Gameday Magazine

STERLING, VA - In less than two weeks of championship baseball online, TCC Sports is excited to report that the Gameday Radio Network has set a new record with listeners. The exclusive streams produced by TCC Sports between May 18th and May 31st featured 8 games and covered the Dulles District Baseball Tournament, and also the Northern Region Triple-A regional playoffs. All of the broadcasts together have been listened to over 15,000 times in just 13 days.

The Potomac Falls vs Freedom contest in the Dulles District Tournament semifinals currently is the most listened to stream on the network with over 5,000 listens, and the Broad Run vs Heritage semifinal is the second most listened to stream with over 2,500 listens.

The Gameday Radio Network was launched back in August of 2006 for football season, and since that time, the network has received over 300,000 listens. TCC Sports has broadcast the Division 6 State Championship football game, the state basketball playoffs in Group AA and Group AAA, and now the baseball playoffs for the Northern Region and Dulles District teams.

In the fall of 2007, TCC Sports will launch several new and exciting technologies online for an enhanced listening experience for local sports fans. More games, more coaches' shows, and other exciting content will be added to the Gameday Radio Network.

The Gameday Radio Network uses the Windows Media Player platform and is very easy to listen to. Simply click on the play buttons on the header and it will take you directly to the live stream if the game is currently in progress, or listen on-demand at your convenience by clicking play on the windows media player embedded in the game report provided by TCC Sports.

If you have a Mac computer, you can download a Windows Media Player for your Mac by clicking here.

If you are interested in joining the Gameday Radio Network broadcast team, please contact Andy Hayes at 571-233-8696 or by e-mail at Andy@tccsports.com. There are several opportunities available to get involved in covering local sports as a broadcaster for TCC Sports.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 08:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Game Recap Provided by Potomac Falls\Gameday Insider

The Waynesboro Little Giants advanced to the Regional Finals on Wednesday at the expense of the road weary Potomac Falls Panthers. After traveling two hours to Louisa High School on Monday, the Panthers learned that the game was canceled due to rain. They returned to Louisa on Tuesday and beat the Lions, only to return to Sterling at 12:30 am Wednesday morning. They then hopped on the bus for the 3 1/2 hour drive to Waynesboro on Wednesday afternoon and arrived 15 minutes before game time. The game was delayed until 6:30, so the Panthers could get settled and warm up for the game.

Once the game commenced, the Panther's Jacob Kline would pitch 5 2/3 innings, limiting Waynesboro to 2 hits over the first 5. The Panthers took the early 2-0 lead when Rob Malan laid down a bunt single in the 2nd inning and eventually scored on a throwing error to third by Giant's catcher Brandon Clark. Greg Woodlief scored the second run when he walked and was driven in by a Cory Flickinger double down the left field line.

The Little Giants tied it in the 4th inning when they loaded the bases and Stevie Moreland hit a bloop single to right field that Nick Paganelli laid out for, but could not come up with the catch. That single scored two runs and the game remained tied until the bottom of the 6th inning, when Waynesboro scored 4 unanswered runs, on 3 hits and 1 error, in the bottom of the inning to break the game open, and end the season for the Panthers. The game ended on a double play as Flickinger, with 1 out and a runner on 1st base, lined out to second and the Little Giants doubled the runner off first. The loss eliminated the Panthers from the Regional tournament and ended their season.

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 12:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

ASHBURN, VA - The #1 ranked softball team in the state of Virginia continued to dominate their opposition in the regional semifinals on Wednesday night. The Spartans from Broad Run scorched Turner Ashby at home in front of a packed house 9-0 behind another incredible performance from pitcher Caitlyn Delahaba. Delahaba usually steals the headlines from the mound, but last night saw her also hit a grand slam homerun that propelled the Spartans to victory. Teammate Ashley Kramer also added a two run blast and Broad Run rolled on to the regional finals on Friday.

Broad Run will play at home for the regional finals, but will automatically advance to the state quarterfinals with Wednesday's win. If the Spartans can win, they will host the state quarterfinal game on Tuesday. A Spartan loss will mean Broad Run will travel on Tuesday to the higher seed.

Delahaba only gave up two hits on the night and her performance on the mound was one of the best of the season with 17 strikeouts. The Spartans improved to 25-0 on the season and are ranked in the top 10 in the United States.

Game Notes:
Karla Powell had 2 RBI in the contest against Turner Ashby on Wednesday. Powell singled in Ashley Kramer to start the scoring for Broad Run. She later had a sacrifice fly and RBI that scored Kaitlyn Tiplady.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 09:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

VIENNA, VA - For the second straight season, the Oakton Cougars had an opportunity to knock out the favored and nationally ranked Madison Warhawk baseball team from the playoffs. The Cougars entered Wednesday's primetime matchup with Madison having won 20 of their last 21 games, and looking to avenge an earlier season loss that was decided in extra innings at Madison High School.

The pitchers in Wednesday's matchup were highly touted Warhawk Jason Farley, and the guy that Oakton fans called the X-factor, Eric Cantrell. Cantrell didn't pitch in the regular season contest that saw Farley and the Warhawks win, so Wednesday's game was an opportunity for the hard throwing righthander to even the score.

Madison started the game off quickly scoring first in the bottom of the second inning when David McIntyre crossed home plate after Cougar shortstop Alfredo Rodriguez chose to tag out the runner in a pickle between first and second instead of throwing home to get McIntyre.

The Cougars would answer later in the game when Kevin Wager crossed home plate to tie the game at 1-1. Madison southpaw Jason Farley continued to throw well as the Cougars didn't threaten again until the top of the 7th inning. Oakton's Connor Madden stepped into the batter's box with 1 out and singled to left field, and then made what proved to be the decision of the game. Wager came to the plate again and this time belted another single for the Cougars in between the third baseman and shortstop, and because the play pulled off Warhawk third baseman Andrew Shrock into the hole, Madden decided to head for third base on the play. The throw came in a tad high from left field and Madden slid in safely to give the Cougars runners on first and third with still only one out.

That brought up Cougar shortstop Alfredo Rodriguez, who took the signal from head coach Scott Rowland from third base, and proceeded to lay down the perfect safety squeeze bunt that scored Madden. The Cougars took the lead 2-1 and put the game in pitcher Eric Cantrell's hands to close it out.

In the bottom of the seventh inning, Madison led off the inning with a single from slugger Sterling Sams. Sams would later advance to second on a Rich Conlon bunt to put the tying run in scoring position. With one out, David McIntyre came to the plate again and drilled a Cantrell fastball to right centerfield, but Cougar centerfielder Mark Stier lunged to make the catch of the game for the second out of the inning. Warhawk Andrew Shrock came to the plate with two outs and Sams still stranded at second base with Madison's season riding on his at bat. Cantrell proceeded to strike out Shrock to end the game, and Madison's season.

Cantrell was named the Chick-fil-A player of the game with his 5 hit performance, only giving up 1 earned run while striking out 3. Teammate Connor Madden also took home the Chick-fil-A player of the game honor with his heads up base running decision late in the game that led to the Oakton win.

With the victory, Oakton now advances to the Regional Championship game on Friday against South County. The winner will play at home in the state quarterfinals on Tuesday, and the loser will head on the road to face a higher seed. South County won 3-1 today against Langley in the first game at Madison this afternoon.

With the loss, Madison finishes their season one game short of making the state quarterfinals. For the second year in a row, the Warhawks were knocked out of tournament play by their cross town rival Oakton. Madison was nationally ranked all season long and won the Liberty District for the 5th time in 6 years.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 11:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Game Coverage Provided by Potomac Falls\Gameday Insider

John Bracken had a key RBI triple in the 7th inning and Jacob Kline had 2 RBI singles as the Panthers broke a 2 - 2 deadlock with four runs in the top of the 7th inning to beat the Louisa Lions 6 - 3 in the Regional Quarterfinals.

In front of a capacity partisan crowd at Louisa High School, the Panthers received a great pitching performance from Cory Flickinger and their defense got them out of a few jams. The Panthers led off the scoring in the 2nd inning when Bracken hit a double off the left field fence and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Kline then hit a single to right field to score Bracken. The Lions responded with a run of their own when Chris Bell hit a single to left field, and advanced to third on an overthrown cutoff. John Barfield then hit a drive to right field, which Bracken made a great catch at the fence to rob the potential extra base hit, and Bell scored easily on the sacrifice to tie the game at 1.

Potomac Falls then scored in the third when Greg Woodlief reached base on a walk and Mike Spring followed with a triple into the left field corner just out of the reach of a diving Kenny Fleming. The Lions tied it in the fourth when Bell collected his second hit, a double over the left fielder's head. He advanced to third on a passed ball and scored when Jeff Mehlhaff hit a bloop fly ball, tailing towards the right field line, that Panther second baseman Nick Paganelli made a great running catch on, but wasn't able to get the out at the plate.

With the score tied 2 - 2, the Lion's first 2 batters in the bottom of the 6th inning, were able to reach base, and both advanced to 2nd and 3rd on a wild pitch. With no outs, Barfield hit a shot that appeared to be heading for right field, and would have scored both runners, when Panther first baseman Aaron Sweger stabbed the ball, held the runners and raced to tag out Barfield as he headed down the line. Flickinger then induced two consecutive groundouts and the game went into the 7th inning, still tied at 2.

Rob Malan lead off the inning with a walk and was knocked in when Bracken hit a triple down the right field line. He scored when Kline followed with his second RBI single to left field. Patrick Nightingale then pinch hit and hit a shot to short, however Tyler Brookman's throw to first was wide and Nightingale was safe. With runners on the corners, Paganelli laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt down the first base line to score pinch runner Michael Detaranto. On the next pitch, Nightingale was stealing third when Lions catcher Brian Grubbs throw to third sailed into left field and Nightingale scored the final Panther run to give them a 6 - 2 lead.

The Lions were not done as their first 2 batters in the 7th inning reached on a hit and a hit batter, successively. At this point Flickinger's night was over as Kline came on to close out the 7th. He proceeded to get two groundball outs before a run scored on a hard hit ball by Tyler Brookman that was ruled an error. Kline then got Eric Church to ground to third and Malan made a diving stop and threw out Church at first to end the game.

Cory Flickinger got the win with 6 innings pitched, giving up 5 hits with 2 strikeouts. John Bracken was 2-3 (double & triple) with an RBI and Jacob Kline was 2-3 with 2 RBI's. For the Lions, Eric Church gave up 5 hits and had 10 strikeouts and Chris Bell was 2-3.

The Panthers get no rest as they now travel to Waynesboro to play on Wednesday night at 6:00 in the Semifinals.

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 04:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

ASHBURN, VA - The Stone Bridge Lady Bulldogs produced another come from behind win tonight over the Centreville Wildcats in the Northern Region softball tournament semi-final game. Trailing 2-0 headed into the bottom of the 7th, having scattered only five hits and scoring no runs in the previous six frames, the Bulldogs managed once again to snatch victory from the jaws of the defeat, scoring three runs to win the game. With one out, Lauren Jennings reached on a throwing error by the Wildcat shortstop, and was replaced by pinch runner Jessica Dall. Cassie Phillips then delivered a clutch single up the middle, and though Centreville got the ball the second base quickly, it was not in time to force out the speedy Dall. Michelle Mocabee then hit a grounder to the shortstop, who flipped to second to force out Phillips, but when the ball was bobbled, there were three Bulldogs safe on the bases, still only one out, and the top of the Stone Bridge order coming up.

Senior Lauren Williams neatly singled to left field, scoring Dall, and when the Wildcats left fielder misplayed the ball, Phillips scored too, tying the game. Mocabee and Williams also advanced on the outfielder's error, putting the game-winning run on third, still with one out. Natalie Driskill came to the plate, and she'd been here before. In last Friday's dramatic win over Yorktown, Driskill had come up to the plate with no outs, bases loaded and the winning run on third. That time, her hard fly to left was caught in the air, and the runner hadn't tagged, leaving the game-winning run to be driven in by Kayla Lechler. This time, Driskill wasted no time in taking charge with her own bat. She drove the first pitch she saw into left field for the game-winning RBI walk-off single.

Stone Bridge improves to 20-6 on the year, and will play Robinson in the Northern Region final Friday night at 7. As one of the top two Northern Region teams, the Bulldogs also have a state berth and will start the state tournament Tuesday evening, location TBD.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 01:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

ASHBURN, VA - Having already received one major division 1A scholarship offer from Stanford in April, Stone Bridge safety Jeron Gouveia was prepared to play his senior season and take his 5 allowed official recruiting visits before deciding on a program that fit him best. Offers were expected to continue to come in from most of the major schools in the region, but that may change after what transpired on Tuesday.

On Tuesday, Virginia Tech secondary coach Torrian Gray stopped by to tell head coach Mickey Thompson and his star defensive back that the Hokies wanted Gouveia to come play for the Maroon and Orange. Wasting little time, Gouveia committed before Gray headed back down I81, and he became the second Virginia Tech football recruit in three years from Stone Bridge high school to commit before his senior season.

In 2004, former Bulldog tight end Ed Wang became the earliest commitment for Virginia Tech in their football program's history. Wang accepted quickly, as did Gouveia on Tuesday. In both cases, Bulldog Head coach Mickey Thompson encouraged the Tech coaching staff to act quickly to get a premiere player in the state.

"I told the Tech coaches that they had an opportunity to get a great football player who can definitely have a big impact on their program," Thompson said.

Thompson also agreed with Gouveia's decision to respond quickly to the offer.

"I told him that it was a perfect situation for him down at Tech," Thompson said. "The other clear benefit to him is that he now can focus on his senior season knowing that his recruiting process is finished."

Virginia Tech secondary coach Torrian Gray attended the Gameday Gridiron football camp in May and was seen paying special attention to Gouveia, who stood out in the 1 on 1 drills. Gouveia was excited about his performance, and he expressed his pleasure with the way he performed on GamedayTV later that day.

"I know the college coaches were looking for me to improve my speed, and I ran a 4.62 40 yard dash today laser time," Gouveia said. "I just focused on my agility and changing direction fast, so hopefully they liked what they saw."

A source close to the staff at Virginia Tech told Gameday that after the camp, the coaching staff for the Hokies sat down and pondered offering Gouveia before the season. Obviously with today's events, they took the lead in snagging one of the premiere defensive players in the state of Virginia.

Gouveia is a two-time All Gameday safety and has starred on the football field since his sophomore season. He was also named the Northern Region Defensive Player of the Year in 2006.

Mickey Thompson has watched Gouveia develop into a dominating player on both sides of the ball, but sees his future on defense at the next level.

"Jeron has the instincts and the athletic ability to play safety at the next level," Thompson added. "He can definitely add weight and fill out in his frame to even potentially play linebacker, so it will be interesting to see where Tech ends up playing him."

Gouveia would really like to play the position he does at Stone Bridge, but is open to the possibility of switching to linebacker if the coaches ask that of him.

"I'd like to continue to play safety in college, but some of the coaches have told me that with my frame, I could also play linebacker," Gouveia said. "I'm just going to keep working on my speed so I can keep playing safety."

Gouveia becomes the 4th player to commit early for the Hokies in the 2008 signing class. Verbal commitments are not binding until a player signs his letter of intent next February, but don't expect either side to change their mind. This is a great move for Virginia Tech, and an even better decision by Gouveia to commit before the season.

From The Staff At TCC Sports:
Congratulations Jeron on becoming a Hokie! We are all very proud of you, and we wish you the best in your senior season and in your career at Virginia Tech.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 03:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

ASHBURN, VA - Despite facing one of the more challenging pitchers they've seen (Ball State signee Katie Rynex), and a 4 for 4 performance by Herndon's first baseman Lauren Kuhns, the Bulldogs were able to manufacture enough runs for the win.

The game was scoreless through three innings, before Herndon broke things open with 5 runs in the top of the fourth inning. The Bulldogs countered by getting on the board with a run in the bottom of the frame, on a single by senior Stephanie St. Peter, who was sacrificed to second on a bunt by Ashley Gardner and driven in when junior Lauren Wolz doubled.

Keeping Herndon off the scoreboard in the top of the fifth, Stone Bridge got back to work offensively with a leadoff double by Michele Mocabee. Natalie Driskill bunted to get Mocabee to third, but the throw to first by Herndon pitcher Katie Rynex was high, allowing Mocabee to score. As Rynex struggled pitching to Kayla Lechler, Driskill advanced to third on two passed balls, and Lechler walked, taking second on another passed ball. St. Peter drew a full count and fouled off two more pitches before walking the bases loaded for Bulldog pitcher Gardner, who doubled in two runs to bring Stone Bridge within one.

Gardner retired the side in order in the top of the sixth, and the Bulldog offense picked up where it left off, with Mocabee reaching on an error. After a single by senior Lauren Williams, junior catcher Kayla Lechler doubled in Mocabee for the tying run, and St. Peter followed with a double of her own to drive in Williams and Lechler, making the score 7-5 going into the 7th and final inning.

The Hornets were not giving up, and tied the score at 7 on an error and four hits in the top of the 7th. It was all very familiar to the Bulldogs though, who have won 3 of their last four games in the bottom of the 7th inning. Leading off for the Bulldogs, Wolz reached on a misplayed fly ball to right, taking second base on the error. Senior Lauren Jennings' single moved pinch runner Caroline Kittinger to third, and Cassie Phillips singled to right to drive Kittinger in for the win.

The Bulldogs improve to 19-6 and advance to the Northern Region semi-final.

Stats leaders for the Bulldogs:
St. Peter: 2 for 3, double, 1 run scored, 2 RBI
Wolz: 2 for 4, double, RBI
Lechler: 1 for 2, double, 2 runs scored, RBI
Gardner: 1 for 3, double, 2 RBI, sacrifice
Williams: 1 for 3, run scored
Driskill: 1 for 4, run scored
Jennings: 1 for 4
Phillips: 1 for 3, game-winning RBI
Michelle Mocabee: 1 for 3, 2 runs scored
Winning Pitcher: Ashley Gardner - 1 walk, 11 hits.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 02:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

ASHBURN, VA (May 28, 2007) The Monticello Mustangs and the Broad Run Spartans faced off in game 1 of the Region II tournament at Broad Run High School in front of packed crowd on a sunny Monday afternoon. The game started out on a web gem as Spartan left fielder Andrew Mann made a diving catch of Mustang lead off Lance Smith. Neither the Mustangs nor the Spartans could score in the 1st inning leaving the score knotted a 0-0.

The Mustangs then jumped on the board first when an attempt to turn a double play went wide of first baseman Ryan Diviney scoring Zach LaRue from second. The ensuring relay home was high and went past catcher Vince Johnson giving the Mustang's an early 2-0 lead after the top half of the 2nd inning.

The Spartans jumped on the board in the 3rdinning as Chase Bartalone reached first after being hit by a pitch. Bartlone scored 2 batters later on an RBI single by Chris Jessop the leaving Spartans down 2-1.

In the bottom of the 4th, the Spartans struck for three more runs. Vince Johnson led off with a single. One out later, Johnson moved to third on a single by Cole Shain and scored on a single by Patrick Murphy. An error on the Mustang shortstop allowed pinch runner Billy Rocca to score from 3rd base. The final run of the inning came as Murphy scored from 3rd on a deep sacrifice fly by left fielder Andrew Mann. The Spartans now led at the end of 4 innings 4-2.

The Mustangs next scoring opportunity came in the top of the 5th inning as the Mustangs lead off hitter Devon Dilla fisted a bloop single to get on base. Dilla could not get score as the Spartans shut down the next three batters including highlighted by a catch at the fence by center fielder Stephen Hershey.

Neither team could mount a scoring threat in the 6th inning as both starting pitchers, the Mustangs LeRue, and the Spartans Cole Shain were throwing hard.

In the top of the 7th inning, the Spartans and the crowd could sense the victory. The first out came when second baseman Chase Bartalone made an outstanding backhand stop to get Dilla out at first. The Mustang's Joseph Peary then reached safely on a bloop single to right bringing the top of the Mustang's lineup to the plate. Shain then struck out Lance Smith for the second out of the inning. With the crowd on its feet and the fans in a frenzy, the Mustangs Michael Brown hit a grounder to 3rd baseman Kurt Rietzel who fired the ball to Diviney at first, who made an excellent scoop, for the final out of the game.

Cole Shain earned a complete game victory on the mound going the distance, allowing 6 hits, no earned runs, striking out 5 and walking only 1. The Spartans now take on the winner of the Turner-Ashby/Millbrook game on Wednesday, May 30th.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 09:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

FAIRFAX, VA - From a distance, Oakton and Loudoun Valley looked like the same team, both having over 20 wins on the season. But what separated the Cougars and Vikings on Memorial Day was hitting and defense. The Vikings committed 3 errors that led to 3 Cougar runs and in the end, Oakton pulled away to advance to the Northern Region semifinals on Wednesday.

