News: All Saturday High School Events Now Cancelled; Friday Events are On

This note was posted on the Loudoun County Public Schools website: All athletic events scheduled for tonight, December 18th, are on as scheduled.  All athletic events and athletic practices are canceled on Saturday, December 19th, because of the threat of inclement weather.

Boys Basketball: Dec. 16-17 Round-up: Six Games Wrapped Up!

Dec. 17
Loudoun County 47, Brentsville 26
Seniors Mahir Mrkonjic (14 points) and Calle Brown (9 points, 11 rebounds, 6 blocks) helped the Raiders even their record on the season at 3-3 with this non-district win Thursday.
LOUDOUN COUNTY 47, BRENTSVILLE 36
B (0-0, 0-0) — Weaver 16, Corcoran 6, Willard 6, Willis 5, Murphy 3. Totals 14 4-10 36.
L (2-3, 1-1) — Mrkonjic 14, Brown 9, Campbell 8, Mays 7, Gibson 5, Pratt 4. Totals 16 14-19 47.
Halftime: Loudoun County, 25-12.
Three-point goals: B 4 (Weaver 2, Corcoran, Willis); L 1 (Mrkonjic).

Dec. 16
Broad Run 71, Loudoun Valley 58
The Spartans won their fifth road game of the season and third contest against a AAA school as they beat the Vikings in a non-district match-up of unbeaten teams.

Kevin McGaughey led BR with 24 points and DaDa Johnson added 16.

Valley was paced by Cody Mangano with 15 and John Yoxthimer added 12.

Stone Bridge 72, Heritage 60
The Bulldogs trailed, 33-31, at the half but came back in the second half with Nik Brown scoring 25 points and grabbing eight rebounds and Richie Berry added 21 for SB.

Heritage was led by Elijah Calhoun with 15 points and 10 rebounds.

SB 11 31 51 72
H 12 33 48 60
SB
Brown 10 4-5 25
Berry 6 9-12 21
Nowakowski 1 0-0 3
Eleazer 0 1-2 1
Wells 1 7-8 9
Tripp 3 2-3 8
Hamrick 1 0-0 2
Paige 1 0-0 3
Heritage
Swanson 3 0-0 8
Nelson 1 2-5 4
Calhoun 6 3-3 15
Woody 0 2-2 2
Cavan 0 2-2 2
Russell 2 1-2 5
Dentler 2 1-4 6
Arbogast 3 3-4 9
Alcorn 2 4-6 9

Park View 72, Clarke County 59
Ryan McCarter broke loose for 30 points to lead the Patriots to this non-district win. Jordan Owens added 14 and J.R. Shooks scored 10 for PV.

Scoreby quarters
CC - 7 23 21 8 - 59
PV -29 16 13 14 -72


PV 2ptM 3ptM FTM FTA R A TP
Absher, Dante 0 1 0 0 3
Brister, DeShaun 0 0 0 0 0
Dombkowski, Alec 2 1 0 0 7
Early, Hayden 0 0 0 0 0
French, Tim 0 0 0 0 0
Hackett, Sawyer 1 0 0 0 2
Horvath, Cody 1 0 2 2 4
Lee, Brandon 0 0 0 0 0
McCarter, Ryan 6 4 6 7 30
Owens, Jordan 6 0 2 4 14
Shooks, J.R. 6 0 0 2 12
Valejo, Josh 0 0 0 0 0
Park View totals: 22 6 15 10 0 0 72

Potomac Falls 72, George Mason 66
Lukas Mihailovich scored 21 points and Zack Curran added 17 as the Panthers won this non-district contest. Gregory Graves added 13 for PFalls.

Osbourn 80, Briar Woods 77
Myles Tate scored 31 points but the Falcons lost a 1-point lead with 13 seconds left when Osbourn stole the ball. Matt Roush finished with 13 for BW.

Girls Basketball: Wed. Dec. 16 Round-up - Broad Run Beats Valley; SB over Heritage; 3 Others Fall in Non-District

Broad Run 50, Loudoun Valley 45
Sarah Miller scored 15 points and Morgan Roehling added 10 points and nine rebounds as the Spartans beat the Vikings in a non-district contest.

Chrystal Oden led the Vikes with 15 points and seven rebounds and Brea Calhoun added 12.

LV (2-2) – Oden 15, Calhoun 12, Sweet 8, Hardison 6, Blue 2, Gutch 2 Totals 17 11-12 45
BRHS (3-1) – Miller 15, Roehling 10, Dunay 9, Andricosky 7, Mines 4, Ferguson 3, Miller 2 Totals 15 18-25 50
Halftime: BR 32-19
Three-Point Field Goals: Broad Run 2(Andricosky, Roehling)
Scoring By Quarters
Loudoun Valley 8 11 14 12 45
Broad Run 22 10 7 11 50

Stone Bridge 42, Heritage 34
Sara Stancik scored a team-high 11 points and the Bulldogs used an 18-8 second quarter to pull away from the Pride in a non-district win Wednesday.

