Because Noah Firestone, a native of Annville, attended high school outside of Lebanon County – at Mount Calvary Christian Academy, specifically – in many ways he flew under local golf’s radar. So, the 70th annual W.B. Sullivan Better-ball-of-Partners tournament could be considered Firestone’s coming out party.

On Sunday at the Lebanon Country Club’s 6,562-yard, par-72 layout, Firestone and teammate Brady Goodling earned a runner-up finish at central Pennsylvania’s most prestigious team event. With darkness descending on LCC, Firestone and Goodling were edged by Chad Stine and Drew Patterson on the 23rd hole of the championship flight’s final match.

And it was that close to being a title for Firestone and Goodling. It was Stine’s two-foot birdie putt on the fifth extra hole that gave his side the crown.

But Firestone played steadily throughout the three-day tournament.

Earlier in the championship match, Firestone had given his team the lead with a two-foot birdie at the par-four 13th hole. A day earlier, Firestone had drained a dramatic 35-foot birdie putt on LCC’s par-four 18th hole to send he and Goodling to a one-up victory over Alex Church and Jeff Castle and into the tournament’s semifinal round.

Firestone has committed to take his considerable golf talents to Monmouth College in New York, where he will be a freshman this fall.

– Jeff Falk