Chantilly High School | Archive | June, 2009

2009 Northern Region Football Schedules

*Games times 7:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted

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Created by Phil Murphy
Senior Multimedia/Content Editor
Washington D.C. Metropolitan Area

Top 10 Plays — 2008-2009

Click
the video on the left for the full countdown of the Top 10 plays from
across the seven DigitalSports territories in the greater Washington,
D.C. Metro area.

You can also view the full list of top plays
below. Click on the titles to view the individual, unedited highlights
at respective homepages.

Check back every Monday morning for the new Top 10 countdown from around the metropolitan area.

To nominate and upload plays or accomplishments from your school:

**CLICK HERE**

No. 10 –– Thomas One-Handed Grab
Prince George’s County, Maryland — Eleanor Roosevelt wide receiver Derrick Thomas pulls in this high pass along the sideline with his left hand while keeping one foot in-bounds. But the Raiders lost to the Pumas, 14-6, in the 4A regional playoffs.

No. 9 –– Wilson Revenge
Northern Region, Virginia — Hayfield senior T.J. Wilson, after taking a fall in the dunk contest an hour prior, gives a facial to division rival and Lake Braddock senior Dom Morra in the final minute of the Beltway’s 88-76 win over the ‘Burbs in the 2009 DigitalSports Showcase on March 21.

Olase-Wow
Montgomery County, Maryland — Springbrook senior Jamal Olasewere
finishes on the fast break through a Walter Johnson would-be
shot-blocker. Olasewere led the Blue Devils to a perfect 27-0
record, a 37-game winning streak and back-to-back 4A state titles, the first repeat since 1968.

P.G. Alley-Oops    1  2  3
Prince George’s County, Maryland — Gwynn Park guard Tion Coates
is on the receiving end of two fourth-quarter alley-oops in the Yellow
Jackets’ 73-51 over the Hornets and, from the P.G. County 4A vs.
3A/2A/1A Late All-Star Game, Bowie guard Alex Rodriguez tosses the ball off the glass to Duval forward Colin Beatty for a one-handed flush.

No. 8 — To All a Good Knight
S.M.A.C., Maryland — On January 7, Thomas Stone trailed Chopticon by two points with two seconds remaining. But Cougar guard Dytania Johnson launch an inbound pass to Stephen Battle beyond half-court, and he flipped it to Leron Knight for the buzzer-beating, game-winning, streak-sparking win, 63-62. Stone won the 4A East and finished 21-5 on the year.

No. 7 –– Saxon Title
Northern Region, Virginia
— After going 0-for-6 historically in Northern Region championships, Langley finally locked up its first regional title, 6-5 in two overtimes, against Robinson. Then, on June 7, it won its first state title, 4-3 in overtime, against Chantilly.

No. 6 — Greatest Show on Surf
Northern Region, Virginia
— The Robinson boys’ swim & dive team won its seventh-straight
Virginia AAA State championship at the Freedom Center in Manassas, Va.
Only Great Bridge wrestling, which won 16 of 17 state championships
from 1989-2005, has longer state-winning streaks in Virginia High
School League history.

No. 5 — D-I Bound
Washington, D.C. Area — Hundreds of area students received athletic scholarships to schools around the country, dozens to Division I programs. Among those are a select few that stand towards the top of national recruiting rankings.

No. 4 –– Mitchell 0.00 ERA in ’09
S.M.A.C., Maryland — McDonough senior Melanie Mitchell pitched
four perfect games in her senior season, pacing the Rams to a 19-0
season and the 2A state title. In her 19 starts, she allowed one total
run — which was unearned. She tied a state-tournament record with 19
strikeouts in the title game, a 4-0 win for McDonough over Landstowne.

No. 3 –– Snowy Spartan March
Loudoun County, Virginia
— Broad Run opened its doors in 1969, but had never won a state football title until this year. Spartan running back T.J. Peeler, who holds a handful of Division I scholarship offers, had a rough first quarter, highlighted by a premature touchdown celebration that resulted in a turnover. But Broad Run picked it up, holding the vaunted Amherst County running game to a season-low 2.9 yards per carry en route to a 14-0 win and its first state championship.

No. 2 –– Moo-Moo
S.M.A.C., Maryland — In a season struck with a September tragedy, the Westlake community rebounded, as did its football team. Led by pint-sized speedster Devon “Moo Moo” Smith, the Wolverines won the 3A state championship, its first in program history.