Ceara Scott led Heritage with 15 points, including 11 of 15 from the foul line.

STONE BRIDGE 42, HERITAGE 34
SB (3-1) — Stancik 11, C. Prince 8, Williams 8, Guzek 5, Whitaker 4, N. Prince 2, Sleece 2, Tiernan 2.
Totals 17 7-9 42.
H (1-5) — Scott 15, Paskowski 7, Whoolery 5, Grabbi 4, Surles 3.
Totals 10 13-21 34.
Halftime: Stone Bridge, 28-16.
Three-point goals: S (Williams); H 1 (Whoolery).

George Mason 56, Potomac Falls 50
The Panthers were down by one point with 10 seconds to go and had a jump shot to to win it but the ball hit off the front of the rim and the Mustangs held on for the win.

Potomac Falls was out-shot at the foul line, 28 to 9. Rebecca Perez led PF with 15, while Jasmin Jeffries scored 11 and Symone Berry added 10.

PF 8 9 20 13 50
GM 5 14 16 21 56
GEORGE MASON 56, POTOMAC FALLS 50 G (4-0, 0-0) — Thomas 18, Cheney 16, Mitchell 9, Kane 8, Roth 4, Johansen 1. Totals 17 21-28 56.
P (4-2, 1-0) — Perez 15, Jefferies 11, Berry 10, Short 9, Battle 3, Mook 2. Totals 21 5-9 50.
Halftime: George Mason, 19-17.
Three-point goals: G (Mitchell); P 3 (Jefferies, Short, Battle).
Rebounds: P 25 (Perez 4, Jefferies 6, Berry 6, Short 3, Mook 3, Fauteux, Reid, Stanley).
Assists: P 8 (Jefferies, Berry 2, Short, Mook, Fauteux 2, Reid).

Clarke County 57, Park View 25
The Patriots fell behind 30-7 in the first half and fell in this non-district contest. Kylie Himmelberger and Christina Sheppard each scored eight points for PV.

Woodson 59, Dominion 22
The Titans fell to AAA Woodson after being out-scored, 31-8, in the second half. Haley Landry led Dominion with seven points.

News: Wow! National Weather Service Now Forecasting 10 to 20 Inches of Snow for Northern Virginia

Updated at 12:23 p.m. on Friday - The National Weather Service reports a Winter Storm Warning for Northern Virginia:

WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM MIDNIGHT TONIGHT TO 6 AM EST SUNDAY... A WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM MIDNIGHT TONIGHT TO 6 AM EST SUNDAY. * PRECIPITATION TYPE...SNOW. * ACCUMULATIONS...HEAVY SNOW WITH ACCUMULATIONS OF 10 TO 20 INCHES THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT. * TIMING...SNOW WILL BEGIN BETWEEN 11 PM AND 2 AM TONIGHT AND WILL CONTINUE THROUGH EARLY SUNDAY MORNING. SNOW WILL BE HEAVIEST BETWEEN 8 AM AND 6 PM SATURDAY. * TEMPERATURES...UPPER 20S TO LOWER 30S THROUGH THE EVENT...LOW TO MID 30S IN COASTAL SOUTHERN MARYLAND. * WINDS...10 TO 20 MPH THROUGH THE EVENT...WITH GUSTS OF 25 TO 30 MPH SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... A WINTER STORM WARNING MEANS SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF SNOW ARE EXPECTED OR OCCURRING. STRONG WINDS ARE ALSO POSSIBLE. CONDITIONS WILL DETERIORATE VERY RAPIDLY SATURDAY MORNING AND WILL MAKE TRAVEL EXTREMELY TREACHEROUS.

News: Expected Snowstorm Scuttles Some Saturday Events Already; More Likely to Come

(Dec. 18, 2009) - If Loudoun gets six to 12 inches of snow as forecast then you can bet that there won't be any school buses rolling Saturday, but even if the storm misses, some events are scuttled as schools must prepare transportation in advance.

So far as of noon Friday, Stone Bridge's wrestling tournament at Turner Ashby is cancelled, Freedom's wrestling tournament at Broadway is cancelled and the big gymnastics tournament, which featured a lot of Loudoun teams, at Battlefield High School has been cancelled. These events will not be made up.

Freedom High School's girls basketball game with Georgetown Visitation -- a clash of two ranked teams -- at McNamara has been postponed and will be made up at a later date and time.

Other event announcements will likely come this afternoon.

All Friday events are on as schedule with this one note, the Park View at Loudoun County girls game is now a 6:30 p.m. start. Check back to VivaLoudoun for the latest sports news!

News: Rally for Ryan Fundraiser Draws Huge Crowd in Ashburn

(Dec. 18, 2009) - The benefit for Ryan Diviney -- the Broad Run High School grad and West Virginia student in a coma after an attack last month -- last night at Finnegan's was amazingly well-attended ... the place was so packed that they had a line way out the door just to get in!

