Check back Saturday for more videos from this game
By Dan Sousa
LoudounPrepSports.com Senior Content Editor
Leesburg (Nov. 8, 2008) – The results may have been spectacular for Loudoun County High School Friday night as the Raiders clinched the school’s first postseason appearance since 1999, but there was nothing spectacular about the way the Raiders did it as they simply lined up and ran the ball, mostly between the tackles, a bone-crunching 60 out of 68 plays in a 27-21 AA Dulles District victory over rival Heritage.
The Pride (3-4, 6-4) could not send coach Wes Driskill, who announced Wednesday that he was stepping down after this game from the program he started in 2002, off with a victory as they made three costly turnovers, all fumbles that led to Raider scores.
The Raiders (4-3, 6-4) with the win and bonus points from Heritage’s six victories, jumped ahead of Sherando and Louisa for the fourth and final spot in the Region II Division 4 playoffs. LC will travel next Friday to Ashburn for a rematch with unbeaten Broad Run. The playoff game highlights an impressive turnaround of the program by Todd Hill who took over the reigns just two seasons ago after the Raiders had gone 0-10.
While the Raiders fell to Broad Run, 37-17, three weeks ago, LC has since put together a hard-nosed running game behind senior Andrew Walczak who plowed his way through the Heritage defense Friday for two scores and 194 yards on 33 carries. The clock-munching Raiders ran 29 more plays than the Pride.
LC quarterback Joe Bushrod put the ball in the air just eight times and had but two completions for 31 yards but one of those went to Michael Ayoub for a 24-yard score.
Heritage, playing without injured RB Ross Madison, one of the best players in the district on both sides of the ball, could only muster nine yards on the ground on 18 attempts and 150 total yards.
The tone for the game was set early as the LC defense forced Heritage to punt after one first down and Heritage would get only one other first down the remainder of the first half. Hill then called Walczak’s four straight times and the bruising back scored on the fourth carry from 42 yards out but the score was called back by an illegal block in the back. The Raiders simply ran it four more times with Mike Howard doing the honors from two yards out to make it 7-0 LC.
When Heritage fumbled on its very next offensive play and then Walczak broke loose for a 38-yard touchdown, it appeared that the Raiders might blow out the Pride but LC’s lead was cut in half as Scott Pratz returned the kickoff 76 yards for a score to make it 14-7.
In the second quarter, LC recovered another fumble, this time at the Heritage 32 and on 3rd-and-15, Bushrod found Ayoub near the end zone and Ayoub made a nice catch and then fought his way into the end zone for the score and a 21-7 LC lead with 4:13 to go in the half.
Heritage came right back with quarterback Zach Gordon throwing a great timing out pass to Dan Dykema near the Raider sidelines and when Dykema shook loose a tackler, he turned the 15-yard catch into a 52-yard touchdown as he hugged the sidelines all the way to the end zone.
LC’s first drive stalled in the second half but Heritage turned the ball over on its second offensive play of the half and LC then went on a nearly 7-minute, 37-yard drive which featured three straight third down conversions. Walczak’s second score of the evening, from the 1-yard line made it 27-14 after the PAT was blocked. There were just 44 seconds left in the third quarter and Heritage had run two plays in the half and LC had run 18.
Heritage went 3-and-out and had to punt but the Pride defense got the offense the ball back and Gordon led the team on a 9-play, 68-yard drive that featured four completions, the last on 3rd-and-16 from the LC 17 that had Russell East bringing down a jump ball on the goal line for a TD. That left Heritage in position to play spoiler, trailing by six points with 4:43 to play.
The Pride defense got the Heritage offense the ball back with 2:54 left but Bushrod’s timely punt had pinned back Heritage on its own 24. The Raider defense held steady and on 4th-and-4, a bad snap gave LC possession.
Heritage did get the ball one final time, with 50.9 seconds left and 83 yards to go but LC held and the Raider Riot student section was soon celebrating something that hadn’t happened for the school since most of the students were in first or second grade … a trip to the playoffs.
While Raider fans were jubliant … some of the Pride players wore their emotions openly as their season and for seniors thier prep careers, came to an end. For Driskill, it was one final time to talk to his team and then he was surrounded by media and then finally family.
As exited the stadium, a choked-up Heritage principal Margaret Huckaby gave Driskill a hug and others wishe him well. And finally, after 32 years of coaching he was walking to the locker room one final time.
Loudoun County 14 7 6 0 – 27
Heritage 7 7 0 7 -21
1 – LC: Howard 2 run (Ayoub kick) 6:42
1 – LC: Walczak 38 run (Ayoub kick) 5:18
1 – H: Pratz 76 kickoff return (Thiel kick) 5:04
2 – LC: Ayoub 24 pass from Bushrod (Ayoub kick) 4:13
2 – H: Dykema 53 pass from Gordon (Thiel kick) 2:22
3 – LC: Walczak 1 run (kick blocked) 0:44
4 – H: East 17 pass from Gordon (Thiel kick) 4:43
Rushing
LC: Walczak 33-194, Howard 12-42, Yesuf 7-19, Bushrod 8-14.
H: McCarthy 10-31, Cole 1-2, Gordon 5-(-3), McPhaul 1-(-9), Summers 1-(-12).
Passing
LC: Bushrod 2-8-0 31.
H: Gordon 10-21-0 141.
Receiving
LC: Ayoub 2-31
H: Dykema 4-80, East 2-26, McPhaul 2-26, Pratz 1-7, McCarthy 1-2.
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