Football: Wiley Rushes for 266 Yards to Lead Vikes Past Pride on Senior Night

Kevin Wiley rushed for 3 TDs and 266 yards to lead Vikes to Victory
(All photos courtesy of Carl Lukat/Loudoun Times-Mirror)

By Carl Lukat
Loudoun Times-Mirror Sports Editor

Purcellville (Oct. 29, 201) - It was only fitting that a senior would steal the show in Loudoun Valley's 49-21 home victory over Heritage Oct. 29, considering the Vikings honored their senior class prior to the game.

Valley senior Kevin Wiley broke loose for a 33-yard touchdown run just over a minute into Friday's game. And that was just the start of things to come. Wiley totaled 266 rushing yards and three touchdowns on the night, averaging nearly 10 yards per carry.

"We came into the game fired up," said Wiley, also a standout linebacker. "We knew if we executed, we could win. Our O-line has been stepping their game up. We told them we are going to go right behind you and just keep pushing and pushing."

The Vikings (2-1 in the Cedar Run District, 7-2 overall) are in the midst of their best season since 2005 when they won the AAA National District and earned a playoff berth. Third-year Valley coach Danny McGrath credits the senior class with returning the program to prominence.

"This is a special class," McGrath said. "These guys had visions of getting this program to be competitive, getting this program back into the playoffs. And we are continuing to do that."

Wiley has seen the Vikings steadily improve since posting consecutive 2-8 records in 2007 and 2008. Valley was 6-4 in 2009.

"It's been great," Wiley said of the turnaround. "Coming out my sophomore year, we weren't good at all. We just weren't as a team, we were just individuals playing. Last year, we started bringing it together and then this year, we are playing as a team."

Heritage (0-3, 1-8) fought back valiantly after falling behind 21-0 in the first quarter. The Pride closed the gap to 28-21 in the third quarter before the Vikings scored the game's final 21 points.

Heritage junior QB Austin Nelson racked up 342 yards to easily surpass the 2,000-yard plateau with 2,334 passing yards on the season. Nelson connected twice with Chuck Carlin for touchdowns and found Drew Burkhard for another score.

Senior Kyle Flinton hauled in seven receptions to set the Pride's single-season record with 43 receptions for 523 yards.

Loudoun Valley senior QB Andrew Taylor passed for a touchdown and ran for another score in the win. Senior David Mellstrom caught six balls for 75 yards and a touchdown.

Junior Donald Devine also had a big night, churning out 136 rushing yards and scoring twice. Devine and Wiley combined for 402 rushing yards and five touchdowns.

The Vikings appear to be safely in the six-team Northwest Region, Division 5 playoff mix with one game remaining. Valley closes out the regular season at Battlefield on Nov. 6.

"It looks like we are headed for an 11th game," McGrath said. "Now, it's about how much better can we become before that 11th game. Everything from here on out is part of that process."

Read more of Carl "coolhand" Lukat online at www.loudountimes.com.

Loudoun Valley Vikings 49, Heritage Pride 21
Heritage Pride                  0 14 7  0 -- 21
Loudoun Valley Vikings 21   7 7 14 -- 49
Scoring
Loudoun Valley 1 10:56 Wiley, Kevin 33 yd run ( Kiani, Cameron kick) 0-7
Loudoun Valley 1 7:48  Devine, Donald 5 yd run 0-13
Loudoun Valley 1 1:38  Taylor, Andrew 29 yd pass to Mellstrom, David (Taylor, Andrew pass to  Mellstrom, David 0-21
Heritage 2 2:41  Nelson, Austin 11 yd pass to Drew, Burkhard (Habibovic, Amel kick) 7-21
Loudoun Valley 2 2:23  Wiley, Kevin 6 yd run ( Kiani, Cameron kick) 7-28
Heritage 2 0:30 Nelson, Austin 1 yd pass to Carlin, Chuck (Habibovic, Amel kick) 14-28
Heritage 3 6:23 Nelson, Austin 25 yd pass toCarlin, Chuck (Habibovic, Amel kick) 21-28
Loudoun Valley 3 2:33  Taylor, Andrew 9 yd run (Kiani, Cameron kick) 21-35
Loudoun Valley 4 7:46  Wiley, Kevin 38 yd run (Kiani, Cameron kick) 21-42
Loudoun Valley 4 3:19 Devine, Donald 6 yd run (Kiani, Cameron kick) 21-49

Team stats              Heritage * Loudoun Valley
First downs 19 * 26
Rushing yardage -4 *  412
Pass completions - attempts 26-51 *  7-11
Passing yardage 342 *  81
Pass touchdowns - interceptions 3-2 *  1-1
Total plays 64 * 66
Total offense 338 * 493
Fumbles - lost 2-2 * 1-0
Penalties - yards 2-10 * 4-35
Defensive sacks - yards lost 1-5 *  4-27
Time of possession 19:49 *  28:11
3rd down efficiency 4 for 11* 3 for 7
4th down efficiency 2 for 3* 1 for 2
Punts - average 3-36.7 *  2-38.0

Heritage
Rushing
#4 Nelson, Austin 9-4
#3 Summers, Aaron 3-2
#14 Faley, Tyler 1-(-10)
Total: 13-(-4)

Loudoun Valley
Rushing
#45 Wiley, Kevin 28-266
#32 Devine, Donald 21-136
#11 Taylor, Andrew 2-4
#43 Chiles, Connor 1-3
#29 Cassada, Josh 3-3
Total: 55-412

Passing
#4 Nelson, Austin 26-51-2 342

Passing
#11 Taylor, Andrew 7-11-1 81

Receiving
#2 Carlin, Chuck 8-76
#6 Flinton, Kyle 7-80
#5 Drew, Burkhard 5-91
#7 Finney, Marcus 3-65
#3 Summers, Aaron 3-30
Total: 26-342

Receiving
#2 Mellstrom, David 6-75
#47 Druhan, Joey 1-6
Total: 7-81