We didn't get too many photos to post ... too busy chatting with old friends but any photos we sell from the event, all profits to benefit the Diviney family. There are now 3,716 people that have joined the Come Together for Ryan Diviney group on Facebook.

Gymnastics: Ewen's Lead Broad Run to Win in 3-Team Meet

Ashburn (Dec. 18, 2009) - Kimmy and Drea Ewen went 1-2 in the All-Around Thursday to pace Broad Run High School to victory in a three-team meet with Potomac Falls and Dominion.

Here are the results:
Vault
1st Alexa Giovanis Dominion 8.9
2nd Drea Ewen Broad Run 8.85
Allie Daczkowski Potomac Falls 8.75

Bars
1st Drea Ewen Broad Run 8.4
2nd Alexa Giovanis Dominion 8.2
3rd Katy Petchenick and Kimmy Ewen 8.0

Beam
1st Kimmy Ewen Broad Run 8.9
2nd Drea Ewen Broad Run 8.5
3rd Crystal Noschese Broad Run 8.2

Floor
1st Kimmy ewen Broad Run 9.0
2nd Allie Daczkowski Broad Run 8.3
3rd Alexa Giovanis Dominion 8.2

All Around
1st Kimmy Ewen Broad Run 34.3
2nd Drea Ewen Broad Run 33.95
3rd Alexa Giovanis Broad Run 32.6

Team
1st Broad Run 129.2
2nd Potomac Falls 112.5
3rd Dominion 71.8

Loudoun Could Get 60 Inches of Snow Saturday! OK ... That was a Shameless Headline to Get You to Read Our Final You Pick'Em Column of the Year!

In Line at Giant Buying Milk and TP (aka Ashburn) (Dec. 18, 2009) - Look I'm not saying that people in Ashburn are panicking in the wake of the forecast for 6 to 12 inches of snow Saturday but my neighbor just drove by and she had three cases of Charmin extra soft strapped to the top of her SUV.

So in midst of winterizing my garden gnome collection (don't want the little guys to get frostbite!) ... I thought I would wrap up our high school football You Pick'Em season.

We started in the Dog Days of August and ended in the well ... Dawg Days of December ... with Stone Bridge playing yet again for a state title and Broad Run ... nobody calls in Cornfield High anymore, do they? ... winning back-to-back state titles. More than a decade ago I went to my first Broad Run football game, just as a fan with my son, now 17, who was 4 at the game ... there were about 500 fans in the stadium and 400 were on the visitors side. That might have been the year when Broad Run went winless in football and boys basketball back-to-back.

Now all they do back-to-back is win state football titles and girls soccer titles and back-to-back-to-back in softball! Forget the corn, this high school puts its teams on Wheaties boxes! (Fun Fact: Tiger Woods has appeared on Wheaties boxes 14 times, second most to any athlete next to Michael Jordan at 18, ... wait a minute, Tiger ... 14 times ... hmmmm ... rings a bell, just can't quite place it ... anywho ...)

I digress!

So, Stone Bridge baseball coach Sam "Walk The" Plank emails and tells our crack staff to get on the ball ... surely his 21-14 pick of Broad Run, two points off of the 21-16 win over Amherst County would move him up the all-time leaders board for You Pick'em winners.

Well ... sorry to say but Plank got Ker-Plunked (before video games ... Ker Plunk was big time entertainment in the Sousa household) by not one, not two, but three others picks.

Yes, we had a 3-way tie (much like the voting for Coach of the Year in any Dulles District sport ... favorite reading material during the voting meetings: "Your OK, I'm OK" ... hey, you think that is deep ... don't make me go all "Martin Buber" on you!)

Ryan Rogers, Greg Dawson and Chris Robinson all had 21-17 for the win. For Rogers and Dawson it moved them both up to win No. 7 all-time (they get a free fill-up and 100 Green Stamps! ... sorry kids, you will need to be over 45 to understand Green Stamps). Robinson is a first-time winner ... Way to go all three!

On the Stone Bridge game, Ryan Price, living up to his nickname The Price is Always Right ... wins again, No. 10 all-time and now he is within six wins of the all-time leader Jason (aka The Oracle) Treon. Price had Phoebus winning 24-12, within 11 of the 15-10 final and edging out Robinson (24-14) and Dawson (25-10), who were almost double winners, and Tim Lieb (21-17).

What a great season! Please join us next year ... I promise to not "monkey" around with the URL between now and then!