Loudoun Valley, known for their defense and scrappy persona, played uncharacteristically sloppy in the field on Monday. Oakton's Brandon Padula took advantage of Valley's generosity after he tripled to right field. Padula would later score on a Mark Stier single and Oakton took a 1-0 lead in the top of the 2nd inning. The Cougars added 2 more runs in the 3rd and the score remained 3-0 until the bottom of the 5th inning.

Loudoun Valley finally settled down and began a rally when slugger Trevor Ikwild singled to drive in teammate Charlie Sperduto from second. The Vikings added two more runs in the bottom of the 6th inning to tie the game at 3-3 after Sperduto and Carson Parker both scored on hits.

The Cougars finally squashed the Viking rally and came to the plate in the top of the 7th looking to reclaim the lead. Oakton proceeded to load the bases and then Padula and Stier provided the knockout punches with hits that scored 3 runs to extend the lead to 6-3.

Valley attempted to make it close in the bottom of the 7th and scored one run before Oakton's Bart Reese shut them down to secure the win for the Cougars.

With the win Oakton advances to play rival Madison in the Northern Region Semifinals on Wednesday.

Chick-fil-A Players of the Game:
Oakton's Brandon Padula and Mark Stier contributed two hits a piece in the contest and helped Oakton triumph over Loudoun Valley to advance to the next round of the playoffs. Both were named the Chick-fil-A Players of the Game.

Game Notes:
Oakton pitcher Bret Williams scattered 7 hits to the Vikings in 6 innings of work. Williams kept the Vikings in check most of the day at the plate.

Oakton's record is now 21-3 and they have won the last 20 of 21 games they have played. Their last meeting against Madison was a 11 inning barnburner that ended in a close loss to the Warhawks. Wednesday's matchup with rival Madison will feature two top flight pitchers with the Warhawks starting Jason Farley and Oakton starting their ace Eric Cantrell. Farley pitched in the Madison win earlier in the season, but Cantrell didn't play. Cougar fans are hoping Cantrell can be the difference on Wednesday. The Cougars eliminated Madison last season on their way to the state title game.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 03:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Stone Bridge Bulldogs (17-8, 10-4) and the South County Stallions (18-5, 11-3) met on Memorial Day in the quarterfinals of the Northern Region tournament on a hot, muggy afternoon at Madison HS. The Bulldogs had Soph RHP Nick Fialdini on the hill, whil the Stallions countered with Jesse Beal.

The first inning was an ominous indicator for the Bulldogs of how today's game would play out. Things started off well enough as lead off hitter Jeron Gouveia walked on four pitches. But on an 0-2 count, Michael Prince grounded into a 5-4-3 double play. Johnny Bladel flew out to right to end the inning. Brent Frazier led off for the Stallions with a sharp single to left. Kyle Hald grounded to Collin Pearson for the first out, as Frazier moved to second. Fialdini then got Peyton Bartlett to fly out to deep right to Matt Irwin. Frazier tagged up and moved to third on the play. Beal came to the plate and hit a towering popup to short. The normally reliable Mike Stancik lost the ball in the high sky, it dropped for an error as Frazier scored the game's first run. Consecutive singles by Micahel Graham, Seth Jordan and Trey Dillow plated two more runs. Danny Small flew out to Gouveia to end the inning, with the Stallions leading 3-0.

Stone Bridge had a chance in the second that fizzled out again. On the first pitch, Stancik was plunked in the back by Beal. On a 2-2 pitch, Irwin was hit as well, putting runners on first and second with no one out. Brian Wheaton came to the plate and scorched a ball to right that was caught, with Stancik moving to third on the play. With Pearson at the plate, Irwin tried stealing second but was gunned down for the second out. Pearson then grounded out to first to end the inning. The Stallions were able to tack 3 more runs on the scoreboard in the second. After Fialdini stuck out Kyle Michaels, four straight singles by Frazier, Hald, Bartlett and Beal plated the three runs. Graham then hit a towering pop out, this time Stancik was able to handle it for the out. Fialdini got out of the inning by getting Jordan on a called third strike.

While the Bulldogs were able to crack the scoreboard with a run in the third, they should have had more. Tyler Basso led off with a double to the left center gap. Patrick Thompson blooped a single to center, with Basso having to hold at third. On an 0-1 count, Gouveia grounded into a 6-4-3 double play, with Basso scoring the Bulldog's first run. But that was it as Prince grounded to third to end the inning. Fialdini did a great job in the bottom of the frame, as Dillow flew out to Prince, Stancik made a nice play on a slow roller retiring Small and Michael grounded to Basso.

Stone Bridge wasted another scoring chance in the fourth. After a Bladel groundout, Stancik picked up an infield single. Irwin then laid down a perfect bunt single to put runners on first and second. Wheaton then sliced a single to right, but Stancik had to hold at third. Pearson hit a grounder to third, as Stancik was forced out at home for the second out. Basso was then called out on strikes to end the threat. Frazier was retired on a groundout to Stancik. Hald then singled to right. He stole second, as the throwdown was wide and he was able to scamper to third. But Hald was stranded there as Fialdini struck out both Bartlett and Beal to end the inning.

In the fifth, Thompson reached first as he was hit by a Beal pitch. The Bulldogs weren't able to get him around, as Gouveia flew out to left, Prince popped to short and Pearson grounded to short, as Thompson was forced at second. Graham led off the inning with a single to center. Graham stole second and moved to third on a wild pitch. But Fialdini got Jordan to strike out. Dillow then took a four pitch walk and Head Coach Sam Plank made the call to the pen, bringing in Jr RHP sidewinder Mike Palmer. Palmer bore down, getting Small to pop out to Pearson. Then Wheaton gunned down Dillow trying to steal to end the inning.

Stone Bridge made things interesting in the sixth. Stancik led off the inning by reaching first on his second hit by pitch by Beal. Irwin singled to center. Wheaton flew out to center for the first out. Pearson hit a grounder to Frazier at short. He stepped on second to force Irwin, but his throw to first was in the dirt, as Pearson was safe and Stancik scored the Bulldog's second run. Sr Chris Martinez pinch hit for Basso. He stroked the first pitch he saw to center as Pearson moved to second. Thompson singled sharply to center. Pearson had to hold at third, but the bases were loaded for Gouveia. Head Coach Mark Luther decided to make a pitching change, flip flopping Hald and Beal. Gouveia came through in the clutch, stroking a single to center that plated both Pearson and Martinez. Hald was able to stem the tide though, as he got Prince on a called third strike. With the Bulldogs only down by two, the Stone Bridge faithful were hoping for another late game comeback. But it wasn't meant to be as South County was able to score three more in the bottom of the inning. PH Michael Gibbons led off with a walk. Gibbons was able to steal second. After getting Frazier to fly out to right, Hald laid down a beautiful bunt down the first base line for an infield single, moving Gibbons to third. With Bartlett at the plate, Hald stole second but Wheaton fired a bullet to Basso at third. On a controversial play, Gibbons was ruled safe. Eventually Bartlett was hit by a Palmer pitch loading the bases with only one out. Beal lifted a sac fly to center, scoring Gibbons from third, and Hald moved to third on the play. Graham then took a 1-1 pitch to right, plating Hald. With Jordan batting, Graham made a delayed steal of second. The relay from Pearson back to Wheaton was too late as Bartlett scored the ninth Stallion run. Palmer then got Jordan on a called third strike.

Hald was able to retire Stone Bridge in order, as Bladel grounded to third, and Stancik and Irwin both flew out to right, ending the game.

Congratulations to the Stallions as they move on to the Northern Region semi finals. They will face the Lagley Saxons, who defeated the Robinson Rams 7-3 this afternoon. Congratulations to the Bulldogs as well. This young team far exceeded the expectations of coaches and fans. Stone Bridge had only three returning starters, and all of them were playing new positions this season (Stancik; third to short, Gouveia; RF to CF, Wheaton; LF to catcher). They had to replace two Sr pitchers who gobbled up over 90% of the innings in 2006. The Bulldogs should be a formidable opponent next season, as they lose only one senior (Martinez). They would like to thank Chris Martinez for his contributions to the program and wish him all the best as he will be attending Virginia Tech this fall.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 03:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

FAIRFAX, VA - The top ranked Madison Warhawks took the field on Memorial Day to take one step closer to the Triple A Northern Region semifinals. The opponent, the highly touted Lake Braddock Bruins, who experts locally predicted had what it took to knock off the nationally ranked Warhawks.

Madison put junior Jesse Jeter on the mound, and Lake Braddock countered with Shane Halley. Jeter's day turned out to be a little different than Halley's. Jeter threw just 62 pitches and was helped by some outstanding defensive plays in the infield and outfield. Halley on the other hand had to deal with the talented and lethal batting order of the Warhawks.

After keeping Lake Braddock scoreless in the top of the 1st inning, the Warhawks started quickly in their half of the inning when Brig Tison scored on a Arman Morini double to left centerfield. The Warhawks continued to put pressure on the Bruin defense with hits in the next few innings, then Madison blew the game open on a Collin Flaherty double that scored two runs to make the score 3-0.

Flaherty later scored to put the Warhawks up 4-0 and that is all that pitcher Jesse Jeter needed. Halley was replaced in the 5th inning by freshman Ryan Lindemuth who threw well in relief, but gave up a two out solo homerun to Warhawk Rich Conlon in the inning. Conlon's blast helped Madison extend their lead to 5-0 and Jeter closed out the contest in the bottom of the 7th without ever really feeling pressure from the Bruins.

Jeter scattered 4 hits in the contest and his performance helped the Warhawks in the Northern Region Semifinals on Wednesday against Oakton. Wednesday's matchup between Madison and Oakton will mark the second time the two teams have met this season. The Warhawks and Cougars played 11 innings in the first matchup with Madison winning. Madison will put Jason Farley on the mound and Oakton will throw their ace Eric Cantrell.

The Warhawks are currently ranked #22 in the United States by USA Today and #3 in the region by the Washington Post.

Chick-fil-A Players of the Game:
Jesse Jeter's performance on the mound was dominant on Monday as he threw 62 pitches and a complete game to help Madison advance to the semifinals against Oakton. Jeter was named the Chick-fil-A player of the game. Arman Morini was also honored with the award as his outstanding defense at first base and RBI double helped Madison extend their season.

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The Stone Bridge Bulldogs (17-7, 10-4) and the Edison Eagles (14-9, 9-4) met in the first round of the Northern Region tournament this evening in Ashburn. Stone Bridge had the "Big Unit", Jr RHP Ty Weaver on the mound, while Edison countered with SR LHP Josh Miller.

Edison drew first blood. After Brian Stokes grounded out to Collin Pearson, David Kellmel singled sharply to center. Kellmel stole stole second with Michigan State signee Seth Williams at the plate. Weaver got him down 0-2 and Williams went down swinging on a nice breaking ball for the second out. Isaac Barnett was intentionally walked. Weaver had 9 pitch battle with Richard Snelling, who eventually walked, loading the bases. Unfortunately, with John Kane at the plate, Weaver tried to pick off Kellmel at third. Weaver was called for a balk and the Eagles scored their one and only run of the night. Kane reached first as he was hit by a Weaver pitch, reloading the bases. But Weaver was able to escape without further damage, striking out Brian Simmons to end the inning. The Bulldogs went down in order, as Jeron Gouveia was called out on strikes, Collin Pearson flew out to center and Johnny Bladel grounded to third.

Edison had another opportunity in the second, but couldn't capitalize. After a Brian Whitney strikeout, Jack Frawley singled to right. Weaver then walked Stokes. Kellmel flew out to Michael Prince in left for the second out. Head Coach Sam Plank decided to intentionally walk Williams to load the bases. Weaver proceeded to throw three straight strikes, getting Barnett out on a beautiful breaking pitch called third strike. Mike Stancik led off the second for SB grounding out to short. Matt Irwin popped to second. Michael Prince drilled a single to center for the Bulldogs first hit of the night. Prince was able to steal second, but Brian Wheaton flew out to center to end the inning.

Weaver settled down nicely in the third. He made a nice play covering first, as Snelling grounded to Patrick Thompson at first with Weaver taking the flip. Kane then grounded out to Tyler Basso at third. Weaver finished with a flourish, striking out Simmons on three straight pitches. Stone Bridge was able to get on the board in their half of the innning. Basso led off with a beautifully executed bunt single. After a Thompson strikeout, Gouveia sliced an RBI double down the left field line, plating Basso. Pearson reached on a throwing error, as Gouveia was able to score on the play. With Bladel at the plate, Pearson stole second. Bladel hit a shot towards right, but the secondbaseman Barnett snagged the liner for the second out. Stancik then walked. But the inning ended as Irwin popped out to second.

The Eagles had another chance in the fourth, but couldn't get the clutch hit. Whitney led off with a sinlge deep in the hole. Stancik got to the ball, but the speedy Whitney beat the throw to first. Weaver then struck out Frawley for the first out. Stokes hit a high chopper that bounded over Stancik's head for a single. Kellmel hit a grounder to Stancik, who flipped to Pearson at second forcing out Stokes. With runners on the corners and two outs, Weaver and Williams had a great battle. After 7 pitches, Weaver was able to get Williams to hit a sky high flyball to Gouveia to end the inning. Prince led off the inning reaching on an infield error. Wheaton hit into a fielder's choice, as Prince was forced out at second. Wheaton then picked up a stolen base. But Basso flew out to left and Thompson grounded to second, stranding Wheaton.

Weaver pitched a great fifth, getting three straight groundballs to Basso. In the bottom of the fifth, the Bulldogs were able to secure two critical insurance runs. Gouveia led off with a walk. He moved to second on a wild pitch. After Pearson was called out on strikes, Bladel roped a single to right, scoring Gouveia. Bladel was able to move to second as the ball skidded by the right fielder. Stancik was able to move Bladel over to third, grounding out to second. Irwin then picked up an RBI infield single. SS David Kellmel snagged the grounder up the middle, spun around for the throw, but couldn't get the speedy Irwin at first. Prince grounded back to Miller to end the inning.

Edison had a golden opportunity in the sixth, but a big Bulldog defensive play snuffed out the threat. Simmons ripped the first pitch he saw over Gouveia's head for a double. After Whitney struck out, Wheaton made a huge play gunning down Simmons as he tried to steal third. The play was huge, because on the next pitch Frawley was able to dump a double in the left field "Bermuda triangle" between Basso, Stancik and Prince. Weaver escaped with no runs as Stokes grounded to Thompson to end the frame. Wheaton led off the inning lining out to center. Basso was able to reach and go to second on a throwing error by the secondbaseman. PH Chris Martinez came up and scorched a ball to center, but Stokes made a great catch near the wall robbing Martinez of at least a double. Gouveia flew out to end the inning.

Head Coach Sam Plank brought in JR sidewinder Mike Palmer to finish off the Eagles. However, Kellmel had different plans as he led of the seventh with a sharp single to left and the power hitting Williams coming to the plate. Palmer had a 1-2 count on Williams as he fouled off several good pitches. But Williams hit a grounder to Stancik. He fired to Pearson, who made a great turn, getting Williams on a 6-4-3 double play. Plamer had the Bulldog faithful on their feet for several pitches, as he finally struck out Barnett to end the game.

Congratulations to the Eagles on a great season. The Bulldogs now advance to the quarterfinals of the Northern Region tournament. They will be playing on Memorial Day, Monday May 28. They will face the South County Stallions, who defeated Westfield this evening 3-2. The game will be played at Madison HS. First pitch is scheduled for 1 PM.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 04:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Stone Bridge came from behind 8-2 after three innings to win this 1st round regional tournament game over Yorktown. Yorktown scored a run in the top of the first, and Stone Bridge answered with two runs driven in on a triple by pitcher Ashley Gardner in the bottom of the inning. Yorktown then broke the game open with a 5 run second inning, and added 2 more in the top of the third.

Stone Bridge did not score again until the fifth inning. Down 8-2, with 1 out, Kayla Lechler singled with a line drive up the middle. Stephanie St. Peter followed with a single to left. Gardner grounded to the shortstop for the second out, but moved Lechler and St. Peter to 3rd and 2nd. Lauren Wolz scored Lechler on a choppy single up the middle, and the Lauren Jennings dropped a double neatly down the right field line, scoring both St. Peter and Wolz.

Yorktown answered with a run in the top of the sixth, making the score 9-5, with Stone Bridge having only two at-bats remaining in regular innings. Michele Mocabee walked to getting things started in the sixth, and Lauren Williams followed with a bunt single. Natalie Driskill did her job, bunting them both into scoring position. When Lechler's first pitch line drive landed in the second baseman's glove for the first out, it was up to St. Peter. She answered with a triple down the right field line, scoring Mocabee and Williams, and bringing Stone Bridge within two.

In the top of the seventh, Stone Bridge recorded three outs in four Yorktown batters, avoiding the dangerous top of the Yorktown order, and then had their half of the inning to win the game. Lauren Wolz led off with a sharp single up the middle, and Lauren Jennings followed with a walk. After a Yorktown pitching change, and with pinch runners (Caroline Kittinger and Katie Benusa) in for Wolz and Jennings, Cassie Phillips came to the plate. The runners advanced on two consecutive wild pitches, and Kittinger scored. Phillips then walked. Mocabee singled in Benusa for the tie, and got the winning run (Phillips) to third base. Mocabee stole second, removing the force, and then Williams reached on a grounder to short, when the Yorktown player elected not to throw to first and hold the runner at third instead. Driskill's fly to left might have scored the run on a tagup, but the runner held, bringing the heart of the Stone Bridge order up with only one out and the winning run on third. Lechler wasted no time, sending the first pitch to the fence in left center, driving in Phillips for the win.

Stone Bridge (18-6) advances to the Regional Quarterfinal against Herndon on Monday.

Bulldog stats:
Ashley Gardner, winning pitcher, 5 Ks. Offensively - Drove in Stone Bridge's first runs with a two-RBI triple.
Stephanie St. Peter, 3 for 4, two-RBI triple, 2 runs scored.
Kayla Lechler, 3 for 5, game-winning RBI, 1 run scored.
Lauren Wolz, 2 for 4, RBI
Lauren Williams, 2 for 4 with a walk, 2 runs scored
Lauren Jennings, 2-RBI double
Michele Mocabee, 1 for 3 - drove in tying run

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 04:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

PURCELLVILLE,VA - The Loudoun Valley Vikings entered Friday's regional playoff game against the McLean Highlanders as the favorite to advance, but the contest proved to be much closer than some experts expected. The Highlanders, led by pitcher Sean Fitzgerald, kept things interesting by limiting Valley to 7 hits in the game. Fitzgerald scattered those 7 hits throughout the game and Valley couldn't muster any runs on the scoreboard through the first 4 innings. Then, with two runners on base and designated hitter T.J. Daeschner at the plate, Fitzgerald threw a 2 strike slider that Daeschner drove into right centerfield. The RBI single by Daeschner scored Scott Mayer and the Vikings took a 1-0 lead.

The game remained 1-0 until the top of the 5th inning when McLean's Quinn Pippen scorched a Jacob Mayes fastball down the right field line to the fence. Fitzgerald was on first base and with two outs, was waived home by head coach John Thomas. Valley's right fielder Carson Parker quickly chased the ball down at the fence and started what proved to be the play of the game. Parker's relay to second baseman Clyde Kessler was perfect, and Kessler then relayed to Kyle Rosell, who threw Fitzgerald out at home. Catcher Trevor Ikwild applied the tag for the exciting finish to the inning and to keep the game at 1-0 in the Vikings favor. Valley Head Coach Wayne Todd was pleased with how his kids performed on that crucial play.

"We practice those kind of situation plays every day in practice for at least 20 minutes," Todd said. "We executed perfectly in every aspect and it proved to be a big play in the game."

McLean wouldn't make things interesting again until the top of the 7th inning. With the Valley crowd on their feet and one out away from the win, McLean's Pat Tawil hit an outside fastball that appeared to be the perfect pitch to keep hope alive for the Highlanders. Tawil crushed it to right field over Parker's head, scoring the tying run from second base.

With a Highlander pinch runner in scoring position at second base, the next hitter for McLean drove a line drive single to right fielder Carson Parker who proceeded to fire the baseball to home plate perfectly. Catcher Trevor Ikwild caught the Parker throw on one hop and tagged out the Highlander running to keep the game tied at 1-1 heading into the bottom of the 7th.

Valley's Clyde Kessler led off the bottom of the 7th with a bloop single to left field, and after teammate Jacob Mayes advanced him to second, a wild pitch helped Kessler move to third with only 1 out. The Highlanders walked the next two Valley hitters intentionally to force a double play situation at the plate, and that put the game in Trevor Ikwild's hands. Ikwild, who already had hit the ball hard earlier in the game, worked the count to 3-1 against Fitzgerald. On the 3-1 pitch, Fitzgerald threw a fastball that Ikwild drilled over the centerfielder's head, scoring Kessler and extending Valley's season. Todd knew that Ikwild was the perfect guy to be in that situation for his club.

