Ashburn (Dec. 31, 201010) - Host Stone Bridge High School, capturing seven of 14 title matches, won the first annual VivaLoudoun Holiday Wrestling Tournament Thursday.
The Bulldogs scored 245 points in the five-team tournament that featured all three Ashburn high schools with Broad Run second at 202. Kettle Run was third at 176 followed by Herndon (102) and Briar Woods (69).
Local fans were treated to a lot of Ashburn match-ups in the finals with the first six matches all features Briar Woods, Broad Run and Stone Bridge wrestlers.
Briar Woods 112-pounder Michael Hulcher was named the tournament's MVP after an exciting 3-2 win over Broad Run's Angel Rios in the finals. Stone Bridge's Sam Smith earned the Fastest Pin award.
The Bulldogs captured titles at 125 (Jon Sommer), 135 (Ben Oslund), 140 (Cam Bowen), 145 (Pat Taylor), 152 (Jonathan Faul), 160 (Brendan Scully), and 215 (Aaron Palmer).
Broad Run won titles at 103 (Akhil Gowda), 119 (Nelson Schmidl), 130 (Neil Hartman) and 171 (Diego Loya).
Check back later for photos from the event and more details on the finals.
Middleburg Academy's Nik Brown after Thursday's Win vs. Briar Woods
Please check back for a highlight package of 15 video clips from this game
By Dan Sousa VivaLoudoun Editor
Ashburn (Dec. 30, 2010) - In a rare Loudoun match-up of private vs. public Thursday night, Briar Woods High School nearly shocked talent-rich and leg-tired Middleburg Academy, with the Falcons missing two attempts to win it in the final seconds of a 58-56 loss in the finals of the Briar Woods Winter Classic.
"We have a target on our back, we are the Evil Empire, everybody wants to beat us," said Middleburg first-year coach Gary Hall, who is rebuilding the Middleburg program, formerly a region and national power when known as Notre Dame Academy, with players drawn from Loudoun and surrounding areas including a pair of transfer starters from Stone Bridge in Nik Brown and Jimmy Paige.
Historically public schools in Loudoun do not schedule Middleburg Academy, but the veteran Hall worked as an assistant in the Briar Woods girls and boys programs after leaving a long-tenure at Herndon.
"I know all these guys and love them to death but I certainly don't love them enough to lose to them," said Hall after his team -- playing its sixth game in just four days and fifth game in 55 hours -- fought back from a 45-38 fourth quarter deficit.
Briar Woods (5-6) coach Mike Benson said after the contest that his team played about as well as they could as they executed a nearly flawless gameplan, showing patience on offense and draining eight 3-pointers when left open and applying a scrappy defense to keep the taller Dragons at bay.
Junior Myles Tate led the Falcons with 17 and junior Corey Faciane and senior Curtis Calder each scored 15 for Briar Woods.
"We have to learn to close out," said a soft-spoken Tate after the contest.
Middleburg Academy (11-2) committed to the Briar Woods tournament and then agreed to step in for a team in a tournament in Fairfax this week and to take a slot in a one-day showcase tournament.
Hall admitted it would be the first and last time that his team would get overbooked -- the Dragons even pulled their starters in the second half of their win over Handley at the Briar Woods tournament Wednesday and had them leave for the other tournament while the contest was still going on -- as he called it "insane and too much."
Middleburg ended up losing to Osbourn, 60-57, in the finals of the other tournament Wednesday.
"Nobody knows about us. We want to play as many games as we can," said Hall.
Brown, who started out at Paul VI before two strong seasons at Stone Bridge, is certainly known locally and he earned the tournament MVP Thursday with a 24-point performance, including a transition basket that broke a 52-52 tie with 2:45 left and then two free throws to win the game with 54 seconds remaining after Tate had dropped a sick fallaway 3-pointer on the baseline to tie the game with a minute to go.
Tate and teammate Calder were named to the all-tournament team along with Adam Knickely of Kettle Run, Robbie Lawler of Handley and Mo Ali of Middleburg, a 6-foot-6 former South County High School player, who had 13 in the finals.
Handley defeated Kettle Run, 63-42, in the consolation game.
Middleburg's long week started with a 77-58 win over Robinson Monday followed by beating Washington Public Latin, 75-31, in the Hoop Magic Holiday Tournament and then beating previously unbeaten Hylton, 82-53, in the Glory Days Grill Tournament.
In Thursday's win, Middleburg's biggest baskets came from 6-foot-2 sophomore Drew Henry and 6-foot-2 freshman Greg Malinowski. Henry had six of his nine points in the final quarter including a key tip-in and a big 3-pointer and Malinowski's only two field goals of the contest were 3-pointers in the fourth quarter when the Dragons needed it most, bookends around a 11-2 run that put Middleburg back in the lead, 49-47 with five minutes to go.
"I found out we have a little resolve," said Hall, who was full of praise also for the Falcons and their chances in the Dulles District in the new year. ""We are the best team on their schedule. If they can beat us, they can beat anybody on their schedule."
