Playoffs: Falcons, Bulldogs In, Spartans Need Win

Sad to say, but the end of the high school football regular season is upon us as Ashburn’s schools prepare for their final games this week. Luckily for local fans, the Briar Woods Falcons and the Stone Bridge Bulldogs will extend their seasons with guaranteed playoff spots, while the Broad Run Spartans needs a win and some help to see their season continue.

Falcons Conquer Vikings

Last week, Briar Woods (9-0, 7-0) put on perhaps its most dominating performance of the season in a 45-0 win over Loudoun Valley. The Falcon defense simply smothered the Vikings, holding them to negative ten net yards for the game. That's right, negative ten yards, total. The Vikings converted just one first down and completed just one pass as Falcon defenders completely disrupted the Loudoun Valley offense. Nick Merletti, Matt Rolin and J.T. Logan each recorded four unassisted tackles — several of which came in the backfield — and the Briar Woods defense appears primed for a deep playoff run.

As good as the Falcons were on defense, the offense might have been better. Trace McSorley completed a perfect 15 of 15 passes for 242 yards and three touchdowns. Meanwhile 17 Falcons recorded at least one rushing attempt as Briar Woods piled up 228 yards on the ground. Cory Colder and Trei Germany — channeling his inner William "The Refrigerator" Perry — each recorded a rushing score.

The Falcons look to close out their second straight undefeated season this week when they head to Loudoun County (8-1, 6-1). The game starts at 7 p.m. Friday, but check the schedules in case the aftermath of the storm impacts that time.

Bulldogs Clip Warhawks’ Wings

Stone Bridge (9-0, 6-0) had a similarly dominating outing with a 42-0 win over Madison (7-2, 5-1). The Bulldogs ran all over the Warhawks with Sterling Dailey racking up 168 yards and a score on just 19 carries. Although Ryan Burns completed just 7 of his 16 passing attempts, he made them count with touchdown passes of 75, 46, 73, and 53 yards to Jimmy Higgins, Jeremy Wirth and D'Ante Yarborough. On offense, the Bulldogs set a school record with 627 total yards on the night. And Burns’ 306 yards through the air was an all-time high for a quarterback at the school.

The Bulldogs next play Fairfax (5-4, 4-2) at home with an unbeaten regular season on the line. The game is currently scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Friday.

Spartans Push for Playoff Berth

Last but certainly not least, the Broad Run Spartans (4-5, 1-2) put up a valiant effort in a 28-14 loss at undefeated Stonewall Jackson (9-0, 4-0). In a back and forth first half, the Spartans trailed by 14 points early but tied it up heading into halftime after Brady Reitzel hooked up with Dorian Jenkins for two touchdowns. But the Spartans could not pull off the upset. Stonewall returned a kick and ground out tough yards in the second half to pull away for the win.

The Spartans look to even their season record when they play Freedom-South Riding at home Friday at 7:30 p.m.