Fine print: A big shout out to the wife of one local sports writer, we will keep her name anonymous to protect the writer, who says she enjoys our fine print each week. Let's just give her the nickname "Mrs. Lukat" ... all of the fine print this season has been produced by a "content farm" in Round Hill ... fun fact: every 10th employee in the Loudoun Public Schools has "Oblas" as their last name (look it up!) ... Three days after the Stone Bridge-Massaponax Mud Bowl game, the Bulldogs found a pair of cleats, a snare drum, a photo of Ronnie Shaban and the Massaponax starting defensive end buried in the mud ... yes we finally bought a Christmas tree, no it isn't decorated but I did find our two kittens hanging off it this morning, living ornaments, could be a new business venture ... for every photo you buy on VivaLoudoun.com this holiday season, an angel gets its wings ... My nickname in high school was "Smoothie King" ... I realize that didn't sound quite right ... When the in-laws arrive on Dec. 17 and don't leave until New Year's Day, that isn't a "visit", that is grounds for legal residence ... No, I'm not worried they will read the Fine Print, every time they leave town, they slip me a $20 bill and a 12-step brochure ... Whatever holiday you celebrate this season, please enjoy and be safe ... honestly, we can't afford to lose the viewers! Enjoy!


All-time You Pick'Em Winner's List (udpated Dec. 18, 2009)
16 - Jason Treon (aka The Oracle)
10 - John Koren, Ryan Price (aka The Price is Always Right)
9 - Tim Lieb
7 - Greg Dawson, Ryan Rogers, Chris Tully
6 - Jane Baker
5 - Walter (Fan Zero) McCowat, Sam (Walk The) Plank
4 - Ryder Sousa
3 - Kathy Athey, Jamie Eberly, Chuck McDaniel
2 - Jeff Hawes
1 - Steven Balik, Leon Barber, Andrew Berdhal, Zirkle Blakey, Joe Conroy, Larry Hall, Hayden Hawes, Sherrie Kipps, Carl Lukat, Marco Mastrangelo, Patrick McNanley, Phil Murphy, Chris Robinson, Trevor Scales, Dave Scarangella

Gymnastics: VivaLoudoun 2009-10 Top Scores

VivaLoudoun is tracking all the top scores from the 2009-10 prep gymnastics season in Loudoun. How does your favorite gymnast rate? Please email additions to Dan Sousa (dan.sousa[at]verizon.net)

Gymnastics: Loudoun Valley Finishes Second in 5-Team Meet at Stonewall

Manassas (Dec. 17, 2009) - Michaela Pashcal finished fifth on the bars, third on the beam, second on the floor and third in the All-Around to pace Loudoun Valley High School to a second place finish in a five-team meet Wednesday at Stonewall Jackson High School.

The Vikes scored 135.30 to take runner-up to Battlefield (137.9).

Also for Valley: Jess Bramhall finished 5th on vault and 2nd on bars. Shae Spotts finished 5th on beam. Other outstanding performances were turned in by Amanda Huebner, Olivia Becker, Katherine Ayala Jo Trombadore, Briana Matthews, Kellie Hauck, Tori White, and Melanie Katz. The next meet will be held December 19th for the Bobcat Invitational.

News: Renaldo Wynn and Washington Redskins Brighten the Holiday for 50 LCPS Students

(Dec. 17, 2009) - Washington Redskin defensive end Renaldo Wynn, his wife LaTanya, mother-in-law, Barbara McNair, and the Renaldo Wynn Foundation brightened the holidays for 50 deserving Loudoun County Public Schools students on Dec. 1 at the Sterling West Target store.

Drama: Loudoun County Students Named Outstanding Actors at VHSL State Theatre Festival

(Dec. 17, 2009) - Loudoun County High School seniors Lauren Talbot and Jefferson Harris were named Outstanding Actors at the Virginia High School League (VHSL) State Theatre Festival on Dec. 8 in Charlottesville.

Talbot and Harris were honored for their roles as “Miss Mellencamp” and “Elliot,” respectively, in the LCHS Drama Department's production of “COMPETITION PIECE.” Only eight awards are given in Group AA and Loudoun County was the only high school to place two performers in the elite group.

The play, which placed first in Dulles District and Region II competitions, came in third overall at the state level. This was the Loudoun County Drama Department's fourth trip to state competition in five years and their second third place finish during that span.

Photo Gallery: Girls Basketball - Loudoun County vs. Freedom

Click on any photo to view the gallery

News: Broad Run Softball and Girls Soccer to Get State Title Rings Monday

(Dec. 17, 2009) - Broad Run High School, with seven state titles since June 2007, is surely keeping the jewelry business afloat! The Spartans will honor their 2009 softball and girls soccer VHSL state title teams with ring ceremonies at halftime of the boys basketball against Brentsville this Monday, Dec. 21. Game time is 7:30 p.m.

The Spartans softball team has won three consecutive AA state titles and the girls soccer team, like Broad Run's football team, has won back-to-back state titles. From the school's opening in 1969 until May 2007 the school won seven titles total.

