Highlighting MCPS College Athletic Commits and an Incredible Spring Season from One Athletic Department

MOCO ATHLETES SPOTLIGHT

Every year throughout the country, May 1 is National College Decision day. This year, almost 250 Montgomery County high school seniors are committed to compete in collegiate athletics. Click this link or scroll down to learn more about the athletes committed to the top programs, and stay tuned over the coming weeks for more coverage on where MoCo senior athletes are heading!

Based off data collected from Montgomery County high schools’ senior decisions pages and reports from various athletic directors throughout the county, as of May 3, 2026, 240 MCPS seniors are committed to compete on a collegiate athletic team. These schools range from high-level national powerhouses to local two-year schools, but a college athletic commitment, regardless of what level, can symbolize a lifetime of hard work and dedication to a specific sport. Over the next several weeks, we will highlight dozens of commits to various sports from throughout Montgomery County, but this week, we’ll highlight five athletes going to prominent NCAA division one programs.

Baba Oladotun: Committed to the University of Maryland for Basketball

The 6’10 small forward out of Blake will be heading a county over to play for the Terrapins after graduation. Oladotun missed the majority of his senior season at Blake due to an ankle sprain, but came back for the end of the playoffs. The third-seeded Bengals took down Meade 66-64 in an overtime game in the state semifinals to advance to UMBC where they beat MoCo rival Whitman 60-44. In the championship game, Oladotun played just over 16 minutes, contributing 11 points and five boards. The five-star recruit, rated the highest in the state and eleventh highest nationally, received 53 total offers and chose College Park over schools like Michigan, Georgetown, and Kentucky.

Virginia Hinds: Committed to the University of Georgia for Swimming

Hinds is heading to Athens to join the Bulldogs swim team after competing for the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Barons in the 4A/3A swim class. The Barons’ girls team finished third at the state championship in College Park in February, and there, Hinds took home three state gold medals. She won the 100 free swim by over two seconds, the 100 back swim by three and a half, and helped the Barons win the 200 free relay. She also took bronze in the 200 medley relay. The UGA women’s swim team finished the season ranked No. 9 in the country, and the program as a whole has won seven national championships, 41 Olympic medals, and 178 NCAA individual titles.

Zoe Cusack: Committed to the University of Virginia for Golf

Cusack is heading to the ACC to join the Cavaliers after graduating from Churchill. The senior is currently ranked No. 13 in the country by the American Junior Golf Association, AJGA. Her most recent tournament, per AJGA, was in mid-March at the Junior Invitational at Sage Valley. Cusack also competed in the Rolex Tournament of Champions last November where she finished tied for sixth after not shooting between 70 and 74 in each of the four days. The Cavaliers are currently Ranked No. 35 in the NCAA and have had several notable athletes including two-time All American Ben James and PGA Tour invitees Denny McCarthy, Ben Kohles, and more.

Jake Forburger: Committed to the University at Buffalo for Football

Forburger will be heading to upstate New York as the newest quarterback for the University at Buffalo Bulls. The two-time varsity captain led the Walter Johnson Wildcats to a combined 9-12 record over his junior and sophomore seasons, including a 40-13 home playoff win in his junior season against Laurel in the regional quarterfinals. The Buffalo program most notably produced veteran NFL linebacker Khalil Mack who was selected fifth overall in the 2014 draft by the then Oakland Raiders. Forburger will join a QB room of four following the graduation of sixth-year starter Ta’Quan Roberson who led Buffalo to a 5-7 record in 2025

Jefferson Serkfem: Committed to the University of Richmond for Football

Serkfem, a 6’2 defensive end and tight end, will head south to Richmond to play for the Spiders in the Patriot League. The Sherwood football team finished 11-2 and as the 4A/3A runners up last fall and Serkfem was a key component of the Warrior defense that averaged just 7.5 points per game against. The Spiders won the 2008 FCS national championship over Montana and won back-to-back CAA conference championships in 2023 and 2024 before moving to the Patriot League.

SCHOOL SPOTLIGHT

With the regular season coming to a close, one Montgomery County school holds the top spot in Baseball, Softball, Boys’ Lacrosse, and Girls’ Lacrosse. Click this link or scroll down to read more about how the Sherwood Warriors athletic department sits in first place in four different sports this spring!

In the fall of 2025, Sherwood High had several top-tier teams. The varsity field hockey team went 8-3 while the JV squad finished undefeated. The varsity football team finished as the 3A/4A state runners-up, the flag football team went 7-4 in the regular season, while the girls’ soccer team ended their campaign with an 11-3 record and the boys’ team made the state semifinals.

In the following winter season, the wrestling team produced the school’s most success, as after an undefeated regular season, senior Connor Flickinger finished third in the 157-pound weight class at the 3A/4A level in the state, while Landon Clore and AJ Lopez finished in the top six of their weight classes. Sophomore Dimitrios Rementelas took the gold medal in the 3A 1600-meter state championship, along with the silver spot in the 800. The girls’ basketball team also produced a 15-7 regular season record, which is strong despite their early playoff exit.

