Basketball: Park View Sweeps Briar Woods in Boys, Girls Doubleheader; The Skinny on Tonight's Match-ups

By Alanna Dvorak
VivaLoudoun College Intern

Sterling (Dec. 20, 2010) – Park View High School bolstered its position in the Dulles District boys basketball race with an 84-78 win over Briar Woods High School Monday.

The Patriots, now 3-1 in district play (6-1 overall), sit alone in second place in the standings, behind a dominant undefeated Potomac Falls squad. Park View’s hold on second will be tested when the Patriots travel to Broad Run Wednesday evening to face a Spartans team that fell for the first time this season, to Potomac Falls on Monday.

Meanwhile, the Falcons drop to fifth place with a 3-2 district record (3-5 overall).
Scoring Monday at Park View was largely a battle between the guards, with Briar Woods junior Myles Tate scoring a game high 32 points. Fellow Briar Woods guards, senior Andre Evans and junior Yves Kouame, both notched 16 points each.

The Patriots were led by junior guard Dante Absher, who had a team high 23 points, 15 of them coming from beyond the arc. Junior Ryan McCarter scored 22 points, and the Patriots were helped in the paint by sophomore Cory Horvath, with 20 points.

Patriots Michael Koscinski noted that the team’s depth, including big men, helped get a win. “This was a measuring stick. It shows we can compete at the top of the district,” said Koscinski. “It was a good team win.”

Despite Park View leading by as many as 17 points at times, Briar Woods was able to mount a furious fourth quarter comeback, taking the lead with 1:28 left. However, an Absher 3-pointer and subsequent Patriot trips to the line allowed Park View to quickly regain the lead.

The boys’ game was the second game in a doubleheader with the host Patriots also defeateing Briar Woods in an even closer contest.

Leading the majority of the game, the Park View lost the lead to Briar Woods with four minutes left. The score went back and forth in the final minutes of the game, with Park View ultimately winning on foul shots, 48-46.

The Falcons have now dropped three in a row to bring their district record to 1-4 (3-6 overall). Park View, led by first-year head coach Lorraine Kitchen, improves to 3-1 in the district (3-3) overall.

“We have a young team,” said Kitchen. “But we have a great staff that prepares them to play.”
Briar Woods senior Brittany Gilbert and Park View senior Christina Sheppard both had game-high 18 points.

The Briar Woods squads face Freedom High School this Wednesday.

Alanna Dvorak is a Potomac Falls High School graduate and is currently studying journalism at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Alanna will be interning with VivaLoudoun over the holidays!

Tonight's Basketball Schedule with The Skinny by Dan Sousa
Boys Basketball
Freedom at Briar Woods, 7:30 p.m.
The Skinny: Both teams badly need this win going into the break
Park View at Broad Run, 7:30 p.m.
The Skinny: Battle for second place in Dulles District
Dominion at Tuscarora, 7:30 p.m.
The Skinny: Huskies looking to pull off upset at home
Loudoun County at Potomac Falls, 7:30 p.m.
The Skinny: Raiders quietly off the radar are 2-1 in district and tied with Broad Run -- an upset tonight in the Panther Pit could throw the district race into pandemonium 

Girls Basketball
Briar Woods at Freedom, 7:30 p.m.
The Skinny: Dionna Scott making her bid for district Player of the Year
Broad Run at Park View, 7:30 p.m.
The Skinny: Spartans need to bounce back after tough loss Monday
Tuscarora at Dominion, 7:30 p.m.
The Skinny: Titans looking to add to best start in years
Potomac Falls at Loudoun County, 7:30 p.m.
The Skinny: This match-up shaped up into a real rivalry last year