Calder and Faciane combined for five 3-pointers in the first half as the sharp-shooting Falcons kept pace with Middleburg. While the rest of their teammates struggled, Brown and Ali kept the Dragons in the contest, combining for 21 of Middleburg's 27 points in the first half.
The Falcons looked to tie the game after Brown's free throws but after the offense went stagnant, Benson called time out just prior to a Briar Woods shot that went in but was waived off. Out of the time out, Briar Woods had a 3-pointer by Tate that just missed and then another trey blocked just before the buzzer.
In celebration, a Middleburg player was called for travelling after catching the block and 0.4 seconds was put back on the clock and BW's was given a desperation chance to win it but couldn't get a clean look.
3-Pointers: MA 4 (Malinowski 2, Henry 2), BW 8 (Faciane 4, Calder 3, Tate 1).
Girls Tournament
Defending VHSL Division 3 state champion Millbrook coasted past host Briar Woods, 78-40, to win the title game of the Briar Woods Winter Classic. Fauquier defeated Battlefield, 52-45, in the consolation game.
Millbrook advanced to the finals with an 82-18 win over Fauquier 18 and Briar Woods beat AAA Battlefield, 52-43. For the Falcons, the tournament came on the heels of a huge upset over defending Division 4 state champion Freedom prior to the break.
Briar Woods' Brittany Gilbert and Ashley Adams talk about the big win over Freedom as well as the holiday tournament after the win over Battlefield
Briar Woods girls basketball coach Dave Morris after the win over Battlefield
Ashburn (Dec. 30, 2010) - Ashburn's three high school wrestling teams -- Briar Woods, Broad Run and Stone Bridge -- take to the mats today in the VivaLoudoun Holiday Wrestling Tournament.
Herndon and Kettle Run join the three local schools with wrestling running from 9 a.m. to about 4:30 p.m. Admission is $5.
Schedule
9:00 AM Championship- First Round (2 mats)
11:30 AM Consolation Quarterfinals (2 mats)
**Championship Semi-Finals (2 mats)
**Consolation Semi-Finals (2 mats)
**Consolation Finals (2 mats)
**Championship Finals (1 mat)
AWARDS
Trophies for the top team
Medals for top 4 place winners
Plaques for tournament “Outstanding Wrestler” and “Fastest Pin”
**Note: There will be NO breaks between rounds. Every round will begin immediately after the conclusion of the previous round** (5-10 minute break). Tournament should end around 4:30 pm
Ashburn (Dec. 28, 2010) - The Broad Run and Loudoun Valley high school boys basketball teams both secured victories during intense action on day two of the 3rd Annual Honda Dulles Holiday Tournament at Stone Bridge High School.
The final day of the tournament is Wednesday at Broad Run High School with four games: The girls basketball teams kick off the action at 3 p.m.; The boys start at 6:30.
Game One: Loudoun Valley 60, Dominion 44
Loudoun Valley began the game with a staunch defense, limiting the Titans to just four points in the 1st quarter. The Titans were able to strike back in the second half both offensively and defensively, scoring 16 points in the 3rd quarter and limiting the Vikings to eight. Still, the deficit was too much to overcome.
"It's an improvement from yesterday," said Dominion head coach Jay Geyer. "The kids came together, never let up and handled pressure."
The Vikings were led in scoring by senior guard Mike Wallace with 16 points. Also scoring 16 points was Dominion's Diego Abregu, a junior guard.
Loudoun Valley improves to 1-1 in the tournament and 4-6 on the season, while Dominion drops to 0-2 and 4-6.
Game Two: Broad Run 89, Stone Bridge 78
The Broad Run Spartans staved off the Stone Bridge Bulldogs in a heated match at the Honda Dulles Tournament Wednesday. Three players fouled out and two technical fouls were given in the Spartan's 89-78 win.
Spartan sophomore Nigel Johnson dominated, scoring a game-high 39 points. This is the Spartan's second game in a row with over 80 points, having scored 86 points against Loudoun Valley the previous night.
"I love our effort," said Broad Run head coach John Costello. "The kids never quit."
High scorers for the Bulldogs were Myles Johnson and Marcus Matthews, with 16 and 15 points respectively. Stone Bridge was outscored 30-18 in the 3rd quarter.
"We had a big hole in the 3rd quarter and that's tough to overcome," said Bulldog coach Sonny Green.
Stone Bridge is 1-1 in the tournament and 2-7 on the season following Wednesday's match, while Broad Run is undefeated in the tournament at 2-0 and 8-1 on the year.
VivaLoudoun internships: Are you an aspiring college or high school journalist? Sharpen your reporting skills while reaching VivaLoudoun's growing fan base -- we expect to have 2 million page views in 2011! You provide help (writing, photography, video) in our coverage of Loudoun's 12 high schools and their varsity sports while receiving editorial guidance from VivaLoudoun editor Dan Sousa, a 30-year plus award-winning journalist who has worked for daily and weekly newspapers in his career as well as for the Associated Press. Email Dan at dan.soussa@vivaloudoun.com if interested.