Now with the spring regular season almost complete, the Warriors’ athletic department has reached new levels of dominance. As of May 3, 2026, Sherwood’s baseball, softball, boys’ lacrosse, and girls’ lacrosse programs all hold the top spot in Montgomery County. Additionally, the Sherwood coed volleyball team has a 10-1 record, good enough for third place in MoCo.

Sherwood’s baseball team, led by head coach Sean Davis, has won four state championships in their last five seasons, split between three in the 4A class and another 3A title. After dropping their season opener on the road against Century, the team went on to win 16 of their next 17, a stretch that saw an average of over 12 runs per game with two 30+ run performances. The team is led by seven college commits, including Carter Sweeney-Strawberry to Rutgers, Sam Rosenwald to Central Connecticut State, and Jacob Bender to Gettysburg College. The Warriors will end their regular season with a rematch against Damascus where they’ll seek revenge from an early season loss.

The softball squad has one game left in their regular season, a Monday evening match against 14-3 Quince Orchard, and a win in that contest will cement their second consecutive regular season. After finishing the 2025 campaign with their only loss of the season coming in the state championship against Chopticon, Ashley Barber-Strunk’s team’s season was highlighted by a 5-0 stretch in mid-April that saw the Warriors win by a combined 67-0. The 16-0 team has had great success especially at the top of their lineup from first-team All Met selectee Reagan Corb, highlighted by a 2/4 day at the plate and an eight-inning outing on the mound in Sherwood’s extra-inning win over Walter Johnson.

Coach Kelly Hughes and the girls’ lacrosse team has already locked down a perfect 12-0 regular season. Coming off a season that saw a state semifinals birth, junior UNC Charlotte commit Courtney Payne has played a huge part in the Warriors’ undefeated campaign. Going into the playoffs, Payne sits at 298 career draw controls per Coach Hughes. Offensively, junior Winthrop commit Ashlyn Hambrecht sits at 95 career goals, 42 of which have come this spring. St. Joseph’s commit Melanie Payne currently leads the team in total points with 36 goals and 20 assists, while three other athletes have already crossed the 30-point threshold this season alone. Chloe LaRoche guards the goal for Sherwood and averages just three goals allowed in the team’s 12 games this season. With five D1 commits, all in the class of 2027, Sherwood girls’ lacrosse is a dynasty that doesn’t look to be dying down soon

Finally, the Warrior boys’ lacrosse team has been as dominant as ever, currently slated to finish atop the county for the fourth consecutive season (dating back to the Spring of 2023). Matt Schneider’s team has been led by senior captains Eddie Barnes, Tommy Hanrahan, Stephen Northern, and junior Chase Althouse. Hanrahan, a defender, leads the team with 63 ground balls while causing 38 turnovers on the opponent’s top scorers throughout the season. Northern, who mans the net for Sherwood, leads MCPS goalies with a save percentage of 65%. The Warriors have also been strong on faceoffs, as Althouse holds an 83% win rate, helping the team to one of the county’s best offenses. Cooper Serwe leads with 65 points on 47 goals and 18 assists, followed by Daniel Welsh with 49 and Vaughn Teeter with 43. Entering the playoffs after a one-goal loss to Marriotts Ridge in the state quarterfinals, the Warriors will seek revenge on the state as they look to make it back to the state title game for the first time since 2023.

SOFTBALL 🥎

Eleven regular season games for Montgomery County teams remain will all 11 set to be played on Monday, May 4. The marquee match of the day is certainly between the undefeated Sherwood Warriors and the 14-3 Quince Orchard Cougars where QO will look to snap Sherwood’s 16-game win streak at the last second of the regular season. Stay tuned to County Sports Zone this Tuesday for MPSSAA softball bracket releases here!

GIRLS LACROSSE 🥍

The regular season ended on Friday with Sherwood holding the top spot after an incredible 14-13 win over Wootton on Wednesday. They finished 12-0 followed by Walter Johnson at 10-2 and Quince Orchard at 10-3. Stay tuned to CSZ for lacrosse playoff matches and seedings which will come out later this afternoon here! Scroll down to see the final regular season standings for MCPS

BASEBALL ⚾

Ten games remain in the regular season, the best of which will certainly be the 16-2 Sherwood squad traveling to face the 16-3 Damascus Hornets for their second meeting of the year. The winner of this game will be crowned with the best regular season record in the county! Today will also have a great game between 12-5 Northwest and 11-6 Blair to wrap up the regular season. Stay tuned to County Sports Zone this Tuesday for MPSSAA baseball bracket releases here!

BOYS LACROSSE 🥍

The MCPS Boys Lacrosse regular season ended with a Walter Johnson win over Damascus on Saturday, meaning Sherwood has finished as the regular season champion at 13-1, followed by Clarksburg at 11-1 and Rockville at 10-2. Stay tuned to CSZ for lacrosse playoff matches and seedings which will come out later this afternoon here! Scroll down to see the final regular season standings for MCPS

TRACK AND FIELD 🏃‍♀️

The MCPS Track and Field county championships are scheduled to take place this Wednesday at Seneca Valley High School. Stay tuned next week for a full recap on how Montgomery County athletes performed!

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