Oaks Christian boys golf capped season of unprecedented success at CIF State championships

Oaks Christian boys golf coach John Geiberger doesn’t like to change anything about his team when it gets to the postseason.

The preparation of the regular season remained the same and so did the success. The Lions achieved their best finish in program history when they placed third at the CIF State championships at San Gabriel Country Club on Thursday, May 30.

“I try to keep them real present,” Geiberger said. “Just because we shot a school record the other day, it doesn’t mean we’re going to shoot another one next week. Let’s just focus on the process. Those are the coaching lessons at this level — and it’s the same thing the pros are working on.”

Oaks Christian finished 12-over par to claim third place as the only team from the CIF Southern Section in the tournament. The Lions’ Max Emberson shot 5-under 66 to secure the individual title.

Emberson, a sophomore, was the Lions’ No. 1 golfer this season and also secured medalist honors at the CIF-SS finals. His saying this season was “Let’s go golfing,” a testament to how he was able to keep the game simple and fun.

“He starts at the starting line every day, which is a great mindset for anybody,” Geiberger said. “He’s shorter, unassuming. I call him our silent weapon. He’s not a fluke with the scores he’s been shooting the last couple years and he’s got the mind to go with it, which is a deadly combination.”

Emberson, Jared Abercrombie, Nick Benton, Broxton Brock, Graham Christopher and Morgan McDonough represented Oaks Christian at the state championships.

Abercrombie and Benton, both four-year players, were the core of the group and a driving force in getting the Lions back to the state level. Abercrombie challenged Emberson through Marmonte League play, reaching 17-under compared to Emberson’s 15-under.

“We’ve had a good run the last six years and winning and success can be contagious,” Geiberger said. “The guys were so driven last year to get to Poppy Hills and I think once they got there, it was like, man, that was a great accomplishment. The guys that were returning were like, let’s try to do that again.”