From left to right: Tionge Johnson (Dominion), Erika D'Argenio, Michelle Thiry, Jillian Colon (Broad Run), Maryjacqueline Fox (Freedom) and Katherine Fox (Freedom Graduate).
(Dec. 28, 2010) - The Good Shepherd Alliance Youth (GSA) team held their first high school fundraiser for 2010-11 on Dec. 20 at the Broad Run vs. Potomac Falls varsity boys and girls basketball games. The GSA Youth team bake sale netted close to 500 dollars to help the homeless and those near homeless in Loudoun County.
The goods sold at the event were baked by the basketball players from the Broad Run High School team. Matching donations by individuals and businesses are being encouraged to increase the total raised by the high school students.
The Youth team comprises students from nine local high schools who will be holding similar social awareness and charity events in the upcoming months.
Ashburn (Dec. 28, 2010) - The hosts of the 3rd Annual Honda Dulles Holiday Tournament put the pressure on Monday night as both the Broad Run and Stone Bridge boys basketball teams utilized fullcourt defense on the way to wins with the Spartans beating Loudoun Valley, 86-75, and then the Bulldogs beating Dominion, 66-26.
The common theme in both games played at Stone Bridge High School was the inability for the opponents to move the ball past suffocating fullcourt pressure. Tonight the winning teams will go head-to-head as Stone Bridge faces Broad Run at 7:45 p.m. Loudoun Valley and Dominion tips off at 6 p.m. $5 will get admission to both games.
Game One: Broad Run 86, Loudoun Valley 75
While Johnson and Johnson may be known for its pain relief products ... Broad Run's version of Johnson and Johnson -- senior Taylor Johnson and sophomore Nigel Johnson -- are all about creating pain as evident for their combined 58 points in Monday's 86-75 win over Loudoun Valley.
Taylor Johnson had 18 by the half and finished with 34 including four 3-pointers, one in each quarter. Nigel Johnson came on strong with 10 points in the final quarter to hit 24. Together they were 11 of 12 from the foul line down the stretch to prevent a Vikings comeback.
While it was a six-point game at the half, Broad Run led 43-37, the Spartans used a 14-2 run in the third quarter to take control as Valley struggled to move the ball against Broad Run's trapping defense.
6-foot-6 junior John Yoxthimer gave Broad Run fits in the first half, scoring 14 of his 21 points. After a slow start, sophomore Josh Grimard led the Vikes with 22 points as he poured in 14 points in the final quarter.
Broad Run improves to 7-1 on the season while Valley falls to 3-6.
Game Two: Stone Bridge 66, Dominion 26
A Stone Bridge team that threatened to go into the holiday break without a win, suddenly finds themselves on a two-game winning streak as they followed up last week's overtime win against Madison with a blowout over the Titans Monday.
Every player in uniform scored for Stone Bridge as the Bulldogs clamped down on defense -- holding Dominion to just three baskets and 10 points total in the second half -- and turned turnovers into easy transition baskets.
Senior Danny Eleazer led Stone Bridge with 16 points and junior Myles Johnson had 11. Diego Abregu led the Titans with seven points.
Scoring
Dominion 9 7 3 7 - 26
Stone Bridge 17 11 24 14 - 66
D: Miniaci 1, Thomas 1, Bullock 5, Harting 1, Abregu 7, Ramsey 2, Coleman 3, Conboy 3, Valenzuela 1, #20 3.
SB: Johnson 11, Matthews 6, Lowdermilk 6, Madden 4, Boker 2, Tiernan 4, Seu 2, Michael 4, Dunne 6, Hamrick 3, Eleazer 16, Wohlfert 2. Stone Bridge's Danny Eleazer and Ryan Lowdermilk
Ashburn (Dec. 27, 2010) - The Dominion and Stone Bridge high school girls basketball teams came away with wins on the first day of the 3rd Annual Honda Dulles Holiday Tournament at Broad Run High School.
In action tonight, Stone Bridge will face Loudoun Valley at 6 p.m. followed by host Broad Run against Dominion at 7:45 p.m. Admission is $5.
Game One: Dominion 60, Loudoun Valley 44
Dominion High School earned the first girls’ win in the 3rd Annual Honda Dulles Holiday Tournament, defeating Loudoun Valley High School, 60-44.
Dominion’s squad was strengthened by their depth, as all but three Titans put points on the board. Junior center Imani Smith led the Titans in scoring with 19 points. Senior guard Kelsey Luck put up 17 points and was the high-scorer for the Vikings.
Titan coach Anne Gasser hopes to finish both the tournament and the season strong. Dominion is off to one of the school's best starts ever, at 5-4. Loudoun Valley, which lost some returning players to the opening of Woodgrove this year, fell to 3-6.
“The Dulles District is much more evenly matched this season,” said Gasser.
Despite accumulating an 8-0 deficit to start the game, the Lady Bulldogs quickly pulled together to end the quarter with a 12-12 tie.
Stone Bridge then never looked back as they went on to defeat rival Broad Run by 23 points in their 57-34 win on Monday.