"Trevor has proven to be a clutch hitter in those situations for us all year long," Todd said. "I knew he would come through for us.

The Vikings now advance to play Oakton in the second round of the regional playoffs on Monday at Robinson high school. With the win, the Vikings improved to 21-3 on the season.

Chick-fil-A Players of the Game:
With their tremendous play on defense and at the plate, Valley's Trevor Ikwild and Carson Parker were named the Chick-fil-A players of the game. Ikwild's game winning hit helped the Vikings advance to the next round of the playoffs.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 03:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

CHANTILLY, Va - The epic Battle of the Bulldogs finished another chapter Thursday night as Westfield and Stone Bridge met in the boys Northern Region soccer tournament for the quarterfinals. Both teams had their season on the line, meaning it was a put up or shut up game. Although Stone Bridge drew first blood, backed by their home crowd, Westfield would prove victorious in a thrilling match-up.

The first half was filled with excitement for both teams. The first threat of a score came from Westfield when Sean Murnane only had the goalie to beat, but the shot he took went just over the crossbar. The first score of the game came from Stone Bridge's Eric Skogerboe off a free kick in the 31st minute, putting Stone Bridge ahead 1-0. The score remained unchanged when both teams headed for the locker room at the end of the first half.

Westfield came into the second half firing and it didn't take long for them to score their first goal of the game, as Anthony Rodriguez scored for Westfield in the 44th minute to tie the game. The score remained tied until the 68th minute, when Rodriguez scored his second goal of the game leaving the score 2-1 in Westfield's favor. That goal would prove enough to send Stone Bridge packing for the season, and they would go on to win 2-1.

"Our determination and our perseverance is what got us this win tonight," Westfield head coach Tom Torres said after the game.

Although Stone Bridge's season is over, it is certainly nothing to hang their heads about, as they have made huge improvements since last year, the biggest one being the fact that they actually had a winning season. Their final record was 9-4-5.

"We clawed our way the entire season, and it led to success and I am very proud of what my boys accomplished this season," Stone Bridge head coach Randy May said after the game.

Posted by Sean Frye - Gameday Magazine Columnist at 07:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

STERLING, VA - With their season on the line, the Potomac Falls Panthers wanted nothing but a win on Thursday night to prove that they were the hottest team in the Dulles District. Standing in the way of their goal was a pesky Heritage Pride squad led by seven seniors, fresh off a win over regular season champion Broad Run. Potomac Falls had closed out the regular season winning 8 of the last 9 district games and punishing the Pride in their last meeting in April, so the stage was set for a championship battle.

Heritage struck first when Joey Donofrio singled in Grant Groves from second base and the Pride took a 1-0 lead in the top of the 1st inning. Potomac Falls answered by scoring 1 in the bottom of the 1st inning to even the contest. Donofrio later smashed a Jake Kline fastball over the left centerfield fence for a homefun, and both teams exchanged leads for the first 5 innings. Potomac Falls first baseman Aaron Sweger helped extend the Panther lead late in the game with a towering homerun to centerfield. Sweger's blast was an impressive showcase of power, and according to Panther head coach Joe Terango, it couldn't have come at a better time.

"Aaron has been a clutch hitter for us all year long and when I saw that ball come of the bat, I knew he had hit it hard," Terango said.

With a lead in hand in the top of the 7th inning, Potomac Falls ace Jake Kline took control. With Heritage facing their final 3 outs, Kline buckled down and secured a complete game championship victory for the Panthers. Kline's performance was impressive to say the least. He pitched last Friday and threw 113 pitches in a win, then came in on Tuesday in relief against Freedom and threw another 16 pitches. When it was all said and done, Kline finished with a complete game and another 103 pitches on the chart. 232 pitches later, Kline and the Panthers finished their assault on the Dulles District, and extend their season to the regional playoffs Monday, traveling to Louisa High School.

"Jake has been a bulldog all year long, the conditioning he did in the offseason really paid off for him tonight," Terango said.

Pitching coach Dan Gitzen was also impressed with Kline's gutty performance.

"He's done this all year for our ballclub. It's hard to ask a young man to throw 232 pitches in less than a week, but Jake was up for the task, and he really threw a great game tonight," Gitzen said.

With the win, Potomac Falls claims the Dulles District Tournament Title, and will play Monday in the Regional Playoffs.

Listen to the replay of the Dulles District Tournament Championship game between Potomac Falls and Heritage.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 04:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Loudoun Valley Men's soccer team entered the Northern Region Tournament
with an uphill climb. They were seeded as the #4 team and drew #1
seeded Thomas Jefferson from the Liberty District. The game played
Tuesday night at Thomas Jefferson was a thriller right down to the end.
Loudoun Valley opened the scoring in the 15th minute after Erik Burnham
found the back of the net, getting a deflection from a TJ defender.

Jefferson answered a minute later, getting a goal from Alex Carney. The
score remained 1-1 at half time. Valley came out of half time pumped up
and scored a minute into the second half as Mike Houchens connected with
a throw in from Luke Marzaloes to head it past the TJ keeper. The score
remained that way until 1:59 seconds left in the game when Carney struck
again for Jefferson to send the game to overtime. The two teams battled
through the first two periods of overtime and one period of sudden death
when a scramble in front of the goal lead to a Thomas Jefferson goal
that sent the Vikings out of the regional tournament.

Thanks for a great season and the coverage from LPS, Loudoun Times
Mirror, Blue Ridge Leader, WAGE, and Gameday Magazine. Looking forward
to next season.

Coach Hackett

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 06:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Heritage Keeps Season Alive with 9 inning thriller
(Sterling, VA) The Heritage Pride lived to play another day on Tuesday with a dramatic 6-5 victory over the regular season Dulles District champion Broad Run Spartans. Heritage took advantage of great pitching from starter John Rogerson and relievers Jacob Martinez and Andrew Crane to pull out the win.

The game was a roller coaster ride for both teams as the score changed several times before the dramatic finish in the bottom of the ninth inning. With Broad Run trailing by 3 runs heading into the bottom of the ninth, Heritage looked in control and ready to advance to the Dulles District finals on Thursday. However, Broad Run made it a little too close for comfort as Stephen Hershey got things started with a one out double off the center field fence. Hershey and teammate Chris Jessop would later score to bring the game within one run at 6-5. With two outs and Spartan Vince Johnson on third base, Heritage pitcher Andrew Crane threw a pitch in the dirt that got away from catcher Joe Laura. Johnson took off for home and Laura raced to get the ball for a play at the plate.

With the ball perfectly thrown to pitcher Andrew Crane, Johnson was called out at home and Heritage stormed the field with excitement as they realized their season was going to continue at least for one more contest.

Heritage shortstop Brenton Peters played tremendous defense for the Pride and contributed a few hits in the contest that came at crucial times. In the top of the 9th inning, it was third baseman Austin Weaver who was the Pride's hero as he drove in the go-ahead runs with a bases loaded single to right field. With their stellar play at the plate and in the field, Peters and Weaver were named the game's Chick-fil-A Players of the Game.

With the win, Heritage advances to play Potomac Falls on Thursday night at 7pm for a regional playoff berth and the Dulles District Tournament Championship. Listen live to the action and first pitch starting at 7pm right here online at GamedayMagazine.com.

Panthers Get All They Can Handle From Eagles in 11-10 Win
(Sterling, VA) In the nightcap of our Gameday Radio double header, the Potomac Falls Panthers entered the Dulles District tournament semifinals as arguably the hottest team in the area. They had won 7 of their last 8 district games and their lineup has been on fire at the plate. Freedom on the other hand was not expected to be in this semifinal game, but someone forgot to tell them. Led by a group of sophomores and juniors, the Eagles stormed into the semifinals having knocked off the Park View Patriots.

Freedom started Ali Moosvi on the mound and Potomac Falls gave the ball to Mike Detaranto. Moosvi and Detaranto both pitched well in the first few innings and kept things scoreless heading into the 4th. Freedom struck first putting up 2 runs in the top of the 4th inning to take a 2-0 lead. The Panthers answered with 8 runs in the bottom of the 4th inning behind the hitting of shortstop Greg Woodlief (3 hits in the game), and pitcher Mike Detaranto. Thinking this game was headed toward a blowout was a big mistake for anyone in attendance as Freedom climbed back into the game and eventually took a 10-8 lead in the 6th inning. Eagle shortstop Kyle Groome's bases clearing hit to the right centerfield gap was the catalyst for Freedom's comeback.

Potomac Falls wasn't done though, as they scratched their way back to tie the game in the bottom of the 6th inning at 10-10. After pitcher Jake Kline shut down the Eagle hitters in the top of the 7th, the Panthers loaded the bases in the bottom of the 7th for Pat Nightengale. Nightengale stepped to the plate and drilled a single past Freedom's Kyle Howard at third to bring in the winning run and put Potomac Falls into the finals on Thursday night.

Panther sophomore Greg Woodlief was named the Chick-fil-A Player of the Game along with Freedom's Kyle Groome. Both players had several big hits in the contest and played outstanding in the field.

Potomac Falls will face Heritage on Thursday for a regional playoff berth and the Dulles District Tournament Championship. Listen live to the first pitch at 7pm right here at GamedayMagazine.com.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 12:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Stone Bridge Bulldogs (16-7, 10-4) and the Madison Warhawks (19-2, 13-1) met for the second year in a row in the Liberty district championship. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, the result was the same as last year, with the Warhawks pounding out 10 hits, including 2 homeruns, in a 12-2 win. Each team was missing a key starter. Jr CF Jeron Gouveia was out for the Bulldogs on a personal matter. Sr 3B Brian Smith was ready to go tonight, but was injured in a freak accident while the Warhawks were taking infield. Andrew Schrock had to step in for Smith on late notice, and filled in quite well. Stone Bridge started Jr RHP Tyler Basso on the mound, while Madison countered with Jr RHP Jesse Jeter.

The Bulldogs had a chance to score in the first, but were unable to cash in. Collin Pearson led off with a chopper that Jeter made a nice play on, throwing out Pearson at first. Michael Prince was hit by a pitch. Mike Stancik flew out to left for the second out. Johnny Bladel kicked up chalk on the third base line, ripping a double, which moved Prince to third. But Brian Wheaton grounded out to Arman Moniri to end the inning. In the bottom of the first, Matt Irwin made a web gem catch of a sinking liner by David McIntyre, recording the first out. Brig Tison and Moniri both walked. Sterling Sams then came up a drove a 1-0 pitch over the right field wall for a 3 run home run. Basso struck out Rich Conlon on a nice slider. Schrock fisted a single to left. But Jason Farley flew out to Bladel to end the inning.

The Bulldogs went down in order in the second, as Irwin flew out to left, Basso grounded to second and Chris Martinez flew out to left as well. Basso settled down nicely in the second, getting the Warhawks 1-2-3. Alex Andrews flew out to left, Basso struck out Collin Flaherty and McIntyre flew out to left to end the inning.

Stone Bridge was retired in order again in the third. Patrick Thompson was called out on strikes. Pearson popped out to short and Prince grounded to Schrock. Madison was able to plate three more runs in their half of the third. Tison reached as Stancik double clutched the ground ball and his throw was high, pulling Martinez off the bag. Tison moved to second on a wild pitch. Moniri singled sharply to left and Tison had to hold at third. With Sams at the plate, Wheaton gunned down Moniri at second for the first out. Tison broke for the plate on the play. Unfortunately, Basso did not move out of the way as Pearson's return throw to Wheaton hit Basso with Tison scoring Madison's fourth run. Sams eventually walked. Conlon hit a ball deep to short. Somehow Stancik got to the ball, and made a jump turn to throw to second. But Sams was safe, putting runners on first and second with only one out. Schrock came up and laid a sac bunt down the first base line. But everyone was safe as Martinez slipped and fell, unable to make a play. Farley hit a sac fly deep to center that scored Sams. With Andrews at the plate, Conlon scored on a passed ball. Basso was able to end the inning getting Andrews on a called third strike.

The Bulldogs were retired in order for the third consecutive inning. Stancik was robbed of a hit, as Schrock dove to his right, got up and fired a bullet to Moniri to just nip Stancik at first. Bladel grounded to short and Wheaton grounded out to Schrock to end the inning. Basso matched Jeter in the fourth, getting Flaherty to ground out to Stancik, McIntyre grounded to Pearson and Tison grounded to Stancik.

The Bulldogs were finally able to break through in the fifth. Irwin led off with a single up the middle. He moved to second on a wild pitch. Basso was able to move Irwin to third on a chopper in front of the plate. Martinez came up and smoked a 1-0 pitch to left that bounced over the fence for a ground rule double, scoring Irwin. Thompson singled to left, but Martinez had to hold at third. Pearson was caught looking on a called third strike and Irwin flew out to center to end the inning. Jr RHP Mike Palmer came on to pitch for Stone Bridge in the bottom of the fifth. Moniri battled Palmer and after nine pitch at bat, settled for a walk. Sams sacrificed Moniri to second. But he was stranded there as Conlon popped out to Basso, now playing third, and Palmer struck out Schock to end the threat.

Stone Bridge scratched out another run in the sixth. Jeter gave way to Brad Wimmer on the mound. After Stancik grounded to Conlon, Bladel reached on an infield single. Wheaton smacked a 1-1 pitch to right for a single, and Bladel moved to third. Irwin grounded back to Wimmer, who forced Wheaton at second, but Bladel was able to score on the fielder's choice. With Basso at the plate, Irwin was able to steal second. But Basso was called out on strikes to end the inning. Farley led off the bottom of the sixth with a walk. Head Coach Sam Plank made a pitching change, bringing in Jr RHP Ty Weaver. The Bulldogs tried to catch Farley being too agressive on his secondary lead. Wheaton tried to pick him off at first, but his throw was in the dirt and Farley was able to scamper to second on the error. Andrew then singled sharply to right as Farley had to hold at third. Flaherty sac bunted Andrews over to second. With both runners in scoring position and one out, Weaver was called for a balk which plated Farley. A pinch hitter for McIntyre grounded to Basso, but Andrew was able to score on the play. With two out, Tison singled. He moved to second on a wild pitch. Moniri singled as well, scoring Tison with Moniri taking second on the throw. Sams drove a single to left scoring Moniri. Conlon then took a 3-2 pitch out of the park for a 2 run home run. Schrock reached on a throwing error by Stancik. Farley followed with a single, but the inning mercifully ended as Weaver got Andrews to pop out to Pearson.

In the seventh, Farley came in to mop up. Martinez was able to reach on a dropped third strike. But he was stranded at first as pinch hitter Zach Thompson struck out, Pearson struck out and Prince grounded out to end the game.

Madison won their fifth district tourney in six years. Both teams, along with Langley and McLean, will be representing the Liberty district in the Northern Region tournament. Regionals begin on Friday, May 25. Madison will host Annadale. Stone Bridge will host Edison. Lagley hits the road, taking on Yorktown. McLean is also on the road, as they travel to Purcellville and face the Loudoun Valley Vikings. First pitch for all four games is scheduled for 7:00PM.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 03:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Stone Bridge Lady Bulldogs softball team suffered a tough loss to the Langley Saxons in eight innings in the Liberty District softball tournament championship.

Stone Bridge's offense generated nine hits, led by Lauren Wolz, with two hits including a 2 RBI double, Stephanie St. Peter, with two hits, and Kayla Lechler, who contributed a solo home run. Ashley Gardner, who took the loss on the mound, also had a hit, an RBI, and a run scored.

Natalie Driskill, who played outstanding defensively at shortstop, also had a hit and scored a run. Driskill, Wolz, and Lechler were named to the All-Tournament team.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 03:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Loudoun Valley Vikings won the National District Tournament 10 to 1 behind the fine pitching of Caroline Williams at Yorktown Friday night. Caroline who faced 25 batters struck out 11 and gave up 3 hits. Williams was supported by a fine cast of offensive players. Hayley Grabner was 2 for 4 , stole a base and scored 3 times. Haley Athey, starting for the first time at DH had a hit and also a sacrifice fly to right field. Brittany Latka carried the biggest stick for the day with 2 doubles , a home run and 6 RBI's for the day. Caroline Williams added two hits. Rachel Harveys bat was strong hitting two doubles, and a walk. Sarah Spicer (double), Perrin Raudabaugh and Allie Bartok added hits to the total.

All tournament players were Tiffany Beach, Brittany Latka, and Allie Bartok.

The Vikes will host a Regional Game on Friday at Home. The game will be at 5:00 pm ( not 7:00) because of the lack of lights.

Posted by Wire and Staff Reports at 03:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Loudoun Valley baseball team (20-4), who many refer to, humorously, as "The Team Without A District," found themselves in a position as having the last laugh Friday night at Yorktown High School, as they squared off against the host Patriots in the championship game of the AAA National District tournament. This is all a muddled story as to why Loudoun Valley is, but isn't, in this District, since making the move to AAA 2 years ago, from the AA Dulles District. Although credited for being members of the National, their distance to most schools here precludes them from garnering complete agreements from some schools to play a complete season here. Thus, the Vikings played a minimal amount of games against National teams, and were a perfect 7-0, while filling in the rest of their season playing a complete Dulles District schedule, along with other independent teams, going into this championship game, their last in this conference, as Loudoun Valley will move to the Cedar Run District next year. Confused yet? You are not alone!

The game, itself, wasn't without its own confusion, too. With Yorktown trailing in the bottom of the 7th inning, Sr. catcher Mike Serpa singled in a run to close the gap to 5-3. With runners on 1st and 3rd, Zach Madison pulled the Patriots to within 1 run with a fielder's choice ground ball to 1st. This is where it got interesting! With Jr. Felix Hernandez, now pinch running for Serpa, and standing on 2nd, outfielder Jack Bergsman lined a base hit to left. Hernandez rounded hard at 3rd, looking to score the tying run, only to have the Patriot 3rd base coach hold him up, and in his attempt to get back to the bag, slips and falls, and was tagged out by 3B Dan Fleming, for the apparent Viking victory......only to have their celebration dashed when the 3rd base umpire ruled Fleming interfered with Hernandez's path towards home plate, and awarded the runner the score, and the tie game. To many who watched this play.....to include several Patriot fans.....this had to be truly a gift, as nobody saw any contact at all between Hernandez and any Viking player, much less Fleming. Nonetheless, the called stood, in spite of coach Wayne Todd's appropriate plea to the umpire crew.

With the score now tied, and in the Loudoun Valley 8th inning, Kyle Rosell drew a lead-off walk. Pinch hitter Wes Walker hit a 1 out blast to deep center field that hit the fence, and Rosell scored all the way from 1st, sliding head first, just before the tag was applied. The 1\2 inning ended with the Vikings on top 6-5. Yorktown would mount another comeback, however. After Jacob Mayes, in relief of starter Charlie Sperduto, recorded 2 quick strikeouts, a single and an error put Patriot runners on 1st and 3rd. But Mayes gave way to closer Scott Nelson, who promptly induced a routine ground ball to 2nd, for the force out, the 6-5 victory, and the National District championship.

The Viking's road to the championship included wins over Falls Church (4-0) and Edison (15-4), and will now play in the AAA Northern Region Championship tournament.

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 07:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

For the second time in 2 weeks Jacob Kline took the mound for Potomac Falls against Joe Strange and the Loudoun County Raiders and the results were the same. Kline pitched a complete game seven hitter and the Panthers eliminated the Raiders in the Dulles District Quarterfinal matchup 11 - 3.

The Raiders notched the first run of the game in the 1st inning when Kevin Kabernagel drove a double to left field and then scored on Chris Eder's single to left. However, the Panthers responded with 3 runs of their own in the bottom of the inning. After Strange struck out the first 2 batters, he got into trouble, walking the next 3 he faced. The Panther scoring began when Strange then threw a wild pitch, scoriing Cory Flickinger from 3rd base, and John Bracken laced a double to right field to plate 2 more runners, before finally recording the final out of the inning.

The Raiders weren't to be counted out, however, as they tied the score in the top of the 2nd inning when Pat Dillon, Taylor Lambke, Alex Anderson and Bret Tagg all singled. The Panthers roared right back with 3 more runs in their half of the inning, on two walks, a hit batter and a two run single by Flickinger and Aaron Sweger to make the score 6 - 3.

Kline then settled into a nice routine and cruised through the rest of the game recording six strikeouts including all three batters in the 6th inning to pickup the win. The Panthers scored in every inning and were led by Aaron Sweger who was 3-3, Cory Flickinger 2-3 with 3 RBI's, and John Bracken with 2 RBI's.

The Panthers will now face the Freedom Eagles, upset victors over the Park View Patriots on Friday 6-3, and possibly, some are saying, the biggest upset the District has seen in a long time. These 2 teams square off on Tuesday night at Park View in the Semifinals of the Dulles District Championship.