No. 1 –– National Record for Fletcher
Northern Region, Virginia — Madison senior Sean Fletcher
broke the all-time national high-school record in the 100-yard
butterfly (:47.08) at the Virginia AAA State championships on Saturday.
Almost as impressively, he only had a seven-minute break until he
competed in the 100-yard freestyle final and was .02 second from
breaking the state record in that event. The original record holders
were Nate Dusing (Covington Catholic High School, Texas; University of Texas; 2000 and 2004 Olympics), who set the record in 1997, and Austin Staab (Westerville, Ohio; Stanford) tied it in 2007.

Email: pmurphy@digitalsports.com

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Created by Phil Murphy
Senior Multimedia/Content Editor
Washington D.C. Metropolitan Area

Top 10 Plays — Spring Season

Click
the video on the left for the full countdown of the Top 10 plays from
across the seven DigitalSports territories in the greater Washington,
D.C. Metro area.

You can also view the full list of top plays
below. Click on the titles to view the individual, unedited highlights
at respective homepages.

Check back every Monday morning for the new Top 10 countdown from around the metropolitan area.

To nominate and upload plays or accomplishments from your school:

**CLICK HERE**

Honorable Mentions (in no order):
Devlin State-Winner — Saxon senior Alex Devlin scored just 64 seconds into sudden-death overtime to lift Langley to the program’s first-ever AA/AAA state lacrosse title, 4-3, over Chantilly on June 7.
Bailey’s Crossroads
— Langley lacrosse was making its seventh all-time
appearance in the Northern Region championship on May 20 — its fourth under
current coach Earl Brewer
— but had yet to win a title. It took two overtimes, but the Saxons
earned their historic, 6-5 over the Rams when junior attackman Ethan Bailey scored this game-winner with 3:02 left in the second, sudden-victory overtime period.
Savage Ending
— The WCAC championship between Paul VI and Bishop Ireton began at
Boyie Baysox Stadium on Monday, but was postponed through five innings
due to rain. It was continued at Annandale on May 13 and ended in
style. With one out, trailing by a run and the go-ahead run on second
base in the bottom of the seventh inning, Cardinal pinch hitter Brian Lewis hit what, at first, appeared to be a walk-off single. But Panther shortstop Dan Savage
made a leaping catch to rob Lewis, then stomped on second base for the
unassisted, game-ending — league-winning — double play.
Open Waters
— Tied with rival Westfield, 4-4, in the Concorde District title game
on May 8y, defending state-champion Chantilly crashed the cage with :03
seconds left in double overtime. Charger junior middie Joey Marson had his shot stopped by a Bulldog defender, but junior attackman Brendan Waters had his stopped only by the back of the goal. Waters turned 17-years-old just two hours after scoring the district-winning goal.
North Point No-No — Eagle seniors Keith Ryan and Tony Raza-Montes
combined for a no-hitter as North Point beat Great Mills, 9-2, on April 18. The no-hit performance came in the second game of the first
doubleheader in the Eagles’ three-year history.
Jordan-esque — In the fifth overtime between Bethesda-Chevy Chase and Whitman, the Vikings capitalize on a last-second counterattack when Patrick Slawta finds Jordan Karr for a goal and an 8-7 win on March 31.
Doran Doran — Wootton sophomore attackman Christopher Doran nets this behind-the-head
goal as the Patriots to lock up a 10-3 win over the Bulldogs on March 27.

No. 10 –– Big Mac
Northern Region, Virginia
— In the Battle of the Bulldogs, sophomore Jess McNamara hit a
walk-off, solo home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to lift
Westfield over Stone Bridge, 3-2, on April 25. The Fairfax County version of the
Bulldogs improved to 11-3 on the year a capped an impressive three-win
week. Westfield beat O’Connell, 5-3 on the previous Saturday, and
Concorde District rivals Oakton and Robinson, 8-2 on Wednesday and
16-10 on Thursday, respectively.

No. 9 –– Summer of Sam
Northern Region, Virginia
— Robinson had taken the lead seven minutes prior in the Northern
Region boys’ soccer championship against Westfield, when junior
goalkeeper Samir Badr
lined up for this free kick 68 yards from goal in the 57th minute. Badr
played a long ball into the mixer 10 yards in front of the Bulldog net
and it one-hopped through untouched. The ball bounced into the back of
the goal for a 68-yard goal and what proved the back-breaking blow in
the Rams’ 3-0 regional title win.


No. 8 –– Wahl’k-Off
Northern Region, Virginia
— West Springfield junior ace Bobby Wahl
blew a two-run lead to rival South County just two innings before he
came to the plate to lead off the bottom of the seventh inning in a tie
game. Three pitches into his at-bat, Wahl had a Wahl’k-off solo home
run to lift the Spartans over the Stallions, 4-3, on April 18.