Wrestling: Wed. Dec. 16 Round-up - Freedom Rolls Past BW; Broad Run Beats LC; SB Falls at Marshall

(Dec. 17, 2009) - The Freedom Wrestling team kept rolling Wednesday night with a 69-6 win over Briar Woods to improve the Eagles overall record to 12-0 and Dulles District mark to 2-0.

DaQuante Timbers started a 12-match run for the eagles with a 2nd period pin, and the eagles just kept on rolling. The Eagles will be traveling to Broadway High School to compete in the Lou Nagy Invitational on Friday and Saturday of this week.

Freedom 69, Briar Woods 6
189- Freda(Free) pinned Awad(BW)
215- Sosa(BW) pinned Lanzaro(Free)
Hvy- Timbers(Free) pins Basue(BW)
103- Hamm(Free) wins by forfeit
112- Marquina(Free) pins Chiche(BW)
119- Le(Free) md Hulcher(BW) 9-1
125- Hosti(Free) pins Scott(BW)
130- Gaetani(Free) pins Kelly(BW)
135- Kent(Free) dec Mansory(BW) 9-8
140- Young(Free) pins Ochs(BW)
145- Sheptock(Free) pins Seely(BW)
152- Murphy(Free) pins Richards(BW)
160- Haggerty(Free) md Lutz(BW) 10-0
171- Constantino(Free) Brownlee 13-3

Broad Run 47, Loudoun County 17
Broad Run went on to defeat Loudoun County (1-1) last night on the road by a score of 47-17, moving the Spartans to 1-0 in the District for the season. Helping in the win, were Nelson Schmidl (112) and Akhil Gowda (103) who solidified the match.

Broad Run 47, Loudoun County 17
103 Gowda BR dec 4-3 Greico (OT)
112 Schmidl BR fall 4:44 Rossell
119 Anthony LC dec 12-5 Hartman
125 Martin dec 5-3 Shain
130 Murray BR dec 3-0 Robillard
135 DiRenzo BR tech fall Scheller
140 Richardson LC dec 11-5 Gilbride
145 Montoya BR fall 3:28 Acton
152 Acton LC maj dec. 8-0 Dunlap
160 Perez LC maj dec 10-2 Gass
171 Mendoza BR fall 3:28 Stevens
189 Dundas BR fall :44 Falixie
215 James BR FFT
285 Maresco BR FFT

Marshall 49, Stone Bridge 29
Bulldogs fall in Liberty District dual.
SB wrestling fans: looking for somebody to report scores and results for the Bulldogs to VivaLoudoun. Email us at dan.sousa@vivaloudoun.com

News: National Weather Service Calling for Weekend Storm to Dump 5+ Inches of Snow in Loudoun

Issued by The National Weather Service
Baltimore/Washington, MD
1:48 pm EST, Thu., Dec. 17, 2009

... WINTER STORM WATCH IN EFFECT FROM LATE FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH LATE SATURDAY NIGHT...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STERLING VIRGINIA HAS ISSUED A WINTER STORM WATCH... IN EFFECT FROM LATE FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH LATE SATURDAY NIGHT.

* PRECIP TYPE... SNOW.

* ACCUMULATIONS... HEAVY SNOW WITH ACCUMULATIONS GREATER THAN 5 INCHES.

* TIMING... SNOW WILL BEGIN LATE FRIDAY NIGHT AND WILL CONTINUE THROUGH SUNDAY MORNING.

* TEMPERATURES... UPPER 20S TO LOWER 30S THROUGH THE EVENT.

* WINDS... 10 TO 20 MPH THROUGH THE EVENT... WITH GUSTS OF 25 TO 30 MPH SATURDAY AND SUNDAY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A WINTER STORM WATCH MEANS THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR SIGNIFICANT SNOW THAT MAY IMPACT TRAVEL. CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE LATEST FORECASTS.

Band: Record Number of Loudoun County Public Schools Bands Rates as Superior

(Dec. 17, 2009) - The marching bands representing five Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) high schools received a superior rating during the fall State Marching Festival held by the Virginia Band and Orchestra Directors Association (VBODA).

Superior is the highest ranking the BBODA awards.

The previous single-year high for LCPS bands earning this designation was two.

Bands receiving a superior rating were:

· Dominion High School

· Loudoun County High School

· Loudoun Valley High School

· Park View High School

· Stone Bridge High School

Two other LCPS bands, those representing Briar Woods High School and Freedom High School, received ratings of excellent. Receiving good ratings were Broad Run and Heritage high schools.

All of these bands received their ratings during competitions on October 31st. Dominion, Loudoun County, Loudoun Valley and Stone Bridge earned their superior ratings during the Northwest competition at Millbrook High School in Frederick County. Park View earned its superior rating during the East competition at Massaponax High School in Spotsylvania County.

Football: BR's Peeler, LC's Williams Nab Region II Players of the Year Honors

(Dec. 17, 2009) - Broad Run High School running back T.J. Peeler was named the Region II Offensive Player of the Year and Loudoun County High School linebacker Chase Williams was named the Defensive Player of the Year in a vote by the coaches over the weekend.