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 04:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Stone Bridge Bulldogs (16-6, 10-4) and the Langley Saxons (15-7, 10-4) met in the Liberty district semi finals at Langley tonight. This was their third meeting of the season. The Bulldogs were a 4-3 winner back in April, while the Saxons picked up a 9-5 win less than two weeks ago securing the 2 seed in the district tourney. Stone Bridge started Soph RHP Nick Fialdini on the mound, while Langley had Soph LHP Joey Zarella on the bump.

The Bulldogs were able to draw first blood. Jr 2B Collin Pearson led off with a walk. Soph LF Michael Prince took an 0-2 pitch to the right center gap for a double, moving Pearson to third. After Jr SS Mike Stancik struck out, Jr CF Jeron Gouveia came up to bat. Gouveia stroke a 1-0 Zarella offering to left center for a double, plating Pearson and Prince. Soph DH Johnny Bladel grounded out and Jr C Brian Wheaton flew out to end the inning. After Fialdini got Daniel Bergamesca to fly out to Gouveia, Tommy Tysse drove a 1-0 pitch to right center for a double. But Fialdini bore down, getting Foster Dunigan to ground out to Jr 3B Tyler Basso and then got Eddie Gonzalez out on a called third strike.

Jr RF Matt Irwin led off the second with a infield single. Basso sac bunted him to second, but Irwin was stranded there as Soph 1B Patrick Thompson flew out and Pearson flew out to end the inning. Langley was able to scratch out a run in the bottom of the frame. Ross Kelly was hit by a pitch. Kelly moved to second on a Fialdini balk. But Fialdini was able to strike out both Chaz Ayoub and Chris Sievers. With Zarella at the plate, Kelly moved to third on a wild pitch. Zarella grounded to Basso to third, but he couldn't field it cleanly as Zarella reached on an error and Kelly scored. Ricky Hanna then reached on a bunt single. But the threat ended as Bergamesca grounded to Thompson.

After Prince struck out to lead off the third, Stancik was hit by a pitch. Gouveia flew out to left. Bladel grounded to Dunigan at short, but Gonzalez couldn't handle the throw as Bladel reached on the error, Stancik was able to make it all the way to third. But Wheaton grounded to Dunigan to end the inning. Langley battled and tied the game in the third. Tysse led off with a walk. With Dunigan at the plate, he stole second. Dunigan grounded out to Stancik, but Tysse was able to move to third on the play. Gonzalez then singled up the middle, scoring Tysse and tying the game. Fialdini was able to stike out Kelly for the second out. With Ayoub at the plate, Gonzalez moved to second on a wild pitch. He was able to get to third, when Ayoub reached on an infield single. But Sievers grounded to Basso to end the inning.

In the fourth, Irwin led off with a ball in the hole towards Dunigan. Irwin beat the throw to first for a single and the throw was wild, as Irwin was able to move to second on the throwing error. Basso had a great at bat, coaxing a full count walk after being down 1-2. After Thompson popped out, Pearson came through with a clutch hit, ripping a line shot off of a stretched Gonzalez glove at first, which scored Irwin as Basso moved to third. Prince then reached on a fielder's choice, as Pearson was forced at second but Basso scored on the play. Stancik then had an apparent double down the left field line taken away by the home plate umpire. He then lined out to second to end the inning. Fialdini was sharp in the bottom of the inning. He struck out Zarella. Then Wheaton made an outstanding play as Hanna popped up behind the plate. Wheaton bounced off of the screen and caught the ball for the second out. Fialdini got Bergamesca to fly out to Gouveia to end the inning.

Gouveia ground out to second to start the fifth. Bladel just missed a home run, as he doubled off of the right field fence. Wheaton moved him over to third with a ground out. But Irwin K'd to end the frame. Fialdini was able to retire the side in order again. He struck out Tysse on a nice breaking ball, Dunigan flew out to Gouveia in deep center and Gonzalez flew out to Irwin in right.

In the sixth, Basso flew out to center. Thompson grounded to second. Pearson picked up his second hit of the night with a line single to right. But Pearson went on Zarella's first move and was picked off 1-3-6 to end the inning. The Bulldogs made a pitching change in the sixth as they brought in Jr RHP sidewinder Michael Palmer. He was able to strike out both Kelly and Ayoub. He then walked Sievers on four straight pitches. But Palmer refocused, as he was able to get PH Geremy Mahn to foul out to Irwin, ending the inning.

The Bulldogs went down in order for the first time of the evening in the seventh. Prince flew out to right, Stancik grounded to short and Gouveia flew out to left. Langley had no quit in them as they made things interesting in the bottom of the seventh. Hanna had a great 9 pitch at bat before grounding out to Pearson for the first out. Bergamesca then was hit by the first pitch he got from Palmer. Tysse flew out to Irwin for the second out. But Dunigan kept the Saxon hopes alive, slicing a single to right moving Bergamesca to third. Gonzalez, who was the difference maker in the May 8 game when he hit a grand slam, stepped to the plate as the winning run. Palmer went 2-2 on him before striking him out on a beautiful slider ending the game.

The win secures at least the 2 seed for the Northern Region tournament and insures a home game for the opening round for Stone Bridge. The Bulldogs now move on to the Liberty District finals this Monday, May 21. They will face the regular season champ and number 1 seed Madison Warhawks at Madison HS. The Bulldogs have yet to beat the Warhawks in five tries. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30PM.

Posted by Wire and Staff Reports at 03:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

When the Stone Bridge softball team faced Mclean Friday night, both teams had something to prove. The Lady Bulldogs and the Highlanders split their regular season meetings, so this game was about more than just advancing to the tournament finals. Both teams were fighting hard to win the series.

In a sign of the intensity of the game that was to be played, the Highlander's leadoff batter hit a sharp line drive to shallow centerfield. Senior Bulldog centerfielder Lauren Williams charged in and slid her glove under the ball just in time for the first dramatic out. The next McLean batter reached first on a walk, and was promptly picked off by catcher Kayla Lechler. Though McLean's 3 and 4 hitters took advantage of some pitching miscues and reached on walks, Stone Bridge pitcher Ashley Gardner settled down and recorded the third out with a strike out. In the bottom of the first frame, Williams flied out to left, but was followed by second baseman Natalie Driskill, who blooped a single safely into shallow right field. Lechler came to the plate, and sent a ball deep over the right center fence, putting Stone Bridge on the board with two runs. Stephanie St. Peter then singled to continue the rally, but McLean's pitcher took control to strike out the final two batters and end the inning.

In the second inning, Gardner struck out the first batter before allowing McLean to threaten again as two batters walked. No runs crossed the plate however, as Gardner got the next two batters on a strike out and a groundout. In the bottom of the second, Stone Bridge was unable to capitalize on a leadoff walk by senior first baseman Lauren Jennings, as three of the next four batters grounded into fielder's choice.

McLean came to the plate in the third hungry for their first hits in the game, but the first batter's shot landed safely in Williams' glove in center field. But then, a single, fielder's choice, and single combination left McLean with two on and two out, and the next batter sent a ball flying over the left field fence, for a three run homer and the lead. After one more single, Gardner induced a popup to second base, and Stone Bridge headed into their half of the inning down one run. Lead-off batter Lechler was walked, and with courtesy runner Katie Benusa on first, Stephanie St. Peter singled sharply to left, moving the speedy Benusa to third. Gardner's deep sac fly to right scored Benusa to tie the game. Looking to move St. Peter and retake the lead, Lauren Wolz hit a hard line drive toward right field, but was robbed of the hit by a fantastic running catch by the Highlander second baseman. Jennings hard hit to first ricocheted off the first-baseman and into foul territory, but McLean recovered and chased down the ball to make the play at first, ending the third inning in a tie.

In the top of the fourth, with one out, McLean loaded the bases on a walk and two singles, then scored the go ahead run on a perfectly executed suicide squeeze. The Bulldogs escaped further damage as the next batter flew out to Williams' sure glove in center field. Stone Bridge put the ball in play in their half of the fourth, but aside from a single to left by Williams, no other Bulldogs reached base.

Gardner shone in the top of the fifth, allowing no Highlanders on base, striking out two and inducing a fly to Lauren Wolz in right field. Lechler led off the Bulldogs' fifth inning, sending her second homer of the night over the fence in right center, tying up the game. When St. Peter and Gardner grounded out and flied out respectively, it seemed the Bulldogs finish the inning still tied, but Wolz came to the plate and drove a double into the right center gap. As Jennings took her place in the batters box, a wild pitch moved Wolz to third, and when the catchers throw was a little off, Wolz bolted home for the go ahead run while the Highlanders' left fielder chased the ball. Jennings grounded out to end the inning.

Now up by one run, Stone Bridge needed to hold McLean in the top of six, but the first batter walked, and the second reached on a fielder's choice. Though the second out was obtained as shortstop Driskill made a nice catch on a blooper to left, the following batter singled home the tying run. Gardner induced a ground out to Driskill for the final out, but McLean had tied the game. Stone Bridge came up short in the bottom of the sixth, with only sophomore second baseman Michele Mocabee reaching on an error, and the game went into the final inning tied at 5-5.

Gardner buckled down in the top of the seventh, allowing no base runners by retiring the side on a fly out to center and two ground outs to second. Stone Bridge now had one half-inning left in regulation play to score the winning run. Lechler led off with a single up the middle, and St. Peter's single up the left field line moved Lechler to second. Gardner grounded into a fielder's choice, but they had no play on Lechler, and she moved safely to third. With one out and the winning run on third, Wolz came to the plate. Needing only a deep fly ball to drive in the winning run, Wolz did one better, recording a hit to the right center gap, driving Lechler home for the win.

Stone Bridge, 17-5, now moves into the championship game on Monday night at Madison High School.

Stats leaders:
Lechler, 3 for 3, 2 home runs, walk, 3 RBIs, 3 runs scored.
St. Peter, 3 for 4
Wolz, 2 for four, double, run scored, game-winning RBI
Driskill, 1 hit, 1 run scored
Williams, 1 hit
Gardner, Sac Fly/RBI, winning pitcher. 7 hits, 5 strikeouts.

Posted by Wire and Staff Reports at 03:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Last night under stormy skies, the Loudoun Valley Viking Softball team scored a hard fought victory by beating #2 seed Yorktown, 5-3. The score remained 0-0 till the top of the 3rd when Allie Bartok got on with a bunt, stole second and managed to score before the play was finished. The score remained 1-0 till the top of the 5th when Harvey, Raudabaugh, Bartok, Wassman and Spicer all got hits to bring the score to 5-0.

As the Vikings struggled a little with their pitching, YorkTown slowly added a few runs and by the bottom of the 7th the score was 5-3. With Freshman Shelby Wassman on the mound, there was one out, a runner on second and the tying run on 1st. A ball was hit hard to foul territory on the left field side and Bartok made a flying leap to snag a crucial 2nd out. Wassman struck out the last batter to end the game.The Vikings offense was lead by Allie Bartok who was 3 for 4, scoring twice and stealing 3 bases. Sam Wassman also had an important RBI and scored a run along with Rachel Harvey, and Perrin Raudabaugh. Sarah Spicer got on base all three times and drove in a run. On the defensive side of the ball the entire team played well with several smart and tough plays turned in by Allie Bartok, Tiffany Beach, Sam Wassmann and Sarah Spicer.

The senior leadership was an important part of this game. On the mound Caroline Williams, Rachel Harvey and Shelby Wassman combined for the win. Karlie Johnson-Kemp turned in another fine catching job, catching all three pitchers.

With the win, Loudoun Valley advances to the final round of the AAA National District tournament to be played Friday night at Yorktown at 6:00. Regional play will be begin next Friday.

Posted by Wire and Staff Reports at 12:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A year after coming up just short in the Group AAA state championship game, the Stone Bridge softball team and junior catcher Kayla Lechler enter the spring with big plans once again this season.

"Since this is my first year as team captain, I want to prove that I deserve it," Lechler said. "My goals are to be productive offensively and to help our pitchers and the rest of the defense play as well as I know they can."

Said second-year coach Stephanie Walley: "I think Kayla takes her leadership roll very seriously. She's very vocal behind the plate."

Walley has been coaching high school softball for 13 years and was an assistant at Park View when the Patriots won the Group AA state championship in 2002.

The respect between Lechler and Walley is mutual. "I like Coach Walley's coaching style," Lechler said. "At practices, she makes us work hard, but she also leaves time for us to have fun. I also like that she listens and takes in to account what everyone on the team has to say."

Only a junior, Lechler has been a member of the varsity team since she was a freshman. But, her softball career predates her time at Stone Bridge. Playing since age five, Lechler played on two teams before moving up to the traveling league. Her team, the Ashburn Shooting Stars Gold, had an impressive five-year run. Although starting a such a young age, Lechler knew the position she was destined for.

"I knew I wanted to be a catcher since I was little," she said. "I love being apart of every pitch and having a big part in controlling the game. I like being the person to lead the team on the field and the one that the pitcher has to trust to make her look good."

She currently catches for the Fire and Ice Gold, but her dedication goes beyond that.

Around five years ago, Lechler's father opened Diamond Sports Training, where Kayla says she spends a lot of time working on her game individually or with the help of her trainer.

"My hitting instructor, Jason Babgy, has put in a lot of time with me and has gotten my swing and my confidence at the plate up to the point is today," she said.

All this work and effort can be extremely time-consuming for Lechler, who has her priorities in order. "There isn't a lot of time for other activities," she said. "For most of the summer I am out of town at a tournament or playing locally all weekend. During high school season, there is a practice or a game five or six days out of the week, so I have learned to manage my time really well.

"I will do homework when ever I get the chance - when I am driving home from tournaments, the bus rides to games, or during downtime at work, pretty much anytime I get. There isn't much time for things outside of softball. The bonus to that is that with all of the time I spend with my teammates I've made most of my closest friends."

Said teammate Lauren Jennings: "Kayla is and has been a solid player, one the other girls can look up to and fall back on for advice both on and off the field. Being co-captains with her this year is extremely fortunate for the team because she's such a solid player and will still have another year after this one."

As for Lechler's future, her goal is play division 1 softball in college or wherever she can make an impact. Although there are no schools in particular, she hopes after a showcase this summer to have a better idea. The thoughts of professional has also crossed her mind.

"They are going to have a team locally," Lechler said. "It would be a great experience to be able to play professionally after I get out of college."

Posted by Jessica Dunn - Gameday Magazine Columnist at 07:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The average blink of an eye takes three to four tenths of a second. Now, what can you do in about eight tenths of a second? Not much, considering you can barely blink twice in that amount of time. However, in sports, eight tenths of a second can make a huge difference. It can be the difference between a first or second place finish in a NASCAR race. It can be the difference between gold and silver at the Olympics. And, it can be the difference between medaling and not medaling at the Virginia AA State Track & Field Championships in 2006. The Heritage Pride Boy's 4 x 800 relay team missed medaling by eight tenths of a second at last year's championship. They look to improve and come away with a medal this year.

With three spots on the relay team already determined, and the last spot up for grabs between two talented runners, this year looks promising. Led by seniors Nick McLaughlin, Dominick Kroupa, and Zach Armentrout, with either John Donohoe or Kevin Winsheimer, both juniors, and competing for that last spot, they will be tough to beat!

McLaughlin will look to win a state championship this season in any of the 1600, 800, 400, 4 x 800, or 4 x 400, all being his specialties. He already holds school records in the 800 (2:01) and the 1600 (4:24), was "All-State" a year ago, and an Honorable Mention "All-Met" in Cross-Country this past fall. McLaughlin started running three years ago while living in New Zealand when he entered a race and won; from there he was hooked on improving himself. McLaughlin has achieved running levels as high as USATF National Junior Olympic Games and the AAU Junior Olympics. His goals include, "...becoming the next state champion in the 800 meter sprint this season. I know our team is capable of accomplishing anything we want, as long as we set our minds on that dream," says McLaughlin. This fall, he will be attending Virginia Tech on a running scholarship.

Kroupa was a member of three relay teams at last season's state championship. He ran on the 4 x 100, 4 x 400, and 4 x 800 teams, where his latter two teams each missed medaling by one place. He still says running last year was his greatest high school memory. Kroupa has been running track for four years and has been on Heritage's varsity team all four years. His personal goals for this season include running the 800 in 1:56 and the 400 in 0:48. The 400 time is the national qualifying standard. As a team he hopes the relay squad can run a sub-eight minute time and possibly win the state title. Unfortunately, at the conclusion of his senior year, his track career will come to a close, "After high school I am going to WVU [West Virginia University] but I'm not going to run in college," says Kroupa.

Armentrout is the third senior on this experienced team. Unfortunately, he was sidelined during his junior year due to anemia, the shortage of iron in the body. He has been running since his freshman season, and has been on the varsity squad his sophomore and senior season. He started on the relay team at the start of the season but lost his spot to Winsheimer only one race into the season. He plans on winning that spot back before the end of the track season. "I plan to maintain--or possibly win back--my position on the
4 x 800 team. If that doesn't end up happening, I'd at least like to P.R. [Personal Record] once or twice this season. As for the team, we'll hopefully qualify for the State meet again, and perhaps even do better than we did last year," says Armentrout when asked about his goals. He will attend either Carnegie Mellon or the University of Virginia this fall.

Donohoe was only a sophomore at last year's championship, and will return for another crack at that medal stand. Like all his fellow teammates, Donohoe has been running track since his freshman year. Like most 4 x 800 runners, he is a middle distance runner who also excels at the one mile and hopefully the 4 x 400. He hopes to come away with a medal at this year's state along with his teammates who have become like family to each other. His experience last year was great. "It was intimidating because I was just a sophomore, and not many sophomores can say they went to states. Also it was intimidating because you know that everyone there is really good and going to take the race very seriously," says Donohoe. But as for college, he has a great outlook for the future lined up, "I am not sure if I want to run in college but I plan on going to a college for further education and running for secondary activity."

Winsheimer, who is holding on by a thread for that 4th and final spot, will look to improve himself throughout the spring season and decrease all his times. He excels as a middle distance runner, who leaves everything he has out on the track. Winsheimer didn't run on the team last season as graduate Jayme Maddox ran in the fourth spot. However, not running on that team doesn't stop Winsheimer from giving it all he has. "The team's goals are to get back to states and hopefully medal," says Winsheimer. With another year of running left in him he looks to improve his speed and catch the eyes of some colleges.

Coach Kate Cassidy, who threw discus at Catholic University and was a graduate assistant at James Madison University, has the experience to coach this group of young men toward a podium visit at the end of the year. "The 4 x 800 missed medaling by about .8 seconds. Of course we were hoping for a medal...after all that's why you race. However, those boys ran hard and did what we asked them to do which is all one can ask for. There time (8:19.66) was only 3 seconds slower than there best time(8:16.35).---which is darn good and no one can run a personal best every time they step on the track." Says Cassidy, who believes this year's team is mentally stronger than a year ago.

All the boys have meshed together and become closer. "I love it because it feels like you're free from everything else. The team bonds through the common ground of what we do. You also get the chance to see some great runners give a race all they have and then some," says Winsheimer. "It depends. On easy days, we're all about sticking together." Says Armentrout. "But when it's time for a workout or a race, we have no problem leaving each other in the dust. When you run a relay, you're running for yourself and for your teammates. It's an awesome feeling passing the baton off to someone else, putting the outcome of the race into that person's hands,"

McLaughlin adds, "The boys that I run with are the best around. I wouldn't exchange any one of them for anyone else out there. Our team camaraderie is something I'll never forget and will always miss. The boys of Heritage track and field are like no other. We encourage and help each other out when the times get tough. Every single one of them is dedicated to what we do and what we need to accomplish." The team has the talent, and experience to carry them deep this season. Good Luck to them, now and in the future.

Posted by Chris Rossie - Gameday Magazine Columnist at 06:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

There have only been a handful of athletes over the years that have excelled at two professional sports. Althea Gibson became the first African-American Grand Slam tennis champion in 1956; eight years later, she traded in her racket for a 9-iron and became the first African-American woman to play in the LPGA. Deion Sanders enjoyed a nine-year baseball career before cementing himself in football legend and is the only man in sports history to have played in both a Super Bowl and a World Series. In November 2006, the Philadelphia Eagles, in the 5th round of the NFL Draft, selected phenom Jeremy Bloom--after skiing for the United States in two Olympic Games.

Loudoun County High School senior Amanda Arbogast may be far removed from the Olympics, but she can still relate with the pressures of being a star two-sport athlete. In the Fall of 2006, Arbogast was a key contributor in leading the Lady Raiders volleyball team to a state runner-up finish and received MVP at the end of the season. Ever since that spectacular run ended, Arbogast has been hard at work training for her other sporting passion: Softball.

At 6'2", Arbogast is a monolith compared to her softball teammates. When you look up the word 'modest' in the dictionary, there's her smiling face. If she had a motto, it would most likely be, "Walk softly and carry a big stick"...or in this case, a bat. Over the past four years on varsity softball, she's played a variety of positions, from infield to outfield. This year, Arbogast is assuming duties at first base and as Captain of the team. "Amanda is a great leader and leads by example. She has a really good work ethic and keeps everyone on their toes ready to play," says friend and fellow volleyball standout Paige Knudsen.

