Brown to make return trip to state
Hayesville – For the second year in a row, Robbinsville’s No. 1 golfer will be lugging his clubs to the state tournament.
Isaiah Brown turned in a round of 78 at Monday’s N.C. High School Athletic Association 1A Western Regional Tournament, qualifying individually on behalf of the Black Knights for the second consecutive season.
Brown now has just a few days to shore up his game before traveling 6 ½ hours to participate in the two-day 1A championship match, which will be held Monday and Tuesday at 7 Lakes Golf Club in West End.
Monday’s state qualifier was held at a course very familiar to Robbinsville: Mountain Harbour Golf Course in Hayesville. Linksmen representing 20 1A West schools dodged pop-up showers across the deceptively-challenging course, which brought either the best or worst out of a player.
Brown’s score was two strokes better than his regional effort in 2023, when the tournament was at Lincoln Country Club. He went on to shoot a pair of 85’s at Pinehurst No. 6 in his state debut (good for 28th in the field).
Robbinsville finished second as a unit at the conference tournament this year, which gave the Black Knights their first team berth to the regional competition since 2000 – the last time Robbinsville won the divisional golf championship.
Things did not go as planned Monday, however: Brown’s 6-over was the only score under 90 for the rest of the Knights. Trey Lambert posted a 95, while Cody Crisp turned in a 98. Isiac Collins had a 99, while Nathanael Shope shot a 101 to bring Robbinsville’s team score to 370.
Of the 20 schools represented, 10 posted team scores – Robbinsville finished ninth, well ahead of Highlands (531) but 16 strokes behind Murphy (354). Avery County shot a 350, while Polk County finished with 339 and Christ the King completed a day of 327.
Teams that qualified were regional champs Mitchell (which tout individual state champion Connor Warren, who shot a 68 on Monday), as the Mountaineers recorded a 301; Mountain Island Charter, 319; and Cherryville, 320.