Broad Run coach Mike Burnett, after leading the Spartans to back-to-back Division 4 state titles, was named the D4 Coach of the Year.

Click here for the complete first team selections on offense and defense.

Click here for the complete second team

Girls Basketball: Tuesday Dec. 15 Round-up

Freedom senior Kelsey Buchanan after her Eagles defeated Loudoun County Tuesday night, 54-47, in a match-up of defending state champions


Freedom 54, Loudoun County 47
Click here for a complete box from this game
South Riding - The Freedom High School girls basketball, behind the inside game of 6-foot-3 Kelsey Buchanan (20 points, 11 rebounds, 5 blocks) and Jasmine Merritt (16 rebounds, 5 assists) defeated Loudoun County Tuesday in a Dulles District match-up of defending VHSL state champions with the host Eagles winning the Division 3 crown last year and the Raiders taking the Division 4 title.

Dionna Scott, who like Merritt, pushes 6-foot, chipped in 16 points with five steals as the Eagles, despite losing starting point guard Jessica Escorza in the opening minutes to an injury, proved to have too much height and depth for County.

Freedom (2-0, 5-0) defeated Loudoun County (1-1, 4-1) four times last season on the way to the school's first ever Dulles District title, Region II title and state title -- in any sport.

Tuesday's meeting, with Escorza's early exit and the loss for County of point guard Kerry Sarver to graduation, was a turnover affair with the two teams combining for 53 total turnovers.

The Raiders jumped out to a 9-2 lead and the advantage could have been bigger as they missed a couple of easy shots with the lead. Freedom then went on a 9-0 run to take the lead before the end of the first quarter and the Eagles continued, scoring 15 of 17 points, to take a 17-11 lead that they would never give up.

Broad Run 41, Dominion 20
Click here for a full box from this game courtesy of Broad Run High School
Sterling - The Spartans got nine points from Lauren Mines and four assists apiece from Maggie Andricosky and Nina Dunay to defeat the Titans in AA Dulles District play.

The Spartans used a 10-2 second quarter advantage to take a 19-5 halftime lead.

Broad Run improved to 1-0 and 3-1 and Dominion fell to 0-2, 0-5.

Potomac Falls 39, Briar Woods 35
The Panthers held the Falcons, playing without senior Kim Bell, to just four points in the first quarter and went on to win this Dulles District contest with Jenae Reid making two free throws with less than 10 seconds left to seal the victory.

Raven Short had nine points and six rebounds for PF.

Box (provided by Potomac Falls High School)
PF 11 12 06 10 39
BW 4 13 09 09 35
Potomac Falls
E. Fauteux 0 1-2 1
J. Reid 1 3-5 6
R. Short 2 5-6 9, 2 assists, 6 rebs
P. Mook 0 0-2 0
S. Berry 2 2-4 6
J. Jeffries 1 5-9 7, 7 rebs
A. Stanley 1 0-0 2
R. Perez 3 2-5 8, 5 rebs

Boys Basketball: Tuesday Dec. 15 Round-up

Click here to go to a photo gallery with more photos from the Freedom-Loudoun County boys game!

Freedom 54, Loudoun County 47
South Riding - The Ealges were winless at 0-5 coming into Monday night and then they defeated Brentsville in overtime. Freedom rode that win into Tuesday's AA Dulles District contest with Loudoun County and came away with a 57-52 win.

Freedom (1-1, 2-5) was deadly from the foul line, going 15 of 16 including 13 of 14 in the fourth quarter. Brian Orr led the eagles with 17 points.

Loudoun County (1-1, 2-3) got 20 points from Mahir Mrkonjic but could never quite catch up after trailing, 38-36, entering the final quarter. Twice the Raiders hit big 3-pointers to cut the lead to one, with 2:51 left and 1:24 remaining, but each time Freedom answered and the Eagles iced the game by making four free throws in the final seconds.

FREEDOM-SOUTH RIDING 57, LOUDOUN COUNTY 52
L (2-3, 1-1) — Mrkonjic 20, Mays 13, Campbell 7, Pratt 6, Gibson 4, Parker 2. Totals 17 11-17 52.
F (0-5, 0-1) — Orr 17, Hawkins 9, Miles 9, Barton 8, O'Rourke 8, Muhlenberg 4, Conde 2. Totals 19 15-16 57.
Halftime: Freedom-South Riding, 28-21.
Three-point goals: L 7 (Mrkonjic 4, Mays, Campbell 2); F 4 (Miles 2, O'Rourke 2).

Broad Run 69, Dominion 64
Ashburn - Kevin McGaughey paced four Spartans in double figures with a game-high 17 points as Broad Run won this rematch of last year's Dulles District tournament finals. Broad Run, at 1-0 and 5-0, is one of three remaining basketball teams in the area still undefeated.