While she is a natural born leader, Arbogast has to work even harder this year to get the Raiders softball team into shape--due in a large part to a number seniors from last year's team, opting to excel in other sports in 2007. "I was really surprised when I walked into the gym the day of tryouts and saw that I was one of just two seniors trying out. I was in total shock," says Arbogast. "I later found out why some of the girls decided not to try out and I understood completely." Still, Arbogast was unwavering in her decision to stay. "Softball is my love and I would never give it up for anything. I knew by losing a few key players, it would mean stepping up and leading the team to work hard."

Head Coach Ryan Vance is glad she stayed. "As far as a player, Amanda is a very determined and a very mature athlete. She is physically gifted and her mental game has come along since last year. She's been very hardworking over the past twelve months and played a lot of travel ball." In fact, Arbogast says her proudest accomplishment in softball, so far, was being named MVP for her travel team the past two years in a row. While she decided to sit out the travel season this winter and focus more on physical training, Arbogast is quick to say, "I never have free time!"

It looks like that trend isn't going to stop this spring. "Coming into the season, both the team and I knew that we wouldn't have it easy. We are a very young team with only four returning varsity players," says Arbogast. "With that said, we knew we had to work twice as hard as anybody else." Vance agrees, but is still looking to improve upon last year's 10-10 record and 3rd place Dulles District finish. "The league is as wide open as it gets. No matter what team came back, I thought we were going to be able to compete."

In high school softball, "competing" is the "be all to end all." At the time of this writing, the Lady Raiders are 3rd in the Dulles District behind pre-season favorites Broad Run and Park View and have a 3-1 record (4-3 overall). While it hasn't been a perfect season, Arbogast doesn't mind. She's just looking to enjoy her last stint as a high school athlete before receiving her diploma.

Arbogast has been accepted to Bridgewater College and Christopher Newport University, both located in Virginia. She hasn't made up her mind so far about where she'll attend, but one thing is for certain - she will play both softball and volleyball at either school.

Maybe that Olympic podium isn't so far away after all?

Posted by David Replogle - Gameday Magazine Columnist at 06:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Gameday: How many years have you been coaching soccer, and at Potomac Falls?
Mitchell Schwartz: This is my 5th year coaching high school soccer, 2nd at Potomac Falls, and 8th year coaching overall.

GD: What or who got you into soccer and why did you decide to coach at PFHS?
MS: Soccer was the sport I played as a little kid and continued playing through high
school. My coaching career began at Maryland where I was the women's club soccer coach there. After that I was the boys varsity head coach for 3 years at John F. Kennedy High School in Montgomery County, Maryland. My decision to coach at Potomac Falls is due to their tradition and dedication to soccer. When the opportunity
to apply for the job arose I quickly took advantage of it and consider myself very lucky to have been given the job. I enjoy the challenge of coaching a team with high expectations every year.

GD: What do you enjoy most about coaching?
MS: There are a lot of things that I love about coaching but mostly it is the chance to work
with the players and to see them develop as players and as people. I really enjoy the prep work that goes into getting your team ready for a game and scouting is a large part of that, which I like to do. My players have enjoyed
the scouting reports that I put together for them for each team we face.

GD: Who are your biggest influences or role models?
MS: My biggest role model in my life is my mother. She worked with middle school students and seeing, firsthand, the positive influence she had on so many people's lives, inspires me to try to do the same through teaching and coaching. After she passed away over 12 years ago I have consistently tried to make her
proud through my work with young people and a large part of that is coaching. I have had a lot of people influence me, and my coaching, and that begins with my best friend, Raphael. He got me started in coaching, and watching his passion for coaching has rubbed off on me, and I still go to him to seek his advice.

GD: What is the biggest challenge as a girls soccer coach?
MS: The biggest challenge that I face is getting the team ready with such a short preseason. With the girls playing on many different club teams we have to learn each other in such a short amount of time and while doing it indoors. I got used to fall soccer in Maryland, which allowed us to have a much longer time to get ready for the season. I don't think there is a specific challenge for me as far as coaching girls since I had done so for 3
years while at Maryland. The other challenge is competing with demanding club schedules that some of the girls keep during the high school season.

GD: What has been your biggest coaching career highlight, and most memorable moment, at Potomac Falls?
MS: My biggest coaching career highlight was during my time coaching the University of
Maryland women's club team. By winning the annual tournament at Penn State, beating undefeated Penn State 2-1, we gained the #1 ranking in our region and gained an invitation to the 16 team club soccer national championship tournament. My biggest high school coaching highlight would be in my first season at Kennedy High School. After
winning our first round game in our regional tournament, we faced the #1 ranked team who had only lost 1 game all year. We were down 2 with five minutes to play and tied it up. We remained scoreless in overtime and sadly lost
on penalty kicks. I will never forget that game as it took place on Halloween and there was freezing rain that night. I was so proud of my team for their effort that night. My most memorable moment so far at Potomac Falls
was our first game this year at Dominion. We scored two goals in the first two minutes of the season and went on to win 3-1. It was extra special for me as I teach at Dominion.

GD: What place did the team finish last season?
MS: We finished in 4th place last year.

GD: Do you expect the same finish as last year?
MS: I fully expect that we will finish higher than 4th. Currently, we are in 3rd place halfway through the season and we are playing much better this year. We have tough competition in front of us but I firmly believe in my players, that we will continue to move up the standings.

GD: Which players do you expect to step up and be leaders and what do you expect them to show?
MS: I expect all of my players to step up but I look to my veterans, especially my seniors, to be leaders on the team. Players who have been in the program for many years and who worked with me last year know my expectations and I look for them to lead the new players by example. I expect them to show the
dedication that it will take to lead us to our goals this season and they have responded.

Posted by Amanda Rivers - Gameday Columnist at 05:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Despite a sprained MCL that has disrupted her season, Melissa Mailley hopes to build on last year's success.

Watching helplessly on the sideline, Melissa Mailley's only wish is to come to the rescue of her teammates. The Falcons play together with enthusiasm but clearly seem lost without their star goalkeeper and MVP. They fall behind to Heritage and cannot seem to muster enough offensive firepower to overcome the deficit. The Briar Woods standout goalie wonders if she could have prevented the Pride's two goals if she were on the field. Because of spraining her MCL earlier in the season, she is forced to watch on the sideline as the final seconds tick off on the scoreboard and the Falcons fall 0-2. With her voice hoarse from all the shouts of encouragement, Mailley walks off the field with her teammates after the game, determined to return from the injury as soon as possible.

Most people would have been discouraged by the setback, but Mailley remains optimistic and supportive of her teammates. After recording an astounding 321 saves, Mailley looks to build on her impressive season last year when she returns from her injury later this season.

"Sitting on the bench and having no input on the game is tough, but I'm working hard with our school's trainer so I can help my teammates as soon as possible," said Mailley.

The Falcons success on the soccer field starts with the team's leader and last line of defense. Mailley was first team all-district, first team all-region, and honorable mention for the all-state team last year. Her coaches praise her quickness, agility, instincts, and her decision making. When watching the junior, you see her fearlessness and willingness to recklessly give up her body for a save. Mailley plays with a look of determination on her face and her team feeds off her energy.

"Melissa is a great person on and off the field, has quick hands and feet, and is our emotional leader," said teammate Brittany Donegan. "Even while she's been out with her injury she is still upbeat and encouraging."

Mailley has played soccer for eight years and perfected her skills with numerous travel teams. When she arrived at Briar Woods last year, it became clear that she would be the centerpiece that girls soccer coach Ann Vierkorn would build around.

"Melissa takes pride in what she does and doesn't need accolades to motivate her. I rely on her to be a good role model and lead the team on and off the field, and she has never let me down," said Vierkorn.

Although Mailley is considered one of Briar Woods most talented players, she remains humble and dedicated.

"We have a hard working team and no one player is above anyone else. It takes an entire team to win games and everyone understands that, and we work hard to achieve our goals," said Mailley.

Despite a 1-13 district record last year, the Falcons are a much improved team with lots of young, talented athletes. A year more experienced, Briar Woods continues to play competitively against the better teams in the Dulles district. The Falcons upset Park View 2-1, tied Potomac Falls 0-0, and battled valiantly in a 0-1 loss to Loudoun Valley this year.

But Vierkorn is not as concerned with the scoreboard as she is with seeing her team continually giving their all-out effort.

"Being a new and young team, I'm fortunate to have a player like Melissa. And I tell all my players that if you give all you've got, you will always be a winner," said Vierkorn.

"We just want to be competitive this year and hopefully finish somewhere in the top five in the district," said Mailley.

Off the field, Mailley's teachers continually praise her for her attentiveness and stellar grades in the classroom. She also seems to know everyone in her school because of her upbeat attitude and contagious smile.

"Melissa is a true role model to her teammates as well as other student athletes Briar Woods," Vierkorn said.

Whether in the classroom, making saves on the soccer field, or doing what is best for her teammates, you can count on Mailley to be a role model and star for the Falcons.

Posted by Stephen Law - Gameday Magazine Columnist at 05:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Stone Bridge Bulldogs (15-6, 10-4) and the Woodson Cavaliers (6-14, 3-11) had a game for the ages in Ashburn tonight. The Bulldogs were down a run and had one out left when they staged an improbable rally to defeat the Cavs 4-3 on a walk off double by Soph DH Johnny Bladel. Head Coach Sam Plank had Jr RHP Ty Weaver on the hill, while Head Coach Chris Warren countered with Jr RHP Greg Whitaker.

Weaver got off to a rocky start. LF Jacob Morley led off with a single. Nick Herbst then walked on four straight pitches. A wild pitch moved the runners to second and third and things weren't looking too good for Stone Bridge. The Cavs were able to score two runs on groundouts to Jr SS Mike Stancik. Max Waizenegger gounded out to Jr 2B Collin Pearson to end the inning. After Pearson grounded out and Soph LF Michael Prince popped out, Stancik worked a full count walk. With Jr CF Jeron Gouveia at the plate, Stancik was able to move all the way to third on two wild pitches. Gouveia eventually walked on four pitches. With Bladel at the plate, Gouveia stole second. But Bladel flew out to right to end the threat.

Wevaer settled down nicely in the second, retiring the Cavaliers in order on groundouts to Stancik and Pearson, and a popout to Pearson. Stone Bridge had an opportunity in the bottom of the frame fall to the wayside. Jr C Brian Wheaton led off with a sharp single to center. He moved to second on a wild pitch. With Jr RF Matt Irwin batting, Wheaton broke towards third as Irwin attempted a bunt. Unfortunately, he popped it up and Whitaker made a great play diving for the ball and doubling Wheaton off of second. With two outs, Jr 3B Tyler Basso drove a ball to the left center gap for a double. What looked like a promising innning ended with a whimper as Soph 1B Patrick Thompson bounced out to Whitaker to end the inning.

Weaver retired Woodson in order again, with Stancik making two nice plays and Pearson flagging down a ground ball for an out. Prince then picked up a out out single. But after a flyout to center by Stancik, Gouveia grounded into a fielder's choice as Pince was forced at second.

In the fourth, Woodson picked up another run as Jackson Clement and Kevin Dec hit back to back doubles. With Dec on second and no outs, Weaver got a huge strikeout of Waizenegger. He then got groundouts to Basso and Pearson to end the inning. The Bulldogs were finally able to break through in the bottom of the fourth. Bladel led off with a sharp single to right. After Wheaton lined out to center, Irwin was hit by a pitch. A wild pitch moved them to second and third. Basso came through, lining a double to the left center gap, scoring Bladel and Irwin. But Thompson and Pearson flew out to center to end the inning.

In the fifth, with two outs, Morley picked up his second single of the night. But he was stranded this time as Herbst grounded out to Basso. In the bottom of the fifth, Gouveia singled through the hole with two outs. But Bladel hit a ball to short. The flip to Herbst at second was dropped and it looked like all runners were safe. However, Gouveia went into second awkwardly. As he got up, he stepped off the bag and Herbst tagged him out, ending the inning.

Weaver was dominating in the sixth. He got Clement on a called third strike, got Dec to flyout out to center and got Waizenegger looking on a called third strike as well. Time was starting to run out on Stone Bridge. Things looked good in the bottom of the inning. Wheaton led off with a single through the hole. Irwin then singled as well. Coach Warren decided to make a pitching change, putting Herbst on the hill. Basso came up bunting and popped up to Herbst. Wheaton and Irwin were moving and Wheaton was doubled off of second. Thompson K'd to end the inning.

Weaver battled through the seventh and it looked like he might be a hard luck loser. In the top of the inning, he got a groudout to Pearson and a strikeout. He then walked PH Jack Dunn. But he finished off the Cavs in the seventh, inducing a Dylan Robeson popout to Pearson. Pearson led off the bottom of the seventh. He smoked a ball to left that was caught by Morley. Prince came up and stroked a Herbst pitch to center, but Waizenegger made the catch. With two outs, Stancik stepped to the plate. He ripped an 0-1 pitch down the right field line. He made it second, thought about trying for third but wisely stopped. Gouveia came up. He blooped an 0-1 pitch down the left field line that looked like Morley was going to catch for the third out. But Morley abruptly stopped about 15 feet from the ball, throwing his hands in the air as he lost the ball in the lights. The ball dropped within a couple of feet of the foul line, as Stancik scored the tying run and Gouveia was on second. Bladel came to the plate. With an 0-2 count, Bladel ripped a double to center field, scoring the winning run in the person of Gouveia, as the Bulldogs picked up an improbable win!

The game was special for Stone Bridge for multiple reasons. The win propelled them to the Liberty district semi-finals on Friday night. They will be facing the #2 seed Langley Saxons. They have split the season series with Langley, defeating them on April 13, in a 4-3 thriller. The Saxons easily handled the Bulldogs on May 8, 9-5 securing the second seed in the tournament. In addition, tonight's win secured the second consecutive Northern Region tournament berth for the Bulldogs. But what was most special about the win is that it was the 100th win for both Head Coach Sam Plank and the Stone Bridge baseball program. The Bulldogs were able to reach 100 wins in less than seven years. Several former Bulldog players were in attendence, along with the initial JV coach Matt Oblas as the JV team has also picked up 100 wins this season.
Congratulations to Coach Plank and the Bulldogs!

Posted by Wire and Staff Reports at 04:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Stone Bridge softball team continued to their hot hitting on Wednesday, defeating South Lakes High School 30-2 in the first round of the Liberty District Tournament. Offensive leaders were Stephanie St. Peter (5 hits, 5 RBIs), Kayla Lechler (4 hits, 7 RBIs), Cassie Phillips (4 hits, 3 RBIs), Lauren Williams (4 hits, 2 RBIs), and Ashley Gardner (3 hits, 4 RBIs). Phillips pitched the complete game, striking out 10.

The Lady Bulldogs advance to the semi-finals in the Liberty District Tournament, Friday at 5:30 at Langley High School.

Posted by Wire and Staff Reports at 04:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

(Sterling, VA) - TCC Sports is excited to announce that Gameday Magazine will soon be opening in Prince William County and Fauquier County. This expansion marks the 4th time in the last 18 months that Gameday Magazine has expanded its reach. Nova Sports LLC will publish the Prince William County version of Gameday Magazine. The owners of Nova Sports are no strangers to the Gameday Magazine family as they have participated in the production of Gameday Radio broadcasts, and have contributed to the editorial staff for the Loudoun and Fairfax Gameday Magazine. TCC Sports owner Andy Hayes saw a natural fit for the 2 owners to open their own market once they became familiar with the business opportunity.

"Derek Goode's passion for covering high school sports is tremendous," Hayes said. "They will definitely do a great job in bringing Prince William and Fauquier Counties the best local sports coverage around."

The Prince William/Fauquier edition of Gameday Magazine will feature a total of 17 schools in the future and several of the best athletic programs in the state. Last year's Division 6 state champion in football was Osbourn High School (Manassas) and the basketball program at Freedom High School (Woodbridge) also put together an outstanding season. Fauquier County will be represented with Liberty High School and Fauquier High School athletics, some of the best in the area as well. Goode knows that his new market may be one of the best in the region.

The Prince William/Fauquier County edition of Gameday Magazine will launch in August of 2007 and will continue publishing every month throughout the year.

For more information on Gameday Magazine and available franchises, please contact TCC Sports at 703-349-3503 or e-mail Andy@tccsports.com.

Posted by TCC Sports Staff at 03:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Every four years, soccer takes its turn in the limelight with the action-packed World Cup, captivating millions of viewers around the globe. Even skeptical spectators find it difficult not to be intrigued by the passion and intensity of the world's most popular sport. Between the World Cup and the growing popularity of American soccer, more and more fans both young and old are following the exhilarating game and the ups and downs of its beloved players.

Whether it is time for the World Cup or not, soccer is always on the minds of two of our Commonwealth Orthopaedics members. As team physicians for the D.C. United professional soccer team, William Hazel, MD, and Christopher Annunziata, MD, care for a roster of exceptional players year-round.

Partners from the Start

When D.C. United formed in 1996 in the inaugural season of Major League Soccer, Washington, D.C., quickly developed a dedicated fan base for the club. As the team took shape, it immediately realized its need for a local medical staff that could care for the many injuries the players would incur. Having worked with professional teams in the past, Dr. Hazel, along with Commonwealth Orthopaedics' Frank Pettrone, MD, was chosen as one of the original team physicians. Today, the partnership between Commonwealth Orthopaedics and D.C. United continues as Drs. Hazel and Annunziata manage the team's orthopaedic care.

Caring for Sports-Related Injuries

Along with the incredible success of the team, the intense nature of the sport and the grueling schedule mean the players face frequent injuries and medical concerns. Dr. Annunziata explains the role of the team physicians: "In general, we help the team with a variety of sports-related injuries -- not only surgical care but day-to-day care for their injuries throughout the season, such as soft tissue injuries, muscle injuries, and head injuries. We also do a weekly clinic with the players and try to get them back to full participation as quickly as possible."

In the club's short history, several D.C. United players have suffered multiple injuries, including ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) injuries, ankle fractures, and torn cartilage. In terms of treating the players, complete sports medicine care is possibly the best descriptor of what happens day in and day out. Sometimes that treatment may involve surgery.

In recent seasons, Dr. Annunziata has performed meniscal cartilage surgery on goalie Nick Rimando and arthroscopic ankle surgery on David Stokes. Other times, though, the treatment may be nonoperative, as with the care and rehabilitation of forward Alecko Eskandarian, who suffered multiple concussions.

"The level of play in this league is higher than what most Americans would expect," Dr. Hazel explains. "The nature of the players' injuries varies. In time, you get to know the players and what their bodies can do. They get tired, and we have had to learn to anticipate and deal with that."

Caring for star midfielder Ben Olsen is an ongoing responsibility for Dr. Hazel. "It is interesting to watch Ben as he matures," says Dr. Hazel. "He has gone from relying on his speed to playing more in the midfield. And he has adapted and become a real team leader, even winning a spot on the U.S. Men's Team. It's fun to watch players adapt as their skill levels change. Keeping Ben in the game is very rewarding."

Another factor that keeps the treatment of D.C. United both interesting and challenging is the varying ages of many of the players. "Bobby Convey was only 15 when he was drafted," says Dr. Hazel. "We also have Freddy Adu who was still in high school when he was drafted. So developing younger players was something we had to work on. Their medical treatment is different as their growth plates are still open. We run the gamut from teenage phenomenons to older players."

As D.C. United -- or "the Black and Red" as many refer to them -- continues to win the affection of many Washingtonians and furthers American appreciation for the sport, Drs. Hazel and Annunziata and the Commonwealth Orthopaedics team are proud to partner with such a diverse and outstanding sports organization right here in our own community.

William A. Hazel, Jr., MD, earned his medical degree from Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, North Carolina, completed his orthopaedic surgery residency at the Mayo Clinic and is board certified by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery. A founding member and President of Commonwealth Orthopaedics, Dr. Hazel serves as a member of the Board of Trustees of the American Medical Association and as a speaker and officer for a number of medical societies. He volunteers as Team Physician for Chantilly High School.

Christopher C. Annunziata, MD, earned his medical degree from Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington, D.C., completed his orthopaedic surgery residency at Georgetown, and followed that with a sports medicine/knee and shoulder surgery fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh Sports Medicine Center. He is board certified by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery. He serves as a Team Physician for James Madison High School, a consultant for McLean Youth Soccer and is a Clinical Assistant Professor for the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Georgetown University Medical Center.

Posted by Commonwealth Orthopaedics at 12:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

12 years ago, the Madison High School baseball program hired a guy by the name of Mark Gjormand. Since that time, Gjormand has fielded numerous nationally ranked teams, in addition to bringing home the 2002 state championship. Gjormand and the Warhawks are at it again as they are ranked 14th nationally by the USA Today, and are on pace to be a serious threat to win it all again this June.

