Scorpions sting skepticism: Rebuild on hold
Despite losing key pieces, No. 1 Oakland Mills is a force
Oakland Mills indoor track and field coach Chris Brewington was met with a common question before the season: What are you going to do after losing so much talent?
The Scorpions graduated several integral pieces of last year’s Class 2A state championship team, including Judson Lincoln IV, the 2022 Baltimore Sun All-Metro Athlete of the Year, Kanye Holland and Aki Harvey, all of whom won gold at the state meet.
However, Brewington couldn’t help but meet that preseason skepticism with a laugh, confident in both last year’s returners and the infusion of new talent. Shane King, Trevin McHargh and Ethan Aidam headline the veterans, while fellow seniors Xavier Doctor and KeMarco Monger have stepped into more prominent roles. Newcomers such as senior Abdur Hassan, a former wrestler, and sophomore Isaac Ramsey have provided even greater depth.
That blend has yielded great results. No. 1 Oakland Mills dominated the Howard County and 2A West Region championships, winning by margins of 69 and 76 points, respectively. All of that talent has made practice competitive, fueling the Scorpions to help each other get better.
Oakland Mills is a favorite to defend its Class 2A state championship Tuesday at Prince George’s Sports & Learning Complex.
“This started years ago before we were even winning,” Brewington said. “It was just about, ‘I’m going to push the guy next to me and I’m going to use the guy next to me to get better.’ Judson’s junior year, you knew he had something special, but then all of a sudden, he started getting a lot better and everyone around him started getting a lot better. Shane and Trevin, they’re getting better and they’re getting faster. Here comes KeMarco and Xavier, guys who were unknown, they’re getting faster and better.”
The preseason skepticism gave many Scorpions, particularly veterans such as McHargh and King, a chip on their shoulders. As a junior, McHargh placed third in the 55-meter dash at states and was a member of the winning 4x200 relay team. McHargh is now a county and region champion in the 55, setting a personal best time of 6.39 seconds at counties. Now with the top qualifying time for states, McHargh has his sights set on winning his first state gold medal.
“We’ve gotten relay wins, but nothing will be like an individual first-place medal,” said
McHargh, who also is on the county and regional champion 4x200 team with King, Hassan and Doctor. “Just the urge to get that has made us hungrier since it’s our senior year now, our chance to do it. It’s our chance to prove ourselves and show everyone that had those doubts thinking that we would fall off, showing them that we’re still going to be amazing no matter what.”
King also competed in last year’s 4x200 but took home third place in the 300, finishing behind teammates Lincoln and Holland. He’s now the presumptive favorite entering states, having run a personal-best 34.91 seconds at regionals. His goal is to break Lincoln’s school record of 33.98 seconds.
“What I’m really looking forward to is getting my name up on the board,” King said. “Every time I’m in the gym I see names of people that I know and other people that have been champions at our school. I would love to be on that board. That’s an individual
goal, but as a team, our goal is continuing our streak of being a dominant well-rounded track and field team. That’s something that I really take a lot of pride in, being part of a track team that could be considered one of the best ever in Maryland.”
Aidam has experienced the joy of winning a state gold medal. He won the 3,200 last year and took second in the 1,600. However, for relative newcomers such as Doctor, Hassan and Monger, the state meet presents an opportunity to display their talent on a larger stage. At regionals, Doctor placed second in both the 300 and 500, while Monger finished third in the 500 and fifth in the 300.
Meanwhile, Hassan has displayed his versatility throughout the season, having won a county and region title in the high jump. Hassan began practicing hurdles about a month ago, after a recommendation from Brewington, and placed third in
the 55-meter hurdles at counties and won the event at regionals.
The Scorpions are maintaining the same motivation ahead of Tuesday’s state meet that’s fueled them so far.
“We’re super excited,” Brewington said. “This is what we’ve worked for since November to get to this point, to be ready to go and hitting on all cylinders. These guys have done a good job of keeping themselves motivated. They’re trying to check every box and going into states. They’ve got more boxes they want to check. Just winning a state championship isn’t enough for them, they want to outscore the team from last year, run faster than the guys from last year.
“That’s been the theme the last couple of years. Last year, it was Judson chasing the ghost of Kyle Farmer. This year they’re chasing Judson. These guys do such a good job of staying focused and locking in, they know when it’s time to lock in.”