“After three days off, I expected them to come out a little sloppy,” said Bulldog head coach Chris Jones. “Hopefully they’ll get their legs back [as the tournament progresses].”
Despite the loss, Broad Run head coach Mike O’Hara is pleased with his team. “Stone Bridge is the best team in the area,” said O'Hara . “We were satisfied it was a close game.”
Both the Spartans and the Bulldogs were undermanned, with Stone Bridge missing star forward Murielle Tiernan and Broad Run missing a total of four players.
Scoring:
SBHS: C. Prince – 2, Sleece – 12, Herndon – 2, N. Prince – 15, Guzek – 4, Della-Penna – 6, Whitaker – 8, Lewis – 6
BRHS: Cabellos – 5, Melhuish – 4, Ferguson – 8, B. Miller – 2, Tashjian – 6, Tousley – 1, S. Miller - 8
VivaLoudoun Monday Night Scoreboard
Boys
Stone Bridge 66, Dominion 26
Broad Run 86, Loudoun Valley 75
Girls
Stone Bridge 57, Broad Run 34
Dominion 60, Loudoun Valley 44
Ashubrn (Dec. 27, 2010) - High school basketball returns to action tonight with the Third Annual Honda Dulles Holiday Tournament at Broad Run and Stone Bridge, featuring eight local boys and girls teams.
The three-day tournament has girls games at Broad Run and boys games at Stone Bridge Monday and Tuesday and then a full slate of four boys and girls games on Wednesday at Broad Run.
Besides the hosts Broad Run and Stone Bridge, Dominion and Loudoun Valley will also be playing in the holiday affair. December 27th Monday Broad Run HS - Girls basketball
6:00 game: Loudoun Valley vs. Dominion
7:45 game: Broad Run vs. Stone Bridge
Stone Bridge HS - Boys basketball
6:00 game: Broad Run vs. Loudoun Valley
7:45 game: Stone Bridge vs. Dominion
December 28th Tuesday Broad Run HS - Girls basketball
6:00 game: Stone Bridge vs. Loudoun Valley
7:45 game: Broad Run vs. Dominion
Stone Bridge HS - Boys basketball
6:00 game: Loudoun Valley vs. Dominion
7:45 game: Stone Bridge vs. Broad Run
December 29th Wednesday
All games Wednesday will be at Broad Run HS
3:00 game: Girls - Loudoun Valley vs. Broad Run
4:45 game: Girls - Dominion vs. Stone Bridge
6:30 game: Boys - Stone Bridge vs. Loudoun Valley
8:15 game: Boys - Broad Run vs. Dominion
Ashburn (Dec. 27, 2010) - Cheers Sports and VivaLoudoun.com released their Athletes of the Month for November 2010. Each month VivaLoudoun chooses athletes of the month from the 12 public high schools in Loudoun and the athletes are featured in a photo shoot shot. This month's photo shoot took place on Dec. 19 at Lifetime Fitness.
"We appreciate Cheers Sports continued support of this Athletes of the Month program as well as their general support of all athletics in Loudoun," said VivaLoudoun editor and founder Dan Sousa. "We also want to give Lifetime Fitness a big "shout out" for letting us shoot the Athletes of the Month photos at their amazing facility."
Football Alec Dombkowski, Park View Connor Jessop, Broad Run Ryan McCarter, Park View David Mellstrom, Loudoun Valley Andrew Taylor, Loudoun Valley Joe Walter, Broad Run
Ryan McCarter
David Mellstrom
Joe Walter
Volleyball
Brittany Brown, Loudoun Valley Kelsey Hrebenach, Heritage Christina Kamis, Heritage
Kaitlyn LaMantia, Freedom
Emma LeMaitre, Heritage Taylor Maddox, Loudoun Valley
Taylor Maddox
Brittany Brown
Christina Kamis
Kelsey Hrebenach
Loudoun Valley Volleyball
Heritage Volleyball
Kaitlyn LaMantia
Boys Cross Country
Juan Campos, Potomac Falls Tommy Curtin, Loudoun County Grant Deker, Potomac Falls Ben Heberling, Loudoun County Patrick Joseph, Loudoun County
Thorpe Lichtenberg, Freedom Nicholas Mogensen, Potomac Falls Josh Showalter, Loudoun County
Connor Wilson, Potomac Falls
(Dec. 23, 2010) - The Manassas Park High School wrestling team went 3-0 Wednesday night at a quad hosted by Loudoun Valley featuring also Woodgrove and Martinsburg WV.
Martinsburg was 2-1 while Valley went 1-2 and Woodgrove 0-3.
Round 1
Manassas Park 59, Loudoun Valley 12
Martinsburg 51, Woodgrove 30
Round 2
Loudoun Valley 47, Woodgrove 21
Manassas Park 39, Martinsburg 31
Round 3
Martinsburg 40, Loudoun Valley 30
Manassas Park 70, Woodgrove 3
(Dec. 23, 2010) - Briar Woods High School coach Dave Morris doesn't even have to wait until Christmas to get his greatest present of all as his girls basketball team upset two-time defending state champion Freedom, 33-31, Wednesday night on the road.