No. 7 –– ClayBorne to Run
Montgomery County, Maryland — Damascus sophomore Cassie Clayborne
hit an inside-the-park grand slam as part of her team’s 10-2 win over
Blair. The Hornets’ current No. 5-hitter was in the lead-off spot last
season and demonstrated both her speed and power.

No. 6 –– Bounding Benton
S.M.A.C., Maryland — North Point senior Tristan Benton
shattered the previous SMAC meet record in the high jump — which was
6-feet, 6-inches — by leaping 6’9″ at Great Mills. He also
finished second in the long jump and high jump. Benton, a University of
Maryland commit, set his outdoor personal record on April 18 at the
Waldorf Track Classic when he leapt 6’10”, the best mark in the state
this year. He won the 2A South Region and Maryland State meets at 6’8″.

No. 5 –– Isaiah 40:
Independent Schools, D.C. — Isaiah 40:31 says, “… They will bear you up on wings like eagles…” Montrose Christian senior Isaiah Armwood
showed that kind of ornithological altitude — a 40-inch vertical —
by jumping over seven people in the Capital Classic Dunk Contest at
Gonzaga on April 8. Armwood’s dunk was named No. 1 in the SportsCenter Top 10 on the next day.

No. 4 –– Broad Run Twin Titles
Loudoun County, Virginia
— The
Spartans held their own private jamboree at Radford on State Championship Sunday. Broad Run softball beat Tunstall on a walk-off double by junior Jenn Soroka. And soccer, which allowed four goals in 24 games this season, beat Hidden Valley, 3-0. Spartan senior Caitlin Hunter set VHSL records with 20 shutouts this season and 63 for her career.

No. 3 –– Alligator Roll
Northern Region, Virginia
— Madison trailed unbeaten, fourth-ranked Langley 9-8 with :06.0 left when Warhawk middie Mike McCool had a good look at goal after a steal in the Saxon end. McCool’s shot was blocked but Madison middie Gordon Bailey
scooped the loose ball with his back to the goal and — in one motion
— rolled and flipped it through the Langley defense to tie the game
and force overtime. The Warhawks won, 10-9, in overtime on a goal by
attack Mike Hayden to deliver the Saxons their first loss on April 28.

No. 2 –– Three Mile Eiland
Prince George’s County, Maryland — Trailing by two runs to Surrattsville and the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth inning, Gwynn Park senior 1B Reggie Eiland crushed this offering over the left-field wall for a walk-off grand slam and an 11-9, Yellow Jacket win on April 17.

No. 1 –– Mitchell 0.00 ERA in ’09
S.M.A.C., Maryland — McDonough senior Melanie Mitchell pitched four perfect games in her senior season, pacing the Rams to a 19-0 season and the 2A state title. In her 19 starts, she allowed one total run — which was unearned. She tied a state-tournament record with 19 strikeouts in the title game, a 4-0 win for McDonough over Landstowne.

Email: pmurphy@digitalsports.com

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By Angela Watts
Assistant GM, Washington D.C. Metro Area

** Click the links to the left to access a photo gallery and dozens of highlights from Sunday’s championship game!

Hundreds of elated Langley fans poured out of the bleachers at Westfield High School at nearly 11 p.m. Sunday night and flocked to the fence line where — as they hooted, hollered and high-fived — a loud chant of “We want the Chief!” broke out.

They got him alright — just when they needed him most.

Saxon senior midfielder Alex Devlin, nicknamed the Chief by his teammates, delivered the game-winning goal just 1 minute, 4 seconds into a sudden-death overtime period to lift Langley to a 4-3 victory over Chantilly and its first Virginia AA/AAA state championship in program history.

The overtime heroics not only left the Saxons fans clamoring for the fiery red head, whose hair was cut into a fresh Mohawk that matched many of his teammates, but also seeking his autograph.

Devlin obliged, leaning over the fence after all of the trophies had been awarded and dozens of pictures had been taken to sign the T-shirts and jerseys of the Langley faithful that had patiently waiting for their moment to congratulate him.

“I’m speechless, for once in my life,” said longtime Langley Coach Earl Brewer, who was overcome with emotion. “Alex deserved to score the winning goal. He’s been our go-to guy all year, really, and he’s a wonderful young man.

“I mean, they call him the Chief for a reason. He’s just the Chief. He’s the man.”

