Boys Basketball: Defensive Heritage Finishes off Rivalry Sweep

By Owen Gotimer
Heritage High School student journalist

Purcellville (Jan. 30, 2011) - Last weekend the Heritage High School boys basketball team was looking for its Cedar Run District win of the season and the Pride earned it by out-rebounding, out-scoring and out-hustling the Loudoun Valley Vikings in a 52-38 win that finished off a girls/boys varsity doubleheader sweep.


Valley, averaging just over 60 points per game, didn’t score a field goal until 13 minutes into the game as Heritage held the Vikes to only six first half points.

Heritage started off the game on a 19-2 run before Valley’s Josh Grimard finally knocked down the Vikings’ first basket with 3:09 left in the half. The Vikings seemed to have a spark as junior John Yoxthimer intercepted the following inbound and scored two of his own. Yet the Pride’s rebounding was just too dominating and the Vikings shots were not falling.

Heritage, who is known for a fast paced style of play, scored 25 in the fist half and saw seven players score.

The only solid quarter of basketball for the Vikes came in the third as they outscored the Pride 17-11.

With a comfortable fourth quarter lead of 36-23, the Pride cruised through the rest of the game never allowing the Vikings to get within 10 points, ultimately knocking off the third place Vikings 52-28.

Valley, who starts only one player under 6-foot-2, was overshadowed in rebounding by the Pride, who only started one player over 6-2.

Heritage head coach Greg Grimes said the reason his team won the game was the “defense, in particular we always tell our guys that the defense doesn’t end until we’ve secured a rebound and that’s how we played tonight.”

He also commended his smaller team saying that, “We did a great job [rebounding] on a bigger team. Even our guards were crashing the boards.”

Grimes said his team needs three wins to make the district tournament so this first win was huge, “It builds the guys’ confidence and now they know that it’s possible.”

Heritage Scoring:
Dion Swanson – 6 points
Austin Nelson – 8 points
Courtland Arbogast – 9 points
Aaron Summers – 7 points
Bryan Launi – 8 points
Eric Counts – 2 points
Erik Launi – 10 points
Junaid Karim – 2 points

Valley Scoring:
Mike Wallace – 7 points
Nick Robinson – 5 points
John Yoxthimer – 9 points
Paul Rowley – 8 points
Harrison Jackson – 3 points
Josh Grimard – 5 points
Ben Walker – 1 point