"Jillian Olson had the best defensive game of her career," said Dave Morris when reached after the game. He said the short bus ride back to Brambleton was indeed a happy one and that Olson and all her teammates were celebrating their big win at the local McDonald's.
Freedom (4-1, 6-2) came into the game unbeaten in the Dulles District and on a six-game winning streak. Rival Briar Woods (2-4, 4-6) -- both schools opened in 2005 -- came in having lost three of four, but all of them very close, one point to Dominion, four points to Broad Run and two points to Park View.
"We have been struggling this year and we really needed this win going into the break," said Morris.
The key to Wednesday's upset was the defense of senior Olson (4 rebounds, 5 steals) on Eagle senior standout Diondra Scott in the Falcons diamond-and-1 defense with Olson taking Scott 1-and-1 and her teammates in a 4-player zone.
Scott, a key component of the Eagles Division 3 state title in 2009 and then their Division 4 state title in 2010, was averaging 23.4 points per game and hadn't been held under 17 yet this season but she was limited to 10 Wednesday as the Falcons defense slowed the pace of the play down.
Briar Woods led 23-19 at the half but it was all Freedom in the third quarter, in fact shutting out the Falcons, 10-0, to take a 29-23 lead into the final quarter. Freedom also chose to hold the ball during this quarter in an effort to flush Briar Woods out of their hybrid defense.
In the final quarter, Freedom held the ball more, accounting for the low score, but when the pace of play did pick up, it was Briar Woods scoring as the Eagles had gone cold.
Falcon 5-foot-4 senior Ashley Adams knocked down a 3-pointer in the last minute of the game to bring the Falcons to within one point. 5-foot-5 sophomore Logan Ballard then made a layup and was fouled with 18 seconds left in the game, and she made the free throw for the three-point play.
Now up by two points, the Falcons were able to keep Freedom from scoring in the final seconds for the big win.
Freedom had dropped just one regular-season district game in the last two seasons and the Eagles were 7-0 against the Falcons over the past three years including wins of 83-33, 66-25 and 74-43 in the last three meetings.
Scoring for Briar Woods: Ashley O'Neill 3, Ashley Adams 7, Brittany Gilbert 7, Macy Jones 3,
Logan Ballard 7, Jessica Ketant 2, Lauren Moore 2, Jillian Olson 2.
Scoring for Freedom: Dionna Scott 10, Alexis Mayo 8, Alexis Jones 8, Kim Koditek 3, Arnelle Collins 2.
Boys Basketball Briar Woods 54, Freedom 49
The Skinny: Sophomore Matt Rolin had 13 points to lead the Falcons to the win. Broad Run 83, Park View 43
The Skinny: Read Carl Lukat's story! Dominion 60, Tuscarora 40
The Skinny: Titans with second district win of the season. Potomac Falls 59, Loudoun County 49
The Skinny: Greg Graves led the Panthers with 19 and Lukas Mihailovich added 11 as PFalls entered the break unbeaten. Kris Pratt led LC with 12.
Girls Basketball Briar Woods 33, Freedom 31
The Skinny: See above! Broad Run 38, Park View 31
The Skinny: Elle Furguson hits for 15 for Spartans. Christina Sheppard led PV with 11. Tuscarora 43, Dominion 41
The Skinny: Young Huskies in the mix at 2-3 in district Loudoun County 58, Potomac Falls 43
The Skinny: Read Dan Sousa's story!
(Dec. 23, 2010) - In a top secret location earlier this week, VivaLoudoun editor Dan Sousa and Loudoun Times-Mirror sports editor Carl Lukat met and came up with the first LoCo Elite 5 boys and girls basketball rankings of the 2010-11 season.
Sousa, in a "John Wooden was THE MAN" t-shirt said that the rankings involved a scientific study of all 24 area basketball teams results thus far this season, their strength of schedule, how cool their mascots looked, number of vowels in their tallest players middle name and something to do with the main ingredient to General Tso's Chicken ...
Lukat, often knowing for writing with a 24-second shot clock while on deadline, said he hoped any involvement with Sousa and VivaLoudoun was the by-product of some sideways world, just like on "Lost".
Ashburn (Dec. 23, 2010) - An explosive 46-8 surge over an 11-minute span of the second and third quarters was more than enough to lift Broad Run High School to an 83-43 victory over Park View in an AA Dulles District boys' basketball contest Wednesday night.
The Spartans outscored the Patriots 14-0 during the final three-plus minutes of the first half to turn a 29-29 tie into a 43-29 advantage. Sophomore Nigel Johnson took over from there, scoring 17 of his game-high 30 points in the third quarter to help extend Broad Run's lead to 38.
"We were almost unstoppable for a four-minute stretch," Spartans coach John Costello said. "I think we had 17 straight points. That's too tough to overcome. That's the best four-minute stretch we've played all year."
Broad Run (3-1 in district play, 6-1 overall) concluded a challenging three-game stretch that included a road win at Briar Woods and a home loss to defending AA state champion Potomac Falls. The Spartans moved into sole possession of second place in the Dulles following Wednesday's win.