Goals were hard to come by for both teams in this defensive battle, as both Chantilly senior goalie Derek Kegerreis (eight saves) and Langley senior goalie Galen Kuney (six) shined behind their fellow defenders. But a well-placed shot by Charger senior midfielder Mike Turpyn with 1:11 remaining in regulation knotted the score at 3.

It was somewhat poetic considering Chantilly sophomore midfielder Devon Westerman had scored what appeared to be the game-tying shot earlier in the fourth quarter only to have it waived off because Charger Coach Kevin Broderick had called time out a split-second before Westerman released the ball.

“It was just a battle out there,” Brewer said. “I could never have predicted it would be such a low-scoring game.

“When they got that goal at the end I thought the momentum was going their way a little bit. But our kids have been like this all year. No matter if we’ve been down or been up, they’ve just fought, fought, fought.”

Langley senior midfielder Matt Cronin won the face-off to start the overtime period, and as soon as junior defender Thomas Robinson advanced the ball into Chantilly’s half of the field Brewer signaled for a time out. The plan was simple: Put the ball in Devlin’s hands.

“We wanted to clear the side for Alex and let him go one-on-one,” Brewer said. “He got off a good shot the first time, but I think it just went wide.”

The Saxons maintained possession after Devlin’s miss-fire, and both junior attacker Ethan Bailey and senior attacker Kyle Maida took shots of their own before they were able to feed the ball back to Devlin.

Working from the right side, Devlin retreated and brought the ball back out to mid-field so his offense could reset. He then immediately darted back to his right, worked his way to the outside shoulder of his defender and bounced in a shot that found the back right corner of the net.

“I was going in and, I mean, he’s a terrific goalie so I knew I had to put almost a perfect shot on,” Devlin said. “And I did, and it went it.”

Devlin raced behind the goal as pandemonium erupted in the home stands and then leapt into the outstretched arms of senior attacker Ryan Ningard. Senior midfielder Jeremy Kuney and Bailey were next to join the pile as the entire Saxon team shredded their gloves and masks and flung their sticks high in the air as they raced to join the celebration.

“I was standing on the crease and I didn’t even see the shot go in,” Jeremy Kuney said. “I just saw Alex’s arms go up in the air … and it was unbelievable. I didn’t even know how to react. It just feels like a first time for everything right now. It’s really awesome.

“And for our fans to come out in such force tonight and to be so loud and so supportive … it was great to win a state championship for them.”

Brewer whole-heartedly agreed.

“I feel so good for our student body,” he said, beaming. “They were amazing up there tonight. I feel so proud of our school, so proud.

“I’m just so happy. I think I need to hug somebody!”

Email: awatts@digitalsports.com

Chantilly (16-3)     1  2  (0) — 3
Langley (21-1)       2  1  (1) — 4

Goals — Chantilly: Danny Abatemarco, Jared Golden, Mike Turpyn; Langley: Ethan Bailey, Joey Byrne, Alex Devlin, Ryan Ningard.

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Stephen Lewis (slewis@digitalsports.com) here!

It’s the state Group AAA girls soccer final from the beautiful complex at Westfield High School in Chantilly.

Mills Godwin, the Central Region champion from Richmond, and Chantilly, the Northern Region champion, are warming up for what should be a spirited final.

The Eagles are a defensive dynamo who topped Frank Cox of the Eastern Region 2-1, while the offensively terrific Chargers crushed Eastern Region opponent Kempsville 3-0.

Things will kick off at 2 p.m. and I’ll try to provide the words worthy of the final!

All right, things are about to start and the players are being announced.

I’ll be down on the field for a while getting some great photos and video, hopefully, so be patient for the first update!

OK, Chantilly leads 1-0 with 10 minutes to go in the first half.

Katie Menzie scored in the 24th minute as her shot slipped through several Godwin defenders and past a diving Jessie Ashworth.

The first half has been pretty even, a little advantage to Chantilly because of the goal of course, and shots on goal.

Godwin’s defense is playing pretty well, holding up to the Charger offense. Godwin has put up some good offensive chances of its own, getting a corner only 1:30 into the match.

The Eagles just missed a golden opportunity with two consecutive corners.

Chantilly continues to pepper the goal, but Godwin gets possession on a handball by Madyson Brown. But the Chargers take it back and look to have a good opportunity, but Morgan Morris is offside.

4:30 to go in the half. Now 2:45, Brown’s taking a goal kick for Chantilly. It’s a good one that ends up in a shot that Ashworth stops. 2:00 to go.

And that’s the half, Chantilly 1, Godwin 0. The Chargers seem a little quicker to the ball than the Eagles at this point.