Ahmad Zafar scored 12 for BR and Eric Hiatt and DaDa Johnson each had 10.

DeAndre Reaves and Derrick Lewis led the Titans with 16 and 15, respectively. Kevin Conboy scored 11 for Dominion as last year's defending district champion fell to 1-1 and 1-5 overall.

Broad Run led 31-23 at the half.

Broad Run: McGaughey 17, Zafar 12, DJohnson 10, Hiatt 10, TJohnson 8, Salgado 8, Janjua 4.
Dominion: Reaves 16, Lewis 15, Conboy 11, Lidral-Porter 7, Huff 6, Evans 5, Chinn 2, Coleman 2.3-Pointers: BR 6 (DJohnson 3, McGaughey 2, Hiatt), Dominion 2 (Reaves, Evans)

Potomac Falls 65, Briar Woods 55
Ashburn - Leading 52-50 after three quarters, the Panthers went on a 9-0 run, led by three baskets in a row by Lukas Mihailovich, to start the fourth quarter to open their Dulles District season with a victory.

The Panthers are 1-0 and 4-1 overall. BW drops to 0-2 and 3-2.

Mihailovich finished with 17 points for PF and Brendon Chesson added 10.

Corey Faciane led the Falcons with 16 and Philip Hardy added 14 with Myles Tate taking home 10.

PF: Milhailovich 17, Chesson 10, Graves 7, Hobby 6, Curran 6, Simoneau 5, Hoover 4, Wagenhoffer 4, Owens 2, Hansen 2.
BW: Faciane 16, Hardy 14, Tate 10, Calder 6, Kuame 4, Burcak 3, Roush 2.
3-Pointers: PF 1 (Simoneau), BW 4 (Faciane 3, Burcak)

Freedom's First-year coach Derek Gaunt after his first Dulles District win

Youth Sports - Baseball - New 9U Travel Baseball Team Seeks Players

The Loudoun Aces is a new 9U select travel baseball team seeking committed families for the spring 2010 season. The Aces are interested in players who are motivated to work hard and reach their full potential within a true "team" concept. The Aces will compete in the Old Dominion Baseball League in the spring as well as 1-2 local tournaments.

If you love baseball and are league age 9 (not 10 until after April 30), please register to attend tryouts by emailing Kevin at kbednoski@roadsidellc.com. Tryouts will be held from 2-4pm on Sunday, December 20th at DST at 45685 Oakbrook Court, Suite 110, Sterling, VA 20166. For additional information on the team, schedule, commitment or any other questions, call Kevin at 703.362.3300.

News: Loudoun County, Loudoun Valley, Stone Bridge All Top 5 in Wachovia Cup Standings After Fall Season

Charlottesville (Dec. 16, 2009) - Radford, Blacksburg and Lake Braddock lead the Virginia High School League’s Wachovia Cup standings in Group A, AA and AAA following the 2009 fall sports season. Locally, Stone Bridge is No. 4 in AAA with Loudoun Valley No. 5. In AA, Loudoun County is No. 5.

The Wachovia Cup recognizes the League’s state champions of state champions, the school in each group that performs best in state-level competition across all sports.

Volleyball: Loudoun County's Juliane Hanna Named Gatorade Virginia Volleyball Player of the Year

Chicago (Dec. 16, 2009) - Loudoun County senior Juliane Hanna -- who helped the Raiders to three consecutive AA VHSL state titles -- has been named the 2009-10 Gatorade Virginia Volleyball Player of the Year.

The Gatorade Company -- which has been honoring the nation's best high school athletes for 25 years now, made the announcement, in collaboration with ESPN RISE, on Wednesday.

Hanna is the second Gatorade Virginia Volleyball Player of the Year to be chosen from Loudoun with Loudoun Valley's Blair Brown, currently a standout at Penn State, winning it in 2004-05 and 2005-06.

The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the court, distinguishes Hanna as Virginia's best high school volleyball player. Now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Volleyball Player of the Year award, to be announced in late December, Hanna joins an elite alumni association of past state volleyball award winners, including USAVolleyball Olympians Kim Glass (2001-02, Horseshoe HS, Penn.), Kim Willoughby (1998-99 & 1999-00, Assumption HS, La.) and Ogonna Nnamani (1999-00, University HS, Ill.).

The 5-foot-1O senior outside hitter recorded 312 kills, 204 digs and 76 service aces this past season for the Raiders (26-3), who won their third consecutive state title in November. The 2009 Region II Player of the Year and the Dulles District Player of the Year, Hanna notched 41 kills, 33 digs, 11 blocks and 11 service aces in three state tournament matches to lead LoudounCounty to the title.

Hanna has maintained a 3.5 GPA in the classroom. She has volunteered with the Loudoun Therapeutic Riding Foundation, to benefit people with cognitive, physical and psychological disabilities, and as a youth volleyball coach.

