations?

Prior to that discussion, News-Post sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg to preview the upcoming fall sports playoffs in Frederick County, review Week 7 of the high school football season and look ahead to Week 8.

Joe Benton, Oakdale High Boys Soccer Coach

As his teams gears up for the upcoming playoffs, Oakdale High boys soccer coach Joe Benton is this week's guest on The Final Score podcast.

Benton chats with host Greg Swatek about how he got his start coaching soccer. The coach talks about why he is so passionate about the sport and how he wound up at Oakdale after playing at Hood College and serving as an assistant in the Tuscarora High boys soccer program.

He also talks about his team at Oakdale this season, it's strengths and how it expects it to fare in the Class 3A West bracket once the regional playoffs get underway.

Prior to that conversation, FNP sports reporter Alexander Dacy joins Greg to review Week 6 of the Frederick County high school football season, preview Week 7 and set the stage for next week's Central Maryland Conference championship games in multiple sports.