Some first half stats:

Shots – Chantilly 12, Mills Godwin 4
Corner kicks – Mills Godwin 4, Chantilly 0
Fouls – Mills Godwin 5, Chantilly 4
Saves – Ashworth 5, Lauren Jancuska (C) 0

Second half is ongoing, Becca Haislip just received a yellow card.

But better for Chantilly, Olivia Colella scored from the just outside the 18 from the left sideline. It curved just over the outstretched hand of Ashworth. It’s Colella’s second goal in as many games. She’s a freshman.

Tough hole for Mills Godwin, 2-0 with 36 minutes to go.

33 minutes now, Godwin’s looking a little fatigued under the pressure of Chantilly.

Whoa! Almost an own goal goes to Chantilly. Ashworth was barely able to keep it out of the net. Under 30 minutes left.

Now 20 minutes to go, Chantilly continues to control play. Godwin is getting nothing going offensively.

Menzie just misses a goal from about 20 yards out for Chantilly. A little high.

Godwin STRIKES! Lumpkin finds Marie Krider on the right flank. Scores easily to cut the lead to 2-1, 12 minutes to go.

Wow, Chantilly just destroyed Godwin’s goal with chances, but the Eagles defense and Ashworth keep it from going in.

Cortlyn Bristol went in for a header fullback style but was not able to deposit it. 6:30 left.

Colella just got a yellow card, knocking Ashworth out of the air. She goes out to an ovation from Chantilly’s faithful, who disagreed with the call.

Bristol with a pistol of a shot, just high. 3:00 to go, Chantilly up 1.

Chantilly WINS 2-1!

Mills Godwin 0 1 – 1
Chantilly      1 1 – 2
MG: Krider
C: Menzie, Colella
Saves: Ashworth (MG) 10; Lauren Jancuska (C) 0
Records: Mills Godwin (18-4-1); Chantilly (20-2-1)

Final stats:
Shots – Chantilly 29, Mills Godwin 6
Corner kicks – Chantilly 5, Mills Godwin 4
Fouls – Mills Godwin 9, Chantilly 8
Offsides – Mills Godwin 1, Chantilly 1

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by Stephen M. Lewis
DigitalSports Richmond
slewis@digitalsports.com
(804) 240-2191

CHANTILLY – Chargers couldn’t fit Chantilly’s girls soccer team any better Saturday afternoon.

The Northern Region champions ripped Eastern Region runner-up Kempsville 3-0 in the state Group AAA semifinals at Westfield High School.

Chantilly buried all three goals in the first 15 minutes of the contest.

The first hit the back of the net before anyone’s seat got comfortable.

Kaitlyn Manley scored 1:34 into the match off a feed from the terrific Cortlyn Bristol, headed to William & Mary.

About nine minutes later, Bristol headed in a perfect corner kick from fellow midfielder Katie Menzie, a James Madison signee.

The assault wasn’t over as Kristen Melchiori‘s diagonal cross found freshman Olivia Colella.

Colella dribbled a couple of times and beat Kempsville’s approaching keeper, Katie Lape, for the final margin only 14:14 into the match.

“It really boosted our confidence,” Menzie said of the first goal by Manley. “We were able to possess more and put two more away really quickly. It really worked to our advantage to get that early goal.”

Chantilly could have had three more in the first half – seriously.

Kempsville keeper Lape was up to the challenge, stopping 17 shots, 10 in the first half. Some Charger offerings just went outside of the pipe of struck the crossbar.

Chantilly shot 17 times and had six corners in the first half, five corners in the first 10 minutes of the game.

Kempsville had one shot in the first half and no corners.

Chantilly was sharp as a tack, and it started with their dominant midfield duo.

“Recently we’ve been a little rough,” said Bristol, who will lead the Chargers against Mills Godwin of Richmond in the state final Sunday at 2 p.m. “We haven’t been playing our top game. Especially that first half we played excellent.

“I loved it.”

Kempsville 0 0 – 0
Chantilly   3 0 – 3
C: Manley, Bristol, Colella
Saves: Lape (K) 17; Jancuska (C) 1; Stillwell (C) 0
Records: Kempsville (13-6-2); Chantilly (19-2-1)

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By Phil Murphy
Senior Multimedia/Content Editor
Washington D.C. Metropolitan Area

Click the listed links for all photos and videos from the Virginia AAA state championship!

In both the Concorde District and Northern Region championship games, Chantilly watched multiple-goal, late-game leads slip away to Robinson — its only two losses of the year.

In the state final, the Chargers left no doubt.