"I'm pleased," Costello responded about how he felt his team performed during those three games. "I would have loved to have beaten Potomac Falls. We had the lead and didn't finish. But we'll get back. We'll see them again."
Nigel Johnson drained five 3-pointers in the win, including four in the third quarter. Johnson sat out the fourth quarter with the Spartans in command.
"He's dynamic. He's a young sophomore who can just fill it," Costello said of his 5-foot-11 guard. "There are shooters and scorers, and he's a scorer."
Senior Taylor Johnson scored 15 of his 17 points in the first half, and pulled down 12 rebounds. Overall, 11 different Spartans scored in the game.
Park View (3-2, 6-2) saw its five-game winning streak come to an end. Sophomore Cody Horvath led the Patriots with 14 points, and junior Dante Absher added 13.
Broad Run 83, Park View 43
PV: Horvath 14, Absher 13, McCarter 8, Grapes 4, Jackson 4
BR: N. Johnson 30, T. Johnson 17, Rawson 8, DeWitt 7, Hiatt 5, Diaz 4, McNamee 4, Anderson 2, Giltner 2, Gooch 2, Jasper 2
Halftime: Broad Run 43-29
3-pointers: PV 3 (Absher 3); BR 5 (N. Johnson 5)
Free throws: PV (0 of 3); BR (16 of 20)
Carl Lukat is the Loudoun Times-Mirror Sports editor where he has been covering local sports since 1938 (OK, maybe not that long ... but you get the point!) ... Visit their website to get more of his great coverage and tell him VivaLoudoun sent ya!
Leesburg (Dec. 23, 2010) - Loudoun County High School senior Brittany Batts scores a game-high 31 points and keyed a 10-0 third quarter run that broke open a 25-25 tie as the Raiders rolled to a 58-43 girls basketball win over Potomac Falls Wednesday night in Leesburg.
The win moved the Raiders (3-1, 5-2) and Panthers (3-1, 4-5) into a tie in the loss column in the Dulles District standings with Freedom (4-1, 6-2), which fell Wednesday in an upset to Briar Woods, 33-31.
First-year Raider coach Derek Fisher said he was enjoying working with "a great group of kids" and that both he and the players were still in the learning process with each other.
"We hope to be a lot better team at the end of the season than we are now," said Fisher.
The smaller Loudoun County team out-rebounded Potomac Falls in the contest and the Raiders patented fullcourt pressure forced turnovers and led to easy baskets.
Batts hit two of her four 3-pointers during the 10-0 run in the third quarter that came after Potomac Falls had tied the game on senior Kayla Guttredge's 3-pointer. Ewald described Batts' shooting performance as "scorching the earth" as she drilled several 3-pointers several steps behind the arc.
"She makes everybody else on the team better," said Fisher.
Raider sophomore Haley Knudsen scored her only four points of the game during the key third quarter stretch. County 6-foot junior Casey Cummings led the Raiders dominance inside.
"Normally we are a good rebounding team but they crashed hard and their speed hurt us," said Potomac Falls coach Lynn Ewald.
Cummings and junior Alex Lapple each finished with six points while freshman Maggie Phillips added a spark off the bench with seven.
Guttredge finished with a team high 12 points, all from beyond the arc. Freshman Teal Reynolds added 11 for the Panthers.
(Dec. 23, 2010) - Family, friends, area residents and those across the nation after widespread media attention continue to rally around former Broad Run High School athlete Ryan Diviney, in a coma for more than a year after a savage beating while at the University of West Virginia.
Unfortunately, Diviney had to be rushed to the emergency room on Tuesday after developing a hgh fever that topped around 106.8 degrees. Family reports on the Rally for Ryan website that he will likely be in the ICU for five to seven days which means a second straight Christmas in the hospital for the Ashburn resident.
The Facebook page for Diviney's recovery now has more than 8,000 members as his attack and the family's devotion of care for him this past year have been featured on NBC's The Today Show and The Washington Post.
Diviney, given only 24 to 48 hours to live after the beating, is still fighting after 13 months. His attackers have been sentenced to jail, one for one year and the other for two to 10 years.
VivaLoudoun hopes that everybody in this holiday season keeps the Diviney family in their thoughts and prayers. Visit the Rally for Ryan website to donate to the family's care.
Report from Dec. 21
I’m sad to report that Ryan was rushed by paramedics to the emergency room earlier this afternoon. He began developing a high fever, that topped around 106.8 degrees. His breathing became labored and shallow, with trouble holding his oxygen saturation. He was moaning in pain and just could not get comfortable. His body began to flush.
Chest x-Rays show pneumonia developed in his upper-right lung. It appears we caught it early. The likely cause is from an episode of vomiting yesterday morning. Despite my attempt to clear his airway by deep suctioning, it is almost certain he sucked some of the stomach fluid back into his lung.