"Juliane Hanna is an all-around tough player," said Jim Bour, head coach of Westfield High. "The thing about her is I don't remember any weaknesses. She comes at you in waves; she's relentless. Hanna's just one of those players you want on the court with you"

Hanna has signed a National Letter of Intent to play volleyball on scholarship at the University of New Mexico beginning in the fall of 2010.

News: "Rally for Ryan!" Benefit Slated for Thursday at Finnegan's

(Dec. 16, 2009) - The "Rally for Ryan!" benefit to aid the family of Broad Run High School grad and West Virginia student Ryan Diviney -- who is still in a coma after an attack more than a month ago -- will take place at Finnegan's in Ashburn Village.

The benefit will run from 7 p.m. to midnight. All proceeds for Ryan will come from raffles, t-shirt sales and donations at the event. The event is not receiving any proceeds from food and drink purchases during the event.

Raffle tickets will be sold until 10:30 p.m. Drawings will be staggered (approximately 7:45, 8:30, 9:00, 10:15 and 10:45). Raffle tickets will be $1 or $5 dependng on the size of the prize.

You must be present in order to win. Please bring cash for raffle tickets.

There will also be a donation box where cash and checks can be given (checks should be made out to Ryan’s Rally) and “Team Diviney” shirts will be available for purchase (cash and checks).

At approximately 9 p.m. there will be a group toast to Ryan, who is currently in a hospital in Atlanta that specializes in brain trauma injuries.

WVU apparel and a Team Diviney t-shirt will be given away with each raffle group. Here is a list of the raffle items and (approximate) times they will be called:

$1 Raffles
• Driveway Coating and Seal 8:30 & 9:00
• Haircut by Nalan’s Salon 7:45 & 9:00
• Highlight and Cut by Nalan’s Salon 9:00
• Hairport Salon and Day Spa Gift Basket 7:45 & 9:00
• $50 Clyde’s Gift Certificate 7:45
• $50 Giant Gift Cards 8:30 & 9:00
• Various Finnegan’s Raffles 8:30 & 10:15
• Free 6” Sub from Subway 7:00 & 8:30
• $10 Smoothie King Gift Cards 7:45 & 10:15
• Sneakers from Potomac River Running 9:00
• 1 Oil Change & 6 Bottles of Oil 8:30 & 10:15
• Ashburn Bagel Gift Certificates 8:30
• Lorian Spa $50 Gift Certificate 10:45

$5 Raffles
• Zhu Zhu Pet “Chunk” (Hard to find!) 9:00
• Wine Tasting for 10 at Ashburn Wine Shop 9:00
• 4 Wizards Tickets w/ Parking Pass (March 27) 9:00
• Photography Portrait Sitting 9:00
by Portraits By the Two of Us
• 4 April 12 Orioles / Rays Tickets including 10:15
game, pre-game field passes &
meet Joe Madden and Evan Longoria
• 2 Jimmy Fallon Standup Tickets (TBD) 10:15
• 2 Cheech & Chong Standup Tickets(TBD) 9:00
• Washington Capitals Sunday January 31st. 10:15
3:00 vs. Tampa Bay. Includes 2 Tickets
for the ExxonMobil Skybox with parking pass;
Food, soda, beer and wine are included (for 21+)
and will be served in the box.
• Washington Wizards Monday February 1st 10:45
7:00 vs. Boston. Includes 2 Tickets for the
ExxonMobil Skybox with parking pass;
Food, soda, beer, and wine (for 21+) are
included and will be served in the box.

If you need any more information about the event, please contact Jackie O'Donnell at jodonnell@ashburnvillage.org or Karen Parks at kparks@ashburnvillage.org.

Basketball: Sweep City -- Broad Run, Freedom and Potomac Falls all in Boys, Girls Varsity Sweeps

(Dec. 15, 2009) - It was a clean sweep Tuesday night as Broad Run, Freedom and Loudoun County swept to boys and girls varsity basketball wins in the AA Dulles District.

The Freedom High School girls won their 23rd straight game with a 54-47 win over Loudoun County. In the first game of the doubleheader in South Riding the Freedom boys made it back-to-back wins with a 57-52 win over the Raiders.

Broad Run swept Dominion with the Spartans boys remained unbeaten by taking the Titans, 69-64, in a rematch of last year's district tournament title game. The Broad run girls doubled up on Dominion, 41-20.

Potomac Falls used some tough fourth quarter defense to beat the Falcon boys, 65-55, and the Potomac Falls girls are turning out to be a surprise story early in the season as they followed up wins over the weekend against AAA Stone Bridge and Loudoun Valley with a 39-35 win over Briar Woods on Tuesday.

Complete coverage of the Freedom doubleheader will follow with photos and video interviews plus a full wrap-up and boxes as they are sent in by the teams!

Click on our scores button above any time to see the latest scores and click on the standings button for the latest standings!