“Ten seemed to work for us,” Chantilly coach Melissa Gates said. “Maybe, against Robinson, you need to have a lead of 10 goals to beat them.”

The Chargers actually led by as many as 11 goals as they commanded wire-to-wire, beating the Rams, 13-4, to capture the Virginia AAA state championship at Westfield on Sunday.

The win snapped a five-game losing streak for Chantilly in tournament championship games.

“We’ve been waiting for this for so long,” said senior Erin Robertson, who scored twice in the opening 2 minutes, 5 seconds. “We came out so fired up. For a lot of us, this was our last chance to do it.

“We’ve been here five times before. We know what it feels like to lose it. We just wanted to give it our all and leave it all on the field.”

Added Gates: “We always joke about having the silver one. We always get the silver trophy, this time we have the gold one.”

The Chargers peppered the Ram cage and led 9-1 at halftime. And it far from helped the comeback cause when Robinson junior captain Rachel Moody went down with a knee injury less than four minutes into the game. She did not return.

But there still was no answer for the Chantilly offense, which saw the nine first-half goals split among five different players.

And with 13:20 left in the game, Charger junior Liz Dunwoody scored to move the lead to 10 goals, which started a running clock.

“That was our best game I’ve ever seen us play in the last two years,” said Chantilly senior Brittany Griel, who scored a game-high five goals. “That game right there showed how we are as a team. We put it all together.

“Every single one our starters, that put us in a light that we wanted to be remembered by.”

The explosive performance in the championship gave Griel, who will play for Delaware, 73 goals for the season.

With the win, Chantilly became the first team other than Oakton to win a girls’ lacrosse state title in the three years that the sport has been sanctioned by the VHSL. The Cougars beat the Chargers in both the Northern Region and AA/AAA State final last year.

Those losses came just weeks after previously-unbeaten Chantilly lost to Robinson in the final second of the Concorde District championship.

But two hours of perfectly-executed lacrosse earned the Chargers a piece of hardware that made their string of defeats pale in comparison.

And about those bitter feelings from the championship-game losing streak?

“It’s as intense as everybody says it is,” Gates said. “They’re all gone now.”

Email: pmurphy@digitalsports.com

Chantilly    (21-2)      9  4  —  13
Robinson  (18-4)        1  3  —   4

Goals:
CH – Brittany Griel (5), Kylie Chaplin (2), Erin Robertson (2), Lisa Comerford, Jessica Dennis, Liz Dunwoody, Katie Stillwell.
RB – Courtney Coleman (2), Tory Barron, Katie McHugh.

Assists:
CH – Jessica Dennis, Liz Dunwoody, Brittany Griel.
RB – none.

Goals (Time Left in Half)  —  Score
1st Half                               
CH – Erin Robertson (24:15) — 0-1
CH – Erin Robertson (22:55) — 0-2
CH – Brittany Griel (21:23) — 0-3
CH – Brittany Griel (20:19) — 0-4
CH – Katie Stillwell (19:33) — 0-5
CH – Jessica Dennis (16:15) — 0-6

CH – Brittany Griel (14:26) — 0-7

RB – Courtney Coleman (12:27) — 1-7
CH – Kylie Chaplin (8:24) — 1-8

CH – Lisa Comerford (2:13) — 1-9
2nd Half                               
CH – Brittany Griel (24:22) — 1-10
CH – Liz Dunwoody (13:20) — 1-11
CH – Brittany Griel (9:03) — 1-12
RB – Tory Barron (7:38) — 2-12
CH – Kylie Chaplin (6:22) — 2-13
RB – Courtney Coleman (3:13) — 3-13
RB – Katie McHugh (:29.7) — 4-13

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By Angela Watts
Assistant GM, Washington D.C. Metro Area

** Click HERE for photos from only the Broad Run-Robinson game.
** Click HERE for video highlights from only the Broad-Run Robinson game.

** Click HERE for photos from only the Chantilly-Loudoun Valley game.
** Click HERE for video highlights from only the Chantilly-Loudoun Valley game.

There will be a new Virginia High School League girls’ lacrosse champion in 2009.

But it will come from a very familiar place.

Concorde District rivals Robinson and Chantilly will meet in the state championship game at 6 p.m. Saturday at Westfield after both disposed of their Loudoun County counterparts in Tuesday’s semifinal round.

The state’s only previous winner since the lacrosse championships were established in 2006 was fellow Concorde District foe Oakton. In fact, only teams from the Northern Region have ever advanced to the title game.

That fact held true Tuesday night in the semifinal round at Westfield as Robinson proved the first to move on with an impressive, 18-5 victory over Broad Run. Chantilly followed with a solid, 14-9 victory over Loudoun Valley in the second half of the doubleheader.