He is now in the ICU resting, getting an IV of propofol to sedate him. To protect his airway and deliver oxygen, the doctors inserted a tube down his airway. He is currently on a ventilator. His length of stay will likely be 5 to 7 days, from what we know. Another Christmas in ICU…
Dr. Rodriguez continues to be incredible! He came to the hospital immediately; Ryan was still in the ER. He laid the groundwork for making sure anything and everything will be done for Ryan during his stay.
Report from Dec. 22
Ryan spent the day getting many, many tests done. He had a full blood work-up early in the day, showing some magnesium deficiency but his white count is down slightly. Ryan’s electrolytes were perfect. He had another chest X-ray that showed the pneumonia settled into the right lung. As of now, he is sounding a bit better listening through the stethoscope. An abdomen X-ray and rectal exam showed no bowel issues. He was scanned for blood clots (a.k.a. DVT’s) in his arms and legs and none were present. He is still intubated and on the ventilator, but his oxygen support level was reduced from a full 100% to 50%.
We he gets the airway tube removed, he will be taken to get a CT scan of the brain. We will be also working with a neurologist soon to discuss any changes to the level of baclofen he is receiving and to verify his brain shunt is drawing off the proper volume of fluid.
By Owen Gotimer Heritage High School student journalist
Leesburg (Dec. 21, 2010) - Following a tough loss to Westfield High School Monday night, the Heritage boys basketball team looked to go into their holiday break with a win over newly established Woodgrove. However, AA Woodgrove, who had already beat AAA Loudoun Valley earlier in the season, made another statement Tuesday, defeating the Pride, 71-59. These first-year Wolverines are no joke.
Woodgrove, led offensively in the first half by Brad Gilson (game-high 31 points) and Brett Danielson, dominated play, shooting lights out from behind the arc (6 of 7 from 3-point range). But, the most apparent reason that the Wolverines went into the half up 15 was rebounding. The Pride snagged just seven boards in the entire first half, which made controlling the ball and scoring very difficult.
Heritage's challenge to coming back looked even more difficult as Woodgrove's keen shooting Gilson added to the lead with two quick three-pointers early in the third quarter. Despite what looked to be a game that was long gone, the Pride regrouped. Led by junior duo Austin Nelson and Courtland Arbogast, the Pride cut the lead to eight, 50-42, before going into the fourth quarter.
Nelson and Arbogast continued to pour on the offensive production, and with around three minutes left in the game, Heritage only trailed Woodgrove by a mere four points.
The tables looked to be turned 180 degrees, but Heritage couldn't sustain the comeback as they started fouling the Wolverines. Woodgrove re-opened up another healthy lead, as Gilson knocked down 10 fourth quarter free throws.
Although the Pride played a much more solid second half of basketball, Woodgrove's shooters proved to just be that dominant for the 71-59 victory.
Woodgrove Scoring
Matt Caslin – 4 points
Brett Danielson – 14 points (2 for 2 on free throws)
Brad Gilson – 31 points (12 for 13 on free throws)
Josh Sweet – 6 points
Andrew Traub – 9 points (6 for 7 on free throws)
Brendan Wells – 7 points (2 for 3 on free throws)
Totals – 71 points, 11 two-point field goals, 9 three-pointers, 22 of 27 from the line
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
(Dec. 22, 2010) - Fittingly enough, in the race for the big prize ($100) in our Beat the LoCo Experts football picks contest, it came down to the final game of the year, the VHSL Division 4 state title game between Briar Woods and Harrisonburg, as Michael of Ashburn battled Plankster of Ashburn for the sweepstakes.
And it was Michael -- better known as Briar Woods teacher and Potomac Falls JV boys basketball coach Kip Shallis! -- who pulled out the win as he naturally had the Falcons and Plankster -- better known as Stone Bridge baseball coach Sam Plank -- had Harrisonburg.
"Make sure to mention my Briar Woods Falcons were the team that won it for me over Plank," said Shallis when reached for comment on the historic win.
It was a great year for our contest with 150 locals going up against the LoCo's and VivaLoudoun Editor Dan "The Fix is In" Sousa won the experts contest ... just nosing ahead of Loudoun Times-Mirror sports editor Carl "Kind of All Loudoun Media" Lukat.
We had four pickers go 2-0 in the final week with Christopher Robin of South Riding beating AJJ of Ashburn, Opie of Leesburg, PVfootball of Sterling and Tim of Potomac Falls in the tiebreaker. In fact, Christopher Robin was almost on the money, calling Briar Woods' 41-21 win as 31-18 and the Phoebus 36-17 win as 33-20 ... can we hire you next year Mr. Robin!
Below are the final standings!