By the start of May, the Warhawks were 13-2, and sitting atop the Liberty District standings with only one district loss. One of those 13 wins was registered during the Warhawk's spring break trip to Orlando. The Warhawks drummed the top ranked 6A baseball team in Florida behind the play of Arman Moniri and Brig Tison, both whom were chosen to the 2007 Orlando National Classic All-Tournament Team. With the national media keeping a close eye on every game, and expectations continuing to rise, Coach Mark Gjormand is impressed with what he has seen thus far from his players.

"Their consistency and intensity level has impressed me a lot this season, and so far, this season has been fun," said coach Gjormand. "We've been ranked over the past few years so the kids have been used to the attention, but our goal is to be the last team standing on June 10th, and that is what we are working hard to achieve."

Pitcher Jason Farley, who had a 0.63 ERA last year, has been the heart of the 2007 Warhawks once again. He not only gets the job done, he gets it done fast. On April 24, against McLean, Farley only allowed one run, and went through five innings throwing just 57 pitches.

"Our senior leadership and the fact that we play hard 100% of the time is the biggest reason why we are doing so well," said Farley.

While the Warhawks have some outstanding team leaders in guys like Jason Farley and senior catcher Alex Andrews, last year's Liberty District champions also have some exciting young players making some key contributions.

"Of course we can rave on and on about our seniors and they deserve the credit, but I'm also really excited about guys like junior Jesse Jeter, who was our number two pitcher last year, but this year he has really elevated his game. He is a special player and we consider him to be a number one pitcher along with Jason Farley. Collin Flaherty hits 9th in our lineup, but he wouldn't hit 9th in any other team's lineup because he can flat out play. We are excited about guys like Collin and Jesse and the other young guys who are really playing lights out for us," said Gjormand

Expectations were extremely high coming into the season because of the experience returning from last season's 22-2 team that finished ranked 18th in the country by the USA Today. So far, the Warhawks have passed the grade, but the true tests are waiting down the road.

"We know what is at stake and we look at pressure two ways, you can either feel pressure or apply it, and we want to be the team applying it," said Gjormand. "The expectations are there for us every year from outside of the program. We know that every game counts and we are just trying to notch as many wins as possible by the end of the season."

The Warhawks have one of the most talented pitching staffs in the state with Jeter and Farley, who are both capable of dominating every time they pitch. What's amazing about this team is the amount of players who will most likely see college baseball scholarships. So far, eight of the team's 22 players have been offered scholarships and will continue their playing careers on the next level. More interest is expected in the near future for the younger players who have emerged onto the scene this season.

Langley and Stone Bridge are fighting to give the Warhawks some competition for the top seed in the Northern Region playoffs, but don't be fooled, Madison is the favorite to get to the final game, and to bring home the hardware. And from the looks of things, the Warhawks wouldn't like it any other way.

How about that for expectations!

Posted by Sean Frye - Gameday Magazine Columnist at 12:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

On Senior night at the baseball complex at Titan Territory, the Brothers Taylor were a twin force on Tuesday, as they were both instrumental in guiding Dominion to a dramtic victory over crosstown rival Potomac Falls, in the last regular season game before heading into the Dulles District tournament.

Sr. Jordan Taylor pitched the complete game, 8 inning shutout, scattering 4 Panther hits throughout the contest, but it was the heroics of "little" brother Chris (sophomore), that capped the victory for the Titans on this night. With the game deadlocked at 0-0 in the bottom of the 8th inning, the younger Taylor rocketed a 2-0 fastball over the left field fence for the 1-0 win.

Panther pitcher Mike Detaranto pitched equally well for the visitors, giving up no runs before being lifted in the bottom of the seventh. The win gives Dominion their best Dulles District finish in their short history, at 8-6, and going into the Dulles District tournament on Friday with a 3 game winning streak.

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 04:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Championship Tuesday

(Ashburn, VA) - Less than one month ago, Broad Run head coach Pat Cassidy had a team that was reeling from several losses in the Dulles District. Teams such as Loudoun County, Potomac Falls, and Park View were making their move to the top of the standings and the Spartans were falling fast. Cassidy and the Spartans had two options, panic and fade away, or continue to fight and get back in the title race. Thankfully for Broad Run fans, the Spartans chose the second option and on Tuesday, they capped off their season with a Dulles District Championship.

Broad Run and Park View entered Tuesday's game both having identical 10-3 district records. The winner of the game secured an automatic berth in the regional playoffs, the loser faces the tougher road of having to win the Dulles District tournament to get in. Park View put senior Kyle Irish on the mound, and Broad Run put their title hopes in the hands of Trey Brocke.

Both pitchers threw strikes early and often in the first inning, but in the top of the 2nd, Park View struck first when Jimmy Kerby scored to put the Patriots up 1-0. Broad Run would then answer with 5 runs in the bottom of the 2nd inning, led by shortstop Chris Jessop's double that drove in 3 runs.

Broad Run added another run late on another Jessop hit, this time a beautiful bunt down the third baseline in the 5th inning that brought home the runner on third. Spartan pitcher Trey Brocke proved to be too much as he threw a complete game 2-hitter to hold the Patriots in check and help Broad Run win the district title.

Brocke's control and ability to change speeds kept Patriot hitters off balance all day. The talented middle of the Patriot's lineup was neutralized with Matt Griffin, Kyle Irish, Nathan White, and Dylan Smith struggling to generate hits at the plate.

With the win, Broad Run will now host a first round regional playoff game and will not have to win the Dulles District tournament starting Friday. Park View secured the #2 seed in the tournament despite the loss.

Tuesday Round-Up:

Lady Spartans Make It Two for Two:
Broad Run's undefeated softball season was on the line on Tuesday night when rival Park View came to town. The Patriots jumped all over Spartan pitcher Caitlyn Delahaba for 3 runs in the contest and led going into the bottom of the 7th inning. But the upset wasn't meant to be as Broad Run scored 3 runs in the final inning to win the game and the Dulles District Championship outright.

Broad Run will host a regional playoff game in softball as well and Park View must win the Dulles District tournament or face Broad Run in the finals in order to advance to the regional playoffs.

*Check back for more on this exciting win for Broad Run.

Taylor's Blast Wins It For Dominion:
With a potential #3 seed on the line for Potomac Falls, their game against Dominion on Tuesday night was important. The Titans needed the win for momentum and a better seeding heading into the Dulles District tournament as well. Both teams played scoreless baseball through 8 innings until Dominion's Chris Taylor walked to the plate and ended the game with a walk-off home run.

Dominion's 1-0 win now pushes Potomac Falls into 4th place and possibly a tie for 4th place depending on how the game between Heritage and Loudoun County finished.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 10:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Nansemond River Warriors' baseball team moved one step closer to pulling off the unthinkable yesterday with an impressive 6-1 win over Western Branch. The win keeps the Warriors chances of winning the Southeastern District title alive while the loss means the Bruins of Western Branch will have to at least advance to the district tournament final in order to gain a birth into the Eastern Region tournament.

Nansemond River has been white hot as of late and has emerged as a dangerous dark horse in a traditionally tough district and Warrior head coach Mark Stuffel has been more than pleased with his team's late season surge. "We're just clicking right now," he says.

Erickson Keeton threw a complete game for River and Jermaine Berry went 3-3 with 2 doubles and 4 RBI. Dover took the loss for the Bruins and Western Branch will turn to its Ace, Chad O'Connor today against Hickory and Nansemond River will be rooting for O'Connor as they still need a lot of help to win the district crown.

The Warriors will have to rely on Western Branch to turn around and defeat the Hickory Hawks this afternoon and then will need Hickory to bounce back and defeat Great Bridge in the season finale on Wednesday. If those two things happen, there would be a three-way tie for first place between Hickory, Great Bridge, and Nansemond River which would then result in a probable play-off before the district tournament begins.

If Hickory defeats Western Branch today, Nansemond River would be unable to win a share of the regular season district title.

Stay tuned for more details.

Posted by Chad Capellman at 02:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The race for the Southeastern District regular season baseball crown is shaping up to be a photo finish as four teams still have a shot at the title heading into the final week of the season. Perennial contenders Great Bridge and Hickory still control their own destinies but will have their work cut out for them this week as they try to fend off the Western Branch Bruins, who has been hot all season but has cooled as of late, and the dark horse Warriors of Nansemond River.

All four teams have already clinched spots in the district tournament but the regular season winner receives an automatic bid into the Eastern Regional tournament - a huge incentive for the four schools coming down the stretch.

Some questions will be answered as early as today as Hickory looks to take care of business against Oscar Smith and Western Branch hosts Nansemond River where the loser's dreams of a regular season title will be dashed. If the Bruins can get by the Warriors today, the road does not get any easier though as they will have to take on the Hawks of Hickory on Tuesday afternoon.

The wild week will culminate on Wednesday with the regular season finale between Hickory and Great Bridge. Potentially three of the four teams will have a vested interest in that game if Western Branch can knock off Hickory the day before.

Keep checking this site regularly throughout the next couple of days as I will continually be posting updates and insights from coaches and players.

Posted by Chad Capellman at 11:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Park View ran its Dulles District record to 12-1 with Friday night's 6-3 victory over the Panthers from Potomac Falls. Nichole Pitock threw a complete game, giving up 3 hits, walking 2 and striking out 9 Panther batters. The Patriot offense rang the bell for 10 hits, including 4 doubles. Freshman Sam Gleason went 3-4 with a run scored, an RBI and a stolen base. Laura Heironimus and Sam Louk both had 2 RBIs, as well. Park View had to overcome a 3-2 deficit in the top of the fifth to preserve this victory and claim no worse than the second seed in the upcoming District tournament. After Potomac Falls had scored 3 to take the lead in the bottom of the fourth, the Patriots answered with three runs quickly in the fifth to take the lead for good. Emily Garcia added a double in the frame, and scored 2 runs to add to her team lead of 20.

Park View travels to #1 ranked Broad Run on Tuesday evening to conclude the regular season. The Patriots are 14-5 this year.

Park View 6 10 2
P Falls 3 3 1

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 05:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Storyline Provided by Panther Baseball Gameday Insider

The Potomac Falls baseball team continued their rise in the Dulles District, and kept their recent magic alive, with a 9-2 upset victory over 1st place Park View on Senior Night at Panther Park. Jacob Kline goes the distance, and the Panthers broke open a close game with a six run 5th inning.

Potomac Falls started the scoring in the bottom of the 1st inning when Cory Flickinger hit a single to left field and Aaron Sweger followed with shot off the left center field fence for a triple. After a walk to Rob Malan, John Bracken then hit a two run single to righ tfield to plate Sweger and Malan and give the Panthers a 3-0 lead that they would not relinquish.

In the top of the 2nd inning, Park View pitcher Matt Griffin led off with a single up the middle and scored one batter later when Billy Bradley hit a rope to center field for a double. Kline then induced the next two batters to fly out leaving Bradley stranded at second.

Park View pushed another run across the plate in the 3rd inning when Dave Laub led off with a single. Laub next stole second base, and scored on a line drive to center field by Kyle Irish to cut the lead to 3-2. The Shenandoah bound Griffin then got into a groove and recorded 6 strikeouts over the next three innings.

The Patriots threatened again in the 5th inning when Adam Foltz singled to lead off the inning. He was moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Laub. Nathan White then singled to move Foltz to third base and White then promptly stole second base. With first base open, the Panthers opted to walk Dylan Smith to load the bases and face Irish. Kline then threw a low pitch that Irish hit to short and the Panthers turned the 6-4-3 double play to end the inning.

With the Panthers fired up after the double play, their bats came alive in the bottom half of the inning. James Waggoner led off with a double to right field and moved to third base on a wild pitch. After the next two batters flew out, Flickinger singled to score Waggoner. Sweger then followed with a single to right and Malan hit another single to score Flickinger. After an error loaded the bases, Chad McMichael cleared them with a 3 run double to left\center field. Kline then helped himself with a single to right to score the final run of the inning and put the Panthers up 9-2.

Kline breezed through the final two innings to pick up the complete game win. Highlights of the game for Potomac Falls were Aaron Sweger going 3-4 (single, double, triple) 1 RBI, Cory Flickinger going 2-3, 1 RBI, Chad McMichael 3 RBI's, John Bracken 2 RBI's, and Jacob Kline's complete game 7 hitter which included no walks. For the Patriots, Nathan White was 2-4, Kyle Irish 1-3, 1 RBI and Billy Bradley 1-3, 1 RBI.

Potomac Falls will complete their regular season schedule with a trip to Dominion on Tuesday, May 15, before entering the Dulles District tournament later that week.

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 04:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The #9 ranked Notre Dame girls soccer team defeated Tandem Friends of Charlottesville 8-1 Friday night to finish their regular season wiith an overall record of 10-3-2.

The Dragons were led this night by senior striker Lindsay Mancari and freshman midfielder Amber Cook. Mancari scored 4 goals and had 2 assists while Cook contributed 4 goals of her own. Freshman Emily Young added two assists, while Katie Freeman, Deana Oriend, and Theresa Converse each added one assist.

The Dragons await the VISAA state committee votes to see if they will be invited to the Virginia Independent School State Tournament. If voted in, the Dragons would play on Monday, May 14, in the Quarter Finals at a site to be determined.

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 04:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Big shake-ups this week in AAA Northern Region baseball. Top Dogs Madison and Oakton continue towards their respective District championships, and automatic berths in the Region tournament, while others who saw top 5 spots in last week's Poll, crumbled under the pressure, and fell hard! The Westfield Bulldogs bow out of this week's Poll, and the Edison Eagles jump right in, just in time for tournament play for everyone.

Lake Braddock and South County see a big rise from their previous seat, and look to be on a collision course for the Patriot District crown. Stone Bridge and Langley fought it out for the #2 spot in the Liberty District recently, with the Saxons coming out on top, securing their spot into the Region championships, while Chantilly and Yorktown fall drastically in the Poll, but see themselves in respectable positions in their respective Districts, with the Patriots leading in the National by 1 game over Edison.

Below is our Top 10 Northern Region teams! Where does YOUR team sit?

GAMEDAY BASEBALL POWER POLL
NORTHERN REGION

1. MADISON (12-1 \ 16-2) Liberty

2. OAKTON (11-1 \ 18-2) Concorde

3. LAKE BRADDOCK (12-1 \ 17-2) Patriot

4. LANGLEY (10-3 \ 15-4) Liberty

5. STONE BRIDGE (10-4 \ 14-6) Liberty

6. SOUTH COUNTY (11-2 \ 14-4) Patriot

7. CHANTILLY (8-4 \ 12-7) Concorde

8. ROBINSON (8-4 \ 11-8) Concorde

9. LOUDOUN VALLEY (7-0 \ 17-3) National

10t. YORKTOWN (10-2 \ 12-8) National

10t. EDISON (9-4 \ 13-7) Concorde

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 03:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Much movement in the Poll this week, as some of the Top Dogs are starting to crumble, and the teams at the bottom come away with some upsets to move up the ladder. Don't be fooled by the records! The middle teams are playing well enough now, and right before their respective District tournaments. Can they continue to climb? Next week should be the test!

1. Stone Bridge (10-4 \ 14-6)
* The Bulldogs remain our top Loudoun County team this week, as they finish in 3rd place in the standings in the tough Liberty District, going into next week's tournament. A tough loss to Langely hurt their shot at the #2 seed, but the Bulldogs bounced back nice to defeat South Lakes, to hang on to that 3 spot. Once little used sophomore Michael Prince making some noise with his bat of late, and could help this team make a run at a berth into the Northern Region tournament.

2. Loudoun Valley (7-1 \ 17-3)
* The Vikings avoided disaster last Friday, needing to come from behind late in the game to edge Dominion, in what could have been their undoing, and unseeding, in this poll. A nice win over another National District rival, Yorktown, over the weekend, and knocking off Dulles District top ranked Park View, and Loudoun Valley stays at #2.

3. Park View (10-2 \ 13-5)
* Only 1 game on the schedule since last week's poll, a loss to Loudoun Valley, is all that possibly saved these Patriots from falling this week. Nobody seems to want to make a run at the Patriots, as Dulles District rivals are falling fast! In order to cement themselves as Dulles District champs, they'll have to win tough games against a surging Potomac Falls, and then Broad Run for what could possibly be for the title.

4. Broad Run (9-3 \ 10-8)
* The Spartans climb back into the 3 hole, as they take advantage of an easy schedule last week, and benefit from some tough losses by their running mates in the District. Tough games against Loudoun County and Park View ahead. Can they retake the Dulles District?

5. Potomac Falls (8-4 \ 11-6)
* The Panthers have obviously taken to heart their previous standings, and the commentary as to how they arrived there, by starting to play some solid baseball, and notching some impressive victories over tough opponents, Loudoun County and Heritage. Aaron Sweger and Jacob Kline, starting to assert themselves as much needed help to the already steady Cory Flickenger and Rob Malan. Will it be enough to capture a tournament title?

6. Heritage (7-6 \ 10-7)
* A loss to Potomac Falls, and a win against Briar Woods wouldn't necessarily be cause for a rise in the ranks in this week's poll, but the Pride got some help from Loudoun County, by the Raiders going on an inopportune losing streak. Still..... A win over the Raiders next week, in their season finale, can solidify the Pride as a legitimate threat to do some damage in the upcoming tournament.

7. Dominion (6-6 \ 11-7)
* The "Up-And-Down" season for these scrappy Titans has them on the "Up" side this week, as they took Loudoun Valley to the wire last Friday, in a game they should have won, had they decided to play defense at the right time, and then went on to complete the season sweep over Loudoun County in impressive fashion. Sophomore Chris Taylor continues to shut down opposing offenses, and if the Titans sew up the holes in their defense, they could contend for the tournament championship.

8. Loudoun County (8-4 \ 10-7)
* The Raiders go on an ill-timed losing streak, and see their Dulles District championship hopes diminished, losing to Potomac Falls and Dominion in their past 2 games, and dropping them from the 4 places......The biggest swing of any team since the Polls came out. Opponents are starting to figure out ace Joe Strange, and the schedule doesn't get any easier for the Raiders, with Broad Run and Heritage on the horizon.

9. Freedom (1-12 \ 2-16)
* The Eagles will look to retool, and hope for good things ion 2008.

10. Briar Woods (0-12 \ 0-18)
* Tough year for these Falcons. If they stay positive and work hard in the off season, good things can happen!

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 02:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Game Details Provided by Park View Softball Gameday Insider

Park View traveled to Westfield on Thursday evening, and returned a little more humble from the experience. Their 4th straight AAA opponent took advantage of several Patriot miscues and some lackadaisical play, and the Bulldogs defeated the Patriots 6-1......the worst defeat of the season for Park View.

The Patriots started strong with a single by Amber Dudek, a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt by Sammy Gleason and a run-scoring double by Emily Garcia to take the early lead in the 1st inning. It was short-lived, however, as Senior Nichole Pitcock gave up three hits and three runs in the bottom of the 1st. With runners on 1st and 2nd, and 2 outs, the Bulldogs came up with two hits to center field, scoring all the runs they would need. They added two more in the 4th, again with two outs, on a first and third delayed steal and a costly error by the Patriot defense. Junior Laura Heironimus replaced Nichole in the sixth and gave up the final run on a well-executed suicide squeeze on a close play at the plate. Park View coach, Ed Abner, told Gameday that he purposely chose this difficult stretch, adding tough games against AAA opponents, to prepare for the Dulles District tournament and Regional playoffs. The Patriots finished 2-2 against these AAA teams, and have a healthy respect for the athleticism, and depth of talent, at that level.

Park View completes Dulles District play at Potomac Falls on Friday, May 11, and at Broad Run on Tuesday, May 15. They begin the tournament on Friday, May 18. Park View is presently in 2nd place in the District, one game behind Broad Run.

Park View 1 4 2
Westfield 6 7 0

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 01:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Storyline Provided By Bulldog Softball Gameday Insider

The Lady Bulldogs racked up 22 hits in their final regular season game, defeating Liberty District foe South Lakes High School 17-0. Kayla Lechler had four hits, including a two-run home run, 4 RBIs, and two runs scored. Lauren Williams had four hits, two stolen two bases, two RBI's and two runs scored.

Other multi-hit performances were put up by Ashley Gardner (3 for 4, double, 2 RBI), Lauren Wolz (3 for 4, 2 doubles, RBI, 2 runs scored), Natalie Driskill (2 for 3, double, 2 RBI, 2 runs scored), Lauren Jennings (2 for 3, 3 RBI), and Cassie Phillips (2 hits). Phillips was the winning pitcher, going the distance, allowing only one hit while striking out 6 in the shutout.

The Bulldogs improve to 15-5 overall, 12-2 in Liberty District play.