That sets up a fourth meeting this season for this Northern Region pair. Chantilly handily defeated Robinson, 12-5, during the regular-season, but the Rams rallied from big second-half deficits to win both the Concorde District (9-8) and Northern Region (10-9) titles.

“They are obviously our biggest rival and everything, but when it comes down to it it doesn’t matter who we play,” said Chantilly senior midfielder Brittany Griel. “It’s not about beating them, it’s about winning states. We want that so badly. And if it happens? Nothing else the past two year would matter.

“We’ve spent so much time working hard … I can’t really even put it into words. Winning states would literally mean the world to us.”

Robinson’s fate in the championship game was really never in question Tuesday night as the Rams jumped to an early, 4-1 lead, in the game’s opening five minutes of play and never looked back.

Robinson got multiple goals from senior attacker Megan Dunleavy (5), junior attacker Rachel Moody (4), senior midfielder Sarah Moody (3) and freshman attacker Katie McHugh (2) and a lock-down performance from junior goalie Kelsey Zinck and the rest of the Rams’ defense to keep the Spartans at bay.

Broad Run, which was led by two goals from senior midfielder Kate Sistare, was held scoreless for a span of 27 minutes, 29 seconds that stretched from the 9:53 mark of the first half to the 7:24 mark of the second.

“It feels really good,” Robinson Coach Alison Neun said. “We focused on our defense a lot yesterday, really trying to work on closing down because they have some top attackers who will take the ball to goal from the 50. So we really tried to work on slowing the ball, getting in hard, collapsing on them and just protecting our goalie.

“And our goalie, Kelsey Zinck, played amazing. She was just on fire. There was one point where she had three point-blank saves in a row. And I tell you what that does, that gives your defense confidence.”

Chantilly — and senior midfielder Katie Stillwell — went more on the offensive in its win over Loudoun Valley. With the Vikings’ defense focusing much of its attention on Griel, the Chargers’ leading scorer with 68 goals this season, Stillwell was left free to roam. And Stillwell made the most of the opening, almost single-handily outscoring Loudoun Valley with a whopping eight goals to bring her season total to 60.

“They were spending a lot of time fronting Brittany Griel and they just kind of let one go,” Chantilly Coach Michele Gates said. “Or … eight.”

The Chargers also got multiple goals from senior attacker Jessica Dennis (2) and junior midfielder Liz Dunwoody (2).

“Katie, she’s who I look to,” Griel said. “She’s that player. And I’m definitely more of a passer. So when they face-guarded me that kind of worked into what we wanted to do. We have a lot of threats on offense, and you can’t face-guard everybody. If you face-guard me you get Katie … and you can’t stop her. It’s really kind of pick your poison.” 

The Vikings, who were paced by junior midfielders Shannon Harkey (4), Sophie Swan (2) and Michelle Zakrzewski 2, made a late surge to score four of the game’s final five goals, but it proved too little, too late.

And that turned the focus promptly back to the Concorde District rivals who will meet in Saturday’s finale at 6 p.m. at Westfield.

“For us, we keep saying, ‘One more, one more, one more!'” Neun said. “Now it’s our last chance to say ‘One more!’ … and we really need to think about taking that next step.”

Email: awatts@digitalsports.com

VHSL Girls’ Lacrosse Championship History

2006 — Oakton 9, Robinson 5
2007 — Oakton 12, W.T. Woodson 10
2008 — Oakton 20, Chantilly 11
2009 — Robinson vs. Chantilly, 6 p.m. Saturday at Westfield High School

GAME 1
Broad Run     4    1  —    5
Robinson      10   8  —  18

Goals: Broad Run — Kate Sistare 2, Nina Dunay, Taylor Forman, Sam Lewis; Robinson — Megan Dunleavy 5, Rachel Moody 4, Sarah Moody 3, Katie McHugh 2, Tory Barron, Alexandra Clark, Courtney Coleman, Abigail Eastman.

GAME 2
Chantilly                7    7  —  14
Loudoun Valley      4   5  —     9

Goals: Chantilly — Katie Stillwell 8, Jessica Dennis 2, Liz Dunwoody 2, Brittany Griel, Kacey Norwood; Loudoun Valley — Shannon Harkey 4, Sophie Swan 2, Michelle Zakrzewski 2, Andrea Mustacchio.

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By Phil Murphy
Senior Multimedia/Content Editor
Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area

**All highlights and photos posted above video to the left.**

Watching the Chargers in third quarter, it appeared as though they were coming off a 10-minute halftime, not one that lasted 22 hours.