Here is a quick review of the Beat the LoCo Experts Year: August 15, 2010 - VivaLoudoun announces Beat the LoCo Experts football contest -- two small wars in Latin America call a truce in joy to the news Sept. 15, 2010 - The first weekly winners t-shirts start hitting the streets -- sparking a fashion trend that hits Milan and Paris in two weeks. Ces VivaLoudoun t-shirts sont très à la mode! Oct. 1, 2010 - Unnamed area football coach, goes for 2-point conversion with 35-point lead in order to influence Beat the LocCo Experts tiebreaker Oct. 13, 2010 - Chilean miners state that the one thing that kept them going during their ordeal was the Beat the LoCo Experts contest Oct. 29, 2010 - Medical experts do in fact find that three of the seven "experts" for the contest are indeed crazy. Nov. 10, 2010 - My wife (and silent business partner) Sharon's birthday ... since I was busy covering a game that night, I thought I would slip it in here ... Happy Birthday, honey! ... now that couch thing is getting old. Nov. 15, 2010 - Jimmy Jimmerson of Ashburn, taking the contest too literally ... chases Jason Rufner around the parking lot at Broad Run ... screaming: "I'll beat you ... you expert". Rufner, a world-class hurdler in his prep days, escapes injury by vaulting over a school bus Dec. 1, 2010 - Loudoun County Public Schools repeal the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" rule that allowed coaches and assistant athletics to only play in our contest on the downlow. Dec. 11, 2010 - Dan Sousa having learned of his victory over Carl Lukat for the experts grand prize (zero dollars) said: it feels great being No. 1 in Ashburn, No. 1 in Purcellville, No. 1 in Sterling, No. 1 in Lovettsville ... take that Experts!"
See you in 2011! Please drive safely and deposit all trash in the receptacle on the way out.
(Dec. 21, 2010) - Stone Bridge High School senior Calvin Hollenhorst has verbally accepted a full scholarship to play football next year at NCAA Division I Coastal Carolina according to Bullldog head coach Mickey Thompson.
The 6-foot-3, 240-pound defensive lineman helped the Bulldogs make it to the VHSL Division 5 state title game while winning Liberty District and Northern Region titles. Hollenhorst had 57 first-hit tackles and eight sacks.
(Dec. 21, 2010) - Loudoun County High School, which captured a fourth straight VHSL AA state volleyball title, reaped postseason awards as coach Jenica Matthias has been named the VHSCA AA Coach of the Year and juniors Jenna Strange and Gabby Serafin have both been named first team all-state.
Senior Emily Sears of Broad Run was named second team all-state. Freedom senior Jenna Flanigin and junior Kaitlyn LaMantia were both honorable mention.
VHSCA 201O AA Volleyball Selections AA- Player of Year:
Morgan Kline, Sr. - Grafton AA- Coach of Year:
Jenica Matthias - Loudoun County
1st Team:
Jenna Strange, Jr. - Loudoun County
Gabby Serafin, Jr. - Loudoun County
Morgan Kline, Sr. - Grafton
Alyssa Hall, Sr. - Grafton
Shannon Craighead, Jr. - Cave Spring
Morgan Shannon, Jr. - Cave Spring
Sarah Patterson, Jr. - Hidden Valley
Michelle Heath, Sr. - Rustburg
2nd Team
Emily Sears, Sr. Broad Run
Ana Asher, Sr. Western Albemarle
Adrianna Ramos, Sr. Chancellor
Rachel Richards, Jr. Grafton
Sara Ritchie, Sr. Turner Ashby
Megan Prothero, Sr. Jefferson Forrest
Lindsey Smith, Sr. Jefferson Forrest
Kim McDow, Sr. Hidden Valley
Honorable Mention
Jenna Flanigin, Sr. Freedom
Kaitlyn LaMantia, Jr. Freedom
Lauren Wilkins, Sr. Sherando
Brianna Sutton, So. Jamestown
Krystal Marshall, Jr. Powhatan
Kayla Crawford, Sr. Powhatan
Alexis Cummings, Jr. Powhatan
Macey Tyree, Sr. Lord Botetourt
Megan Good, Fr. Fort Defiance
Steph Shickel, Jr. Turner Ashby
Kathleen Carr, Jr. Northside
LaToya Diggs, Sr. Waynesboro
Maleah Neely, Sr. Carroll County
Kelsey Smith, Sr. Tunstall
Ashburn (Dec. 21, 2010) – Christmas came early to Dulles District boys basketball fans Monday night as Potomac Falls visited Broad Run in an early season showdown of unbeatens. Trailing most of the night, Broad Run rallied before a packed gym to take a 56-52 lead early in the final quarter, but the defending state champion Panthers stormed back behind senior Lukas Mihailovich and junior Greg Graves to capture the contest, 80-69.
In the final frenzied six minutes, the 6-foot Mihailovich scored 16 of his game-high 34 points and the 6-foot-7 Graves accounted for 10 of his 19 to help Potomac Falls improve to 3-0 in district and 7-0 overall. Broad Run, led by senior Taylor Johnson’s 31 points, dropped to 2-1 and 5-1.
Leesburg (Dec. 20, 2010) - The Virginia Elite volleyball club is reporting that Heritage High School senior standout Lian Bernett has verbally committed to play next year NCAA Division I Coastal Carolina.
Bernett, an opposite hitter and a member of VA Elite 18s Team, is the sixth member of the VA Elite 2011 Class to commit and will play in the Big South for the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers.
Bernett helped the Pride to a Northwest Regional title this season and was named first team all-state.
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