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 12:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Storyline Provided By Bulldog Baseball Gameday Insider

The Stone Bridge Bulldogs (14-6, 10-4) played their regular season finale on Thursday night in Reston against the South Lakes Seahawks (9-11, 5-9). The Bulldogs had 3rd place in the Liberty District locked up going into the game, and it appears that the Seahawks will finish 5th, so both teams were playing for pride. South Lakes was also gunning for a bit of revenge, as Stone Bridge scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh to win 3-2 earlier in the season. Jr RHP Tyler Weaver was on the mound for Stone Bridge, while Sr George Washington University signee Tommy Gately was on the hill for South Lakes.

The Bulldogs were able to get on the board first. Jr. 2B Collin Pearson led off with a 4-pitch walk. Jr. RF Matt Irwin placed a perfect bunt single down the third base line. Jr. SS Mike Stancik ripped a 2-0 pitch up the middle, but Seahawk SS Connor Zagurski made an outstanding play flipping to Bobby Clinage who was able to turn the double play. Jr. CF Jeron Gouveia came through with the clutch two out hit, singling to right to score Pearson. The Seahawks answered loud in their half of the 1st inning, when lead-off hitter, Noah Sweet took Weaver deep, sailing the 1-0 pitch over the left field fence for a home run. Zagurski then singled to right, and moved to 2nd base on a passed ball. He later advanced to 3rd on a Tommy Flynn deep flyball to center. Mike Boyle did his job, lifting a sacrifice fly to right to score Zagurski. C Scott Reed then took a 1-1 pitch way over the left field wall for another solo home run, and a 3-1 Seahawk lead. Weaver was able to strike out John Huppi to end the inning.

Stone Bridge bounced back nicely in the second. With one out, So. LF Michael Prince got the first of his four hits, singling sharply to left. So. DH Bryce Williams lined a single down the right field line, moving Prince to third. The Bulldogs added to their tally when in an apparent double-play opportunity, Clinage bobbled the flip from Zagurski, which scored Prince from 3rd. Later in the inning, with runners in scoring position, Stancik sent the first pitch he saw through the hole in left, plating Williams and So. Patrick Thompson, giving the Bulldogs the 4-3 lead.

In the Bulldog 4th, Pearson induced a lead off walk. With Irwin at the plate, Pearson stole second. Irwin then hit a grounder to 1st base, moving Pearson to third. Stancik then sliced a sacrifice fly to right plating Pearson, and adding to the score, 5-3. Weaver was able to escape a big jam in the bottom of the inning, notching a strikeout, a fly ball to right fielder Matt Irwin, and a nice pick-off of the Seahawk runner at 3rd base.

In the next stanza, Prince lined a 1 out single center. With Williams at the plate, Prince stole second. Williams then was hit by a pitch. After a Thompson strike out, South Lakes Head Coach Galvin Morris made a pitching change, bringing Mike Boyle to the mound, who right away made a great move and picked off Prince at second, to end the inning. Bulldog Head Coach Sam Plank made his own pitching change in the bottom of the frame, bringing in Jr. Mike Palmer. Palmer made a great play fielding a bounding come-backer by Sweet, but then threw the ball over Thompson's head for a two base throwing error. He then walked Zagurski on four pitches, putting himself in a jam. Flynn hit a ball up the middle that Stancik ranged to his left and forced out Zagurski at second. But his throw to first to double up Flynn was dropped by Thompson, putting runners on the corners with only one out. Then came the play of the game..... Palmer faked a pick off throw to 3rd and caught Flynn off guard at 1st base. He was picked off 1-4-3-6, without allowing Sweet to score from third. Reed then hit a comebacker to Palmer, who decided to avoid a throw and ran to first for the out, ending the inning with no runs for South Lakes.

In the 6th inning, Stone Bridge was retired in order for the first time in the game. In the bottom of the inning, Palmer drilled the 1st Seahawk batter he faced with the first pitch. With the tying run at the plate, Coach Plank decided to make another pitching change, as well as some defensive changes, bringing Stancik in to pitch. Stancik, who has only one other pitching appearance this season, got the job done. Kirchner hit the first pitch he saw right back to Stancik. He wheeled and threw to Pearson, now at shortstop, at 2nd base, getting the force out, but Pearson couldn't make the relay to 1st. On the next pitch, Gately scalded a ball to Pearson's right. He made a nice play, shooting the ball over to Jr. Tyler Basso at the 2nd base bag, who made the turn for the 6-4-3 double play.

Stone Bridge broke the game open in the seventh. Gouveia led off with an infield single. Bladel ripped a double to deep left center, scoring Gouveia all the way from first. C Brian Wheaton then had a quality plate appearance, and picked up a full count walk. Prince picked up his fourth hit of the night, a single to right scoring Bladel. The ball skidded by the South Lakes right fielder for an error and courtesy runner Pat Piccolo scored as well. Sr PH Chris Martinez came to the plate and took the first pitch he saw to deep center getting his first triple of the season and plating Prince. Boyle was able to then strikeout 3 Bulldog pinch hitters to end the inning. In the bottom of the seventh, Stancik retired the side in order, getting a groundout to Pearson and two fly outs to Gouveia.

The Bulldogs now have six days off. Their next game will be in Ashburn on Wednesday, May 16. They will host the winner of the sixth seed vs. seventh seed game of the Liberty District tournament. A win on Wednesday will give the Bulldogs a Northern Region tourney berth and send them to the district semi-finals on the 18th for a rematch with Langley. First pitch for the game on May 16th is 6:30PM.

NOTEWORTHY PERFORMANCES

Stone Bridge
Michael Prince: 4-4, 2 RBI, 2 Runs
Jeron Gouviea: 3-4, 1 RBI, ! Run
Bryce Williams: 2-2, 1 Run

South Lakes
Conor Zagurski: 2-3, 1 Run
Scott Reed: 1-3, 1 RBI, 1 Run

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 12:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Gameday Recap Provided by Titan Baseball Insiders

Sophomore sensation Chris Taylor had a superb performance on the hill this past Tuesday night, in Dulles District action, dealing out 9 strikeouts and 0 walks, enroute to the victory over the visiting Loudoun County Raiders, 4-1, sweeping the season series. Taylor was backed up by a good defensive effort on the night, as the Titans shook off a recent string of unlucky defensive outings, making key plays behind their pitcher. One notable play coming from Sr. 2B T.J. Harrington in the top of the 6th inning. With runners on base and 2 outs, Harrington made a great play to save a base hit, and recovered in time to dive into 2nd base for the force out to end the inning, and save a potential Raider run. Taylor also had an impressive performance at the plate, going 2-3 with 2 RBI's. Brian Gould was also a major contributor going 2-3, with 1 RBI and scoring 2 runs.

The Titans play again Friday night, at Briar Woods, before coming back home to close out regular season play, hosting cross-town rivals, the Potomac Falls Panthers. Both games have a 6:00 start time.

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 11:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Story and Information provided by Valley Softball Gameday Insider

The Lady Vikings finished their regular season at 17 - 3, by defeating the Potomac Falls Panthers Wednesday night, 8-0. Rachel Harvey pitched an almost perfect game giving up only one hit in the 7th inning. The Vikings were lead on offense by Sam Wassman 2 - 4 with a home run, Brittany Latka 2 - 4 with 2 RBI, Sarah Spicer 2 - 4, and Caroline Williams 2 - 3. Harvey helped her own cause, going 2 - 3 on the night, and Allie Bartok added a 2 - 4 effort, with a stolen base and 1 RBI. Karlie Johnson-Kemp was also rock solid behind the plate. The LVHS girls softball team has played a grueling schedule in the last 2 weeks facing Broad Run, Park View twice, Bishop O'Connell , and Yorktown, before finishing up with Potomac Falls on Viking Senior Night. They are ready for a day off and then focusing on winning Districts, which begin on Monday, May 14.

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 11:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Stone Bridge Bulldogs (13-6, 9-4) played their final home game of the regular season tonight against the Langley Saxons (15-4, 10-3) in a critical Liberty district game. Second place in the district and an automatic region berth was on the line. The Saxons were definitely the better team tonight, as they went yard twice and took adavantage of Bulldog miscues to win 9-5. Jr RHP Tyler Basso was on the mound for Stone Bridge, and in a bit of a surprise, Langley threw Jr Foster Dunigan, who is their regular shortstop.

Langley was able to get on the board in the first without the benefit of a hit. Jr CF Daniel Bergamesca led off with a walk. He stole second, went to third on a passed ball. Then Basso had him picked off at third. Soph 3B Johnny Bladel ran him towards home, but Bergamesca slid in safely for the first run. Basso was able to end the inning with two strikeouts and a line out to Jr 2B Collin Pearson. Things looked good for the Bulldogs in the bottom of the frame as Pearson led off with a single up the middle. Jr RF Matt Irwin laid down a perfect sac bunt to third and Pearson was able to make it all the way to third. Jr SS Mike Stancik took an 0-1 pitch right in the back. Things were looking up for Stone Bridge with runners on the corners and only one out. But Dunigan was able to strike out both Jr CF Jeron Gouveia and Bladel to escape the inning without any damage.

Ross Kelly led off with a single to start the second, but Wheaton gunned him down trying to steal. Basso then got a groundout and strikeout to end the inning. The Bulldogs were retired in order in the bottom of the inning.

After Basso K'd the first two batters in the third, Bergamesca took a 2-1 offering from Basso over the right center fence for a solo homerun. Basso got Tommy Tysse to groundout to Bladel to end the inning. Stone Bridge exploded for fours runs in the bottom of the frame. Soph LF Michael Prince led off getting hit by a Dunigan pitch. Prince stole second. Pearson struck out. Then Irwin singled to left, knocking in Prince for the first Stone Bridge run. Irwin stole second, but Stancik was caught looking for a strikeout. Gouveia was ready his second time up and bombed a triple to the right center gap, scoring Irwin. Bladel then sat on a fat 0-2 change up and hit his first home run of the season to left, putting the Bulldogs up 4-2. Wheaton followed up with a bounding double down the left field line. But courtesy runner Ricky Davidson was picked off second to end the inning.

In the fourth, Dunigan led off with a double. Eddie Gonzalez grounded out to Stancik, with Dunigan moving to third on the play. After a big strikeout of Ross Kelly, DH Chaz Ayoub walked. Unfortunately, Dunigan scored on a wild pitch and pulled to within one. Basso then walked Chris Sievers with two outs. Head Coach Sam Plank decided to make a pitching change and brought in Soph RHP Nick Fialdini. It was Fialdini's first action in about a month as he was out with a shoulder injury. Fialdini got the job done as he struck out Jr C Mike Sarson to end the inning. The Bulldogs had a chance to score in the fourth, but couldn't get the clutch hit. With one out, Sr DH Chris Martinez singled to left. Prince singled to right and it looked good for the Bulldogs. It appeared that Pearson was going to sneak a single between first and second. But Gonzalez made a nice play, grabbing the grounder and just beating the speedy Pearson to the bag. The potential rally fizzled as Dunigan was able to strikeout Irwin to end the inning.

The fifth was an inning to forget for the Bulldogs. Ricky Hanna reached first on a hit by pitch. Begamesca then walked. Fialdini was able to get Tommy Tysse to ground out to Bladel. Plank then made the decision to intentionally walk Dunigan and load the bases, hoping for an inning ending double play. Gonzalez stepped up and took an 0-2 pitch deep over the left center field fence for a grand slam. To make matters worse, the inning still wasn't over. Kelly reached first on a dropped third strike. Ayoub then doubled, scoring Kelly. But Ayoub got greedy trying to go to third. Prince had fired the ball to Stancik for a relay, who sent it to home. The throw was too high to get Kelly at home, but Wheaton alerty saw Ayoub trying to stretch it to third and fired a strike to Bladel to retire him for the second out. After a single by Sievers, Fialdini got out of the inning, by getting PH Geremy Mahn to pop out to end the inning. Stone Bridge was able to get one run back in the bottom of the frame, but should have got more. Stancik led off and reached first with his second hit by pitch of the game. Dunigan went 2-0 on Gouveia and Head Coach Jeff Ferrell decided to make a pitching change. He brought in Soph southpaw Joey Zarella to stem the tide. Gouveia battled and was able to coax a walk. Bladel then singled through the hole to score Stancik. Wheaton then came up. He popped a bunt into no man's land between home, first and the mound. Nobody could get to it, and everyone was safe. With nobody out and bases loaded, things looked promising for the Bulldogs. Soph 1B Patrick Thompson tried to squeeze bunt Gouveia home, but it went right back to Zarella. He threw to Sarson for the force. Zarella then struck out Martinez on two questionable strikes. He then got Prince out on strikes to end the threat.

In the sixth, Plank brought in sidewinder Jr RHP Mike Palmer. Palmer did his job, getting a Hanna to popout to Thompson, and then finally retiring Bergamesca on strikes with a 10 pitch at bat. Tysee got hit by a pitch. Then Dunigan walked. But Wheaton gunned down his second runner of the night to end the inning. The Bulldogs were shut down by Zarella in the inning. He struck out Pearson and Irwin, and got Stancik to ground out to second.

Langley tacked on one more run in the seventh. After a Gonzalez strike out, Kelly walked. Palmer tried to pick him off and his throw to Thompson was in the dirt, moving Kelly all the way to third. Ayoub then walked, putting runners on the corners. With Clay Rainie pinch running, the Saxons went to steal second. Wheaton's throw down to second squirted by Pearson, which allowed Kelly to score. Palmer bore down and struck out Wills and Sarson to end the inning. In the bottom of the inning, Gouveia flew out and Bladel popped out. Wheaton then had a hustle infield single, sliding into first beating the throw. But Thompson grounded out to short to end the game.

With the win, Langley secures the two seed and an automatic berth in regionals. The Bulldogs have already locked up a three seed and will have to win one game in the district tourney to advance to regionals. The Bulldogs finish the regular season on the road. They head to Reston to face the South Lakes Seahawks. The game will be on THURSDAY, May 10. First pitch is set for 6:30PM.

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 04:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Vikings went into this game after losing last Friday night in
overtime to Park View. The Vikes took a 1-0 lead into halftime after
Mike Houchens scored a diving header off of a corner kick by Joey
Sorrell. In the second half, Valley added two more goals.

The first came from Brian Esoda after receiving a pass from Garrett Krumpe.
Krumpe found the net for the third goal after a thrown in from Esoda
found him in front of the goal for a header. This was Krumpe's first
varsity game after scoring 16 goals for the JV team this season. Justin
Thomas got the clean sheet for the Vikings.

Valley ends their regular season play 8-7-1.

Home Team: Park View 0
Away Team: L. Valley 3

Valley Goals: Mike Houchens, Brian Esoda, Garrett Krumpe
Valley Saves: 11 By Justin Thomas, 1 by Nathan Bergel

Park View Saves: 7 by Yarzar Pe

Posted by Andy Hayes - Publisher & Senior Editor at 04:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

(Ashburn, VA) - Stone Bridge celebrated its seniors' last home game by handing Langley High School its first Liberty district loss Tuesday night in Ashburn. The Bulldogs were fired up coming in to the game, having lost a close game to the Saxons in their earlier season meeting. Langley was held scoreless in the first inning, with pitcher Ashley Gardner recording both a double play and a strike out. In the bottom of the first, Stone Bridge's offense got righ to work. Shortstop Natalie Driskill singled, and catcher Kayla Lechler drove a double to the right center gap. Driskill, trying for home on Lechler's hit, got caught in a pickle, but Langley's catcher dropped the ball in the tag and Driskill scored, leaving Lechler on 3rd base. Third baseman Stephanie St. Peter walked, and Lechler scored on a wild pitch which also advance St. Peter to second. Gardner advanced St. Peter to 3rd on a grounder to second, and St. Peter scored when rightfielder Lauren Wolz reached on an error.

Langley struck back in the top of the second, recording a run on a single and an RBI double, but Stone Bridge added two runs in the bottom of the inning, as first baseman Lauren Jennings reached on an error and center fielder Lauren Williams walked. Both were moved to scoring position on by Driskill, and with two outs, Lechler singled to right field, driving in both runs.

Leading 5-1 going into the third, Stone Bridge seemed to be in control of the game, but two hits and three errors in the third allowed Langley to turn the tables and take a 6-5 lead. The Bulldogs went back to work in the bottom of the third, with Gardner leading off with a walk, followed by Wolz singling. Gardner reached third when second baseman Michelle Mocabee hit into a fielders choice, and scored to tie the game on a single to left by Jennings.

Only one Langley batter reached base in the top of the fourth, but did not score, and in the bottom of the inning, Lechler doubled again, and St. Peter drove her in for the go-ahead run, with a sharp single up the middle. Gardner shut the Saxons down in their final three at bats, allowing only one baserunner on a walk in the fifth, and was perfect in the final two innings to earn the 7-6 win.

All three Stone Bridge seniors contributed to this win in their last regular season home game: Williams had a walk and scored a run, Jennings scored a run and drove in the tying run, and St. Peter scored a run and drove in the game winner. Junior Lechler finished 3 for 4 with 2 doubles, 3 RBIs and 2 runs scored. Sophomore Ashley Gardner got the win on the mound, allowing only 5 hits from a strong Langley offense.

Stone Bridge is now 14-5 overall, 11-2 in district play. The Bulldogs will play their final regular season game Thursday night at South Lakes High School.

Posted by Wire and Staff Reports at 04:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

This Game Report Provided By Park View Softball

Park View and Loudoun Valley battled into extra innings for the second time in four days but this time the Patriots came up short, losing 3-2 in 9 innings. Both teams had opportunities to score early and often but both pitchers were able to work their way out of jams. For the evening, the Vikings had 11 hits and the Patriots 10. The difference tonight was untimely errors on the Park View defense.

Nichole Pitcock pitched well enough to win giving up one earned run in regulation while striking out 8. She went the distance giving up the winning run on two hits in the ninth. Offensively, Emily Garcia and Nichole Pitcock led the way for the Patriots. Emily had four hits in as many at bats and scored the first run. Nichole had two hits, including a double in the sixth that missed being a home run by a foot. Nichole drove in both Patriot runs. Junior Sam Louk is hitting .500 for the year. Freshman Brittany Griffin played flawlessly at third base, turning at least two base hits into outs.

The Patriots are presently ranked #7 in the latest Washington Post poll while Loudoun Valley is ranked #8.

Park View travels to Westfield on Thursday evening before closing out Dulles District play at Potomac Falls on Friday and at Broad Run on Tuesday night.

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(Sterling, Virginia) - TCC Sports is excited to announce the second annual Gameday Gridiron Football Camp and skill Challenges on May 12th, 2007. The camp will showcase some of the best talent in the Northern Region and will be televised on GamedayTV throughout the Northern Virginia area on Verizon Fios cable.

The Gameday Gridiron Football Camp and skill Challenges will be held at Liberty High School in Bealeton, Virginia from 1pm-4pm on the afternoon of the 12th of May. Several Division 1A college programs have verbally confirmed their intent to be present along with some of the best D1AA and D II programs in the region. The camp is open to the public with free admission.

Participants will be coached by the football staffs from Liberty, Fauquier, and Hylton high schools. The camp will be broken down into agility drills, position specific instruction and 1 on 1 competitions. Liberty head coach Tommy Buzzo has taken hold of the camp and has put together the ultimate skills showcase experience for the high school football players in the area.

"This camp will be one of a kind in the area. You won't have a better chance to get in your talent in front of the college coaches than you will here on May 12th," Buzzo said. "This camp is designed to provide a platform for the football players who have potential to play at the next level."

Eligibility: all rising sophomore through rising senior are eligible. Graduating seniors are not eligible to compete.

TCC Sports will be televising the 3 main skill competitions during the afternoon for cable to run over the months of June and July of 2007. The cost of the event is $25 if you pre-register by the 5th of May and $30 if you show up that day. Registration information will be sent to all high school coaches and players in the area by the 18th of April, or may be downloaded at www.libertysports.org click on camps. All registrations must be sent to Tommy Buzzo at Liberty High School at the address below.

Liberty High School
6300 Independence Ave.
Bealeton, VA 22712
Attn: Tommy Buzzo

Gameday Gridiron Football Camp 2007
For more information on the Gameday Gridiron Football camp please call 540-272-2223 or e-mail Andy Hayes at Andy@tccsports.com

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 07:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Provided By Gameday Bulldog Baseball Insider

The Stone Bridge Bulldogs (13-5, 9-3) travelled to Alexandria Friday night to finish up their three game road trip, taking on the Thomas Jefferson Colonials (8-9, 4-8) in Liberty District action. The Colonials have been riding high lately, knocking off Madison and Langley the week before. For this important match-up, the Bulldogs trotted out 6-7 Jr pitcher Tyler Weaver, while TJ countered with Sr southpaw Mike Mensing on the bump.

The Bulldogs got things going quickly, as Jr 2B Collin Pearson laid down a perfect bunt single. Unfortunately, for the Bulldogs, Mensing has a great pickoff move. He nailed Pearson 1-3-6, caught stealing for the first out. Jr SS Mike Stancik ripped a 2-0 pitch to left for a single with two outs, but was left stranded in the inning. Weaver set the Colonials down in order in his half of the first, getting two groundouts to and a popup in the inning.