Chantilly junior Kevin Egan scored less than two minutes into the continuation of the Virginia state lacrosse semifinal, which began on Wednesday night at Westfield.

Charger sophomore Devon Westerman found the back of the Ram cage again three minutes later.

That was all the breathing room needed for the defending state champions, as Chantilly finished off Robinson, 8-5, in the culmination of Wednesday’s rained-out semifinal at Fairfax on Thursday.

“On offense, we knew if we just chilled out and played LAX, we’d be good. And we did it,” said Egan, who scored the first of his two goals at the 10:50 mark in the second quarter on Wednesday.

“If we play our best, we’re tough to beat.”

Added senior defender Max Jeffrey: “The biggest message [last night] was not to lose mental focus. I thought we came out strong in the first half, but we knew it wasn’t finished.

“We wanted to raise the bar even higher than the start.”

Jeffrey, senior defender Steve Gombos and senior goalkeeper Derek Kegerreis anchored a solid defensive effort that held Robinson to two goals, which included a score in the waning seconds of the third quarter, in Thursday’s second half.

In the final four minutes of regulation, Jeffrey blocked back-to-back shots by Ram attackman Thurmond Shaw with his body.

Minutes prior, Gombos had a pivotal stick check to dispossess Robinson middie Dan McNulty, who is headed to Jacksonville University, and on a later possession picked up a goal-saving ground ball in front of a vacant Chantilly cage after possession was lost behind the X.

In goal, Kegerreis had 10 saves, matching Ram junior goalkeeper Kennand Kevan for the game-high.

“I thought we played our best lacrosse this season — in quite some time, if not the season — last night,” said Chantilly coach Kevin Broderick, whose team beat Robinson, 6-5, in the regular season. “Our captains, when we left Chantilly in the rain last night, said, ‘Bring your A-game, guys.’

“The first time we played them, Stevie put us on his back and carried us and same thing tonight. He’s out there doing the best he can… He did a nice job matching up with McNulty, a guy I feel is one of the best offensive players in the Northern Region.”

Added Jeffrey: “When it comes down to this, every little thing matters.”

With its victory, Chantilly advances to face Northern Region champion Langley in the AA/AAA State championship game at Westfield on Sunday at 8 p.m.

The Chargers lost to the Saxons, 6-4, in the regional semifinals on May 18.

Though the returning state champion, Chantilly graduated 16 seniors from last year’s undefeated team. Among starters, it returned only Kegerreis and three defensemen: Jeffery, Gombos and Taylor Meason.

Still, to cement their legacy, this fresh cast of Chargers felt it was state final run or bust in 2009.

“We’ve got 13 seniors and a bunch of guys that played last year,” Broderick said. “They think, in order to get the right respect, you have to go back to the championship game this season.”

Added Egan: “It’s good to prove that we had a great senior class last year, but we can reload and just come back and do the same thing.”

Email: pmurphy@digitalsports.com

*CLICK HERE for coverage of the Langley-Broad Run semifinal

Chantilly   (16-2)     3  2  2  1  —  8
Robinson  (12-7)      2  1  1  1  —  5

Goals:
CH – Kevin Egan (2), Joe Marson (2), Robbie Bowers, Brendan Waters, Devon Westerman.
RB – Alex Barber (2), Chase Walton (2), Thurmond Shaw.

Assists:
CH – Robbie Bowers (2), Jared Golden.
RB – Dan McNulty (2), Jake Martens, Thurmond Shaw.

Saves:
CH – Derek Kegerreis – 10.
RB – Kennand Kevan – 10.

Goals (Time Left in Quarter)  —  Score
1st Quarter                              
CH – Joe Marson (10:04) — 1-0
RB – Chase Walton (3:56) — 1-1
CH – Brendan Waters (1:56) — 2-1
RB – Alex Barber (:39.3) — 2-2
CH – Robbie Bowers (:12.1) — 3-2
2nd Quarter                               
CH – Kevin Egan (10:50) — 4-2
RB – Alex Barber (10:08) — 4-3
CH – Mike Turpyn (:41.9) — 5-3
*Game stopped at 8:06 p.m., officially postponed at 9:07 p.m.
3rd Quarter                               
CH – Kevin Egan (10:10) — 6-3
CH – Devon Westerman (7:00) — 7-3
RB – Thurmond Shaw (:25.6) — 7-4
4th Quarter                               
RB – Chase Walton (6:28) — 7-5
CH – Joe Marson (1:09) — 8-5

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