Stone Bridge got their first really good scoring chance in the third. With one out, Jr 3B Tyler Basso doubled to the left center gap. Pearson walked on four pitches. Jr RF Matt Irwin laid down bunt single to load the bases for Stancik, but the Colonial pitcher induced a pop up on the first pitch, for the infield fly rule call, but the ball dropped between the first and second basemen. With the out call to Stancik, by the rule, Basso tried to catch the Jefferson infield napping and attempted to score. But Colonial's Tom Warner picked up the ball and fired a strike to catcher Drew Pyrak at the plate, tagging out Basso to end the inning. In the bottom of the third, Weaver gave up his first hit of the game, a sharp single to center by Jon Seidman. Warner sacrificed him to second. But Weaver escaped unscathed, as he induced a comebacker, and then finished the inning with a strikeout of Alex Radcliffe on 3 pitches.

Stone Bridge was able to knock out Mensing in the 5th inning, whne Soph LF Michael Prince legged out an infield single to lead things off, and moved to 2nd on the sacrifice bunt by Basso. Irwin lined a 1-2 pitch to right, scoring Prince for the first run of the game. Stancik sliced a double down the right field line, scoring Irwin all the way from 1st. Jr CF Jeron Gouveia was then hit by a pitch, putting runners on 1st and 2nd for Soph DH Johnny Bladel, who smacked a 1-0 pitch to deep center field, short hopping the wall for a double, scoring both Stancik and Gouveia. Mensing was done for the night, as Head Coach Randy Lightle brought in Seidman in relief, but the damage was done.

In the Bulldog 6th, Basso reached on a two out, four pitch walk. With a 2-1 count, Pearson sliced a double to left, scoring the fleet footed Basso all the way from 1st. In the bottom of the 6th, Jefferson threatened, but couldn't score. With two outs, Patrick Yaroch singled sharply to center. Mensing followed with a four pitch walk. But Weaver was determined to keep TJ from scoring. He reared back and struck out Pyrak to end the inning.

The Bulldogs made some hay in the seventh, but couldn't score. Gouveia picked up a one out infield single. After a Bladel strikeout, Jr C Brian Wheaton and Sr Chris Martinez walked. But Stone Bridge wasn't able to get the two out hit this time. Prince grounded out to end the inning. Weaver finished strong, retiring the side in order on a ground out and two strikeouts.

The Bulldogs head into the final week of the regular season tied for second place in the Liberty District with the Langley Saxons. These two teams meet in a critical game on Tuesday, May 8 in Ashburn. A Stone Bridge win locks up second place and an automatic Northern Region tournament berth.

Besides the importance of the actual game, Tuesday night is special for two more reasons. It is Senior Night, as the Bulldogs will honor their lone graduating player, Chris Martinez. It will also be Youth Baseball Night. Youth Baseball players, in uniform with a paying adult, will be admitted free. As an extra special treat, youth players with be allowed on the field with the Bulldogs during the playing of the National Anthem. Youth players wishing to participate in the festivities should arrive by 6:00 PM. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 PM.

NOTEABLE PERFORMANCES

Stone Bridge
Collin Pearson - 2-3, 1 RBI
Matt Irwin - 2-4, 1 RBI, 1 run scored
Mike Stancik - 2-4, 1 RBI, 1 run scored
John Bladel - 1-3, 2 RBI
Tyler Basso - 1-1, 1 run scored

Thomas Jefferson
Patrick Yaroch - 1-3
John Seidman - 1-2

Line Score
---------------------------------------------------
StoneBridge Varsity 0 0 0 0 4 1 0 - 5 10 1
Thomas Jefferson 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 2 0
---------------------------------------------------

LOB - SB 7, Jefferson 5
2B - Collin Pearson, Mike Stancik, John Bladel, Tyler Basso,
SB - Jeron Gouviea

Posted by Wire and Staff Reports at 01:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The story was playing out well for Loudoun Valley on Senior Night soccer action in Purcellville Friday night. After a hard fought 1st half, the Vikings went into the locker room up 1-0, on a Brian Escoba goal. But Park View came out in the 2nd half, intent on spoiling the Viking party!

K.C. Onyeador evened the score at 1-1 for the Patriots, only to have Valley's David Weinstein counter, with his goal to put the Vikings back on top 2-1, after latching onto a Wyatt Eblen through ball. The score stayed that way unitl 4 minutes left in regulation when Onyeador found the net for the second time, knotting the score at 2-2, and the tie stood at the end of play.

Both teams played through the first half of overtime evenly. With 2:30 left in the second half of overtime, Onyeador completed his hat trick, netting the go ahead goal, and the Patriots held on for the 3-2 win.

These 2 teams meet again Tuesday night, May 8, at Park View.

Scoring

PV - K.C. Onyeador (3)
LV - Brian Esoda (asst: Mike Houchens), David Weinstein (asst: Wyatt Eblen)

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The Patriots played one of their most complete games of the season defensively Friday night, against a Loudoun Valley team that was coming off a hard fought, and heartbreaking, loss to Broad Run, earlier in the week (check out the Gameday Rewind!), and currently ranked #2 in the DC Metropolitan area (before the 5\8 update comes out), and the Patriots prevailed 1-0 in 8 innings.

Defensively, Junior Laura Heironimus played superbly, snagging four soft liners that had base hit written all over them. She covered a lot of ground on a foul ball to catch it right in front of the Viking dugout to end the fourth inning that stranded three Viking runners. She also turned a double play by catching a bunt in mid-air and fired a strike to Sam Gleason at first. As if that wasn't enough, Heironimus led off the eighth inning with a double and eventually scored the game-winner on Amber Dudek's double to win the game. All in a typical night's work for Heironimus.

Special recognition also goes out to catcher Chelsea Rhodes for throwing out Loudoun Valley's speedster of a leadoff hitter, Allie Bartok, not once but twice, including the second out in the home eighth. Senior Nichole Pitcock threw her second shutout in as many nights against AAA competition. The only jam she faced was in the fourth when the Vikings loaded the bases with one out. Pitcock struck out three and walked two while earning her 10th victory against 2 defeats. Park View's record now stands at 13-3 (11-1 Dulles District).

After all this, they get to play Loudoun Valley again on Tuesday night, May 8, at 6:00, at the Patriot's home turf. It is Senior night as it's the last home game of the season.

Park View \ Loudoun Valley Line Score
Park View 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 5 0
L Valley 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 0

Posted by Wire and Staff Reports at 12:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Storyline information provided by Gameday Panther Baseball Insider, Barry Sweger

In Dulles District baseball action Friday night, Potomac Falls traveled to Loudoun County High School with hopes of gaining some momentum, and a measure of respect, in the Dulles District, with a little more than a week and a half remaining in the regular season, and going into tournament play. Jacob Kline made sure that the Panthers got just that, as he goes the distance to notch the 4-2 victory, striking out 10 along the way.

The Panthers started strong when leadoff hitter Greg Woodlief was hit by the second pitch of the game by Joe Strange, advancing to second when Mike Spring walked. Cory Flickinger followed with a hard single to left field to score Woodlief, with Spring moving to third and Flickinger to second after ball was bobbled on the play. Aaron Sweger then followed with a single to right to score Spring and Rob Malan followed with a single to left to score Flickinger. Strange then induced Kline to hit into a double play to escape any further damage.

Kline cruised through the first two innings before giving up a triple to Kory Pratt in the third. Pratt later scored on a balk to plate the unearned run and bring the Raiders to within two runs at 3-1. Kline settled down after the inning, shutting down the Raider offense through 6 innings, with 7 strikeouts. The Panthers added an insurance run in the seventh inning when Rob Malan hit a double to the left field gap to score Flickinger who had reached on a fielder's choice to make the score 4-1.

Kline started off the 7th inning by striking out Erik Prinz and Kory Pratt before facing Taylor Lambke. The freshman muscled up, and launched a bomb over the left field fence, to tally his first homerun of the season, to make the score 4-2. Kline shrugged off the lapse, and ended the game, by striking out Raider top gun, Bret Tagg.

In addition to Kline's mound performance, The Panther offense was led by Sweger (3-4, 1 RBI) and Malan (2-4, 2 RBI). Loudoun County was led by Talyor Lambke who was 2-3 in the game to go with his homerun.

Posted by Wire and Staff Reports at 10:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

After sifting through 33 applicants for the job, Herndon High School announced recently the hiring of head boy's basketball coach, Chris Whelan, who succeeds Gary Hall, who retired after 18 successful seasons.

Whelan, a 1996 Herndon grad, played basketball for three years under coach Hall, all of which saw the Hornets as Concorde District champions. Whelan has spent the last two years as the head boys basketball coach at Darien High School, in Darien, CN, where he led the school to its winningest season in 20 years in 2006-07, utilizing many of the same tactics he learned from Hall. Whelan was quoted as saying he plans to continue to use many of the coaching methods he learned from Hall, but he will add his own twists as well.

After graduating from Herndon, Whelan attended Lynchburg College from 1996-2000 and was a graduate assistant coach with the men's basketball program in 2000-01 and 2001-02. Even though Whelan maintains a "connection" to Herndon High School, it was his experience coaching, both at the high school and collegiate level, that made him the right choice. Whelan admits some timidness going into the position, knowing he has some expectations of success to uphold at Herndon. Hall had an impressive record of 319-146 while coaching the Hornets. He won six district titles and led the team to its first ever Northern Region title in 2006 before falling to Booker T. Washington in the state title game.

"I'd be crazy to tell you that I'm not feeling some pressure," admits Whelan, in a recent Fairfax Connection interview. "It's a great tradition. But it's a good thing to be nervous. If you're not nervous, you're not excited."

Posted by Tom Whipple - Gameday Magazine Senior Editor at 10:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Freshman Brittany Griffin had her best game of the season at the plate by going 2-2 with a sacrifice bunt that played a key role in scoring the games first two runs as Park View defeated last year's AAA state finalist, Stone Bridge by a score of 4-0. After Laura Heironimus and Kareisa Hidy singled to start the fifth inning, Britt's bunt moved both runners into scoring position. Amber Dudek drew an important walk to load the bases and freshman Sammy Gleason walked on four straight pitches to force in the first run. Emily Garcia then ripped a single to center to score Kareisa Hidy. Nichole Pitcock brought in the third run with a sacrifice fly to right. The Patriots added an insurance run in the sixth when Amber Dudek drove in Felicia Price with a solid single to right. Senior Nichole Pitcock pitched out of jams in the first three innings before settling in and taking control of the game. She struck out 8 and walked three while giving up 5 hits.

Park View's record is now 12-3 (11-1 District).

Park View visits Loudoun Valley tomorrow afternoon.

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Stone Bridge showcased its powerful offense against the Woodson Cavaliers Tuesday night, with 15 runs from 15 hits. Stephanie St. Peter hit two two-run home runs in her first two trips to the plate, and Lauren Wolz batted in four on four hits, including a home run and two doubles. St. Peter's first homer came in the first inning, with Lauren Williams on base after a bunt single. With two outs, St. Peter took the ball out for a quick 2-0 Stone Bridge lead.

The key inning for Stone Bridge was the third, when the Bulldogs put Woodson in a deep hole, adding five more runs to make the score 7-0. Williams led off, reaching on an error, advancing on a wild pitch and a fielder's choice to third, and scoring what would prove to be the game winning run on another wild pitch. Kayla Lechler singled, and with courtesy runner Katie Benusa on for Lechler, St. Peter went deep again. Ashley Gardner singled, and Lauren Wolz's ball followed St. Peters over the fence, scoring two more.

The Bulldogs continued scoring throughout the game, finishing with three home runs and four doubles.

Game Leaders:
Wolz: 4 for 5, home run, two doubles, 4 runs batted in, 2 runs scored.
St. Peter: 2 for 4, two home runs, walk, 4 runs batted in, 3 runs scored.
Lechler: 3 for 4, double, walk, 2 runs scored
Gardner: 2 for 4, double, walk, 3 runs batted in, 3 runs scored
Paige Radakovich: 1 for 2, 3 walks, 2 runs batted in
Willams: 2 hits, 2 runs scored.

Winning pitcher, Ashley Gardner.

Stone Bridge improves to 12-4 on the year, 9-2 in district play.

Posted by Wire and Staff Reports at 02:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Stone Bridge Bulldogs (12-5, 8-3) headed to Fairfax tonight to take on the Woodson Cavaliers (4-9, 3-8). They are in the middle of a three game road trip. The Bulldogs finally got a bit of a breather tonight, as they won going away, 10-4. Jr RHP Tyler Basso was on the mound for Stone Bridge, looking to win his sixth game against no losses. Woodson countered with Jr southpaw Matt Coleman.

While the Bulldogs had an opportunity to have a big first inning, they were able to only scratch out 2 runs. With one out, Jr C Brian Wheaton walked. Jr SS Mike Stancik hit a grounder in the hole, but everyone was safe when the secondbaseman missed the throw from the shortstop. Soph Ricky Davidson, courtesy running for Wheaton, was able to make it to third on the play. Jr CF Jeron Gouveia lined the first pitch he saw right up the middle, scoring Davidson. With Soph 3B Johnny Bladel at the plate, Coleman caught Stancik off guard and ran right at him. They both raced to third, with Stancik apparently sliding under the tag. But the umpire ruled him out. Eventually, Bladel walked. Jr RF Matt Irwin then ripped a 2-2 pitch to right, plating Gouveia. Soph 1B Patrick Thompson walked, loading the bases. But Stone Bridge couldn't push another run across. Basso was able to get out of the bottom of the inning only giving up a two out walk.

The Bulldogs went down in order in the second. While Jr C Bobby McCloud was able to get a one out single, three excellent defensive plays by Wheaton, Bladel and Stancik were able to snuff out any threat.

Stancik led off the third with an infield single up the middle. After a Gouveia flyout, Coleman tried to pickoff Stancik again, but this time his throw to first was wild and Stancik was able to scamper to third. Bladel then ripped an RBI single to left. Irwin followed with another single to left. Thompson reached on an infield single, as Coleman was late getting to first. With the bases loaded, SR DH Chris Martinez reached on a fielder's choice, as Bladel was forced out at the plate for the second out. But Soph LF Michael Prince hit a clutch single up the middle, scoring Irwin and Thompson. Jr 2B Collin Pearson coaxed a walk, reloading the bases. Head Coach Chris Warren made a pitching change, bringing in Joey Carleton. Carleton uncorked two consecutive wild pitches, with Martinez and Prince scoring. The Bulldogs were able to plate 5 runs in the inning. The Cavs were able to get one of the runs back in the bottom of the frame. After a one out walk to Nick Herbst, Basso gave up a single to Jacob Morley and a double Jackson Clement, which scored Herbst. But Basso knuckled down and was able to retire Kevin Dec on a foul out to Thompson, who made a really nice play right against the fence. Basso finished off the Cavs with a K of Max Waizenegger.

Stancik led off the fourth, taking a 2-2 curveball over the left field fence for his first homerun of the season. Bladel doubled to the left center gap with one out, but Stone Bridge couldn't bring him home. Basso cruised with a 10 pitch 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the fourth.

The Bulldogs were able to get singles by both Prince and Pearson, but Prince was picked off second after stealing the base and Pearson was caught stealing to end the inning. Basso ran in to a bit of trouble in the bottom of the inning. With one out, Herbst doubled down the line. Morley reached on an infield error. Clement was intentionally walked. Basso was able to retire Dec on a pop out to Pearson. But Waizenegger ripped the first pitch he saw for a bases clearing double to make the score 8-4, Bulldogs. Brendan Breslin grounded out to Stancik to end the inning.

In the sixth, Stancik laced a one out double down the right field line that Sr RF Ben Halle almost made a great play on. After a rare Gouveia strike out, Bladel picked up his third hit of the game, plating Stancik. Bladel moved to second on a wild pitch. Irwin then took a 2-2 pitch backside for a single (his third hit of the game), plating Bladel. In the bottom of the inning, Basso retired the side in order on a strikeout, a comebacker and a nice play by Irwin in right.

The Bulldogs went down in order in the seventh. With Basso's pitch count up, Head Coach Sam Plank brought in JR sidewinder Mike Palmer. Palmer worked his magic by striking out Herbst. After Morley stroked a single to center, he was able to get Clement to pop up to Thompson and finished the game by getting Dec to ground out, unassisted to Thompson.

Stone Bridge rapped out 16 hits tonight, with four Bulldogs (Stancik, Bladel, Irwin and Prince) each picking up 3 hits. Basso goes to 6-0 on the season, scattering 5 hits over 6 innings, while walking 3 and striking out two. Stone Bridge finishes their three game road trip this Friday, May 4. They head to Alexandria to take on Thomas Jefferson. The Colonials have scored some big wins recently, defeating both Langley and Madison by one run last week. First pitch is at 6:30PM.
(boxscore attached)

Posted by Wire and Staff Reports at 04:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Senior Nichole Pitcock ran her record to 8-2 with a victory over Dulles District foe Heritage tonight. She threw a one-hitter--an RBI double in the fourth inning--and struck out 12. Junior Emily Garcia continues to come up big offensively for the Patriots. Emily had two hits tonight, one a triple that drove in two to put the game away. Junior Laura Heironimus and Freshman Sammy Gleason also collected two hits for Park View. Sam Louk continued her fantastic season with a double in the fifth. The Park View defense pulled their third double play of the season, this one a 4-6-3 initiated by sophomore Kristin Oravetz who threw to Felicia Price covering second who threw to Laura Heironimus at first to complete the DP.

Park View hosts AAA Stone Bridge on Thursday evening. Stone Bridge was the AAA state runner-up last year.

Posted by Wire and Staff Reports at 04:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

(Ashburn, VA) - When Loudoun Valley and Broad Run play in softball, it tends to carry some weight. Tuesday's matchup once again would prove this to be true as the #1 ranked Spartans hosted the #2 ranked Vikings for bragging rights in Loudoun County, and a whole lot more. The Spartans entered the game also ranked #17 in the United States by the USA Today, and Loudoun Valley was one big win away from cracking the top 25 itself.

Broad Run ace Caitlyn Delahaba faced off against Valley's Caroline Williams, and both were impressive. In the early going, Delahaba made quick work of the Vikings despite allowing two base runners in the 1st inning. Viking Hayley Grabner reached base on a controversial infield hit that didn't appear to clear the batter's box, but Valley couldn't capitalize on the break. After a Delahaba walk, Delahaba struck out the next hitter and foiled the biggest threat that Valley posed all night long.

After Spartan Ashley Kramer got on base in the bottom of the 1st inning, Karla Powell came to the plate with the most crucial at bat in the game. Powell's powerful bat stroked a single to the right center field gap, knocking in Kramer on a 1-0 pitch from Williams. Powell would later get thrown out at 3rd after another Spartan hit, and Broad Run finished the inning scoring just one run. Powell, as she explained after the game, looked for her pitch and got it.

"I was looking for my pitch and she threw it, and I just sat back on it and tried to drive it," Powell said. "It turned out to be a big hit in the game."

For the next 6 innings, Broad Run followed Caitlyn Delahaba's lead as she struck out 15 Valley hitters on her way to a one hitter, and a shutout. Delahaba's performance caught the eye of Valley's coach Joe Spicer.

"She was just awesome tonight," Spicer said. We looked at too many pitches early on, but she was just really on tonight. I thought we battled a little better later in the game, and we started to get our whacks in, but it was just too late."

Broad Run's Delahaba was anxious to face the Vikings and was pleased that things turned out well for her team.

"I've had this game circled since the beginning of the season because I knew both teams were going to be really good," Delahaba said. "I know so many of the girls on Valley's team and the last thing I wanted to do was lose to them."

Spartan head coach Ed Steele was also pleased with the outcome of Tuesday's matchup and saw plenty of positives from the game.

"I thought we played good defense tonight and played well as a team," Steele said. "It's not too often when the top two teams face each other in the regular season, so we were excited about the matchup. This should help us build confidence for the remainder of the season."

With the win, Broad Run improved to 17-0 on the season and pitcher Caitlyn Delahaba remained undefeated on the mound in 2007. Valley dropped to 13-1 and shouldn't fall too far in the Washington Post Rankings. The Vikings and Spartans both should be formidable state championship contenders.

Chick-fil-A Players of the Game

Caitlyn Delahaba - Broad Run
Delahaba struck out 15 Valley hitters and was dominant in Tuesday's highly anticipated game. Delahaba is averaging over 13 strikeouts per game so far in 2007 and her ERA continues to hover around 0.97. She is also averaging an astonishing 2 strikeouts per inning.

Karla Powell - Broad Run
Powell's single in the 1st inning was an impressive piece of hitting. The pitch from Caroline Williams was on the outside corner, but Powell sat back and used her strength to deliver the game's biggest hit. Powell has developed into a clutch hitter in big games and continues to be a steady player for the top ranked Spartans.

Posted by Wire and Staff Reports at 11:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)