Gaithersburggaz 101613 by The Gazette

THE GAZETTE

Wednesday, October 16, 2013 z

Page B-3

HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL HOW THEY RANK The 10 best football teams in Montgomery County this week as ranked by The Gazette’s sports staff.

Rank

School

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Quince Orchard Cougars Good Counsel Falcons Bullis Bulldogs Gaithersburg Trojans Damascus Swarmin’ Hornets Northwest Jaguars Sherwood Warriors Paint Branch Panthers Seneca Valley Screaming Eagles Clarksburg Coyotes

Record Points

6-0 4-4 5-1 6-0 5-1 5-1 5-1 5-1 4-2 3-3

60 54 46 43 36 29 24 20 12 5

Also receiving votes: Springbrook, 1.

LEADERS Top rushers Dage Davis, Geo. Prep Zac Morton, Whitman Khalil Wilson, Einstein Isaac Boyd, Avalon Charles Lyles, Poolesville E. Spottswood, Sherwood Devonte Williams, Bullis Chris Dawson, G. Counsel D. Sims, Wheaton Kevin Joppy, Q. Orchard

Carries Yards Avg. TDs 101 1019 10.1 15 128 990 7.7 8 77 919 11.9 8 88 859 9.8 17 110 829 7.5 6 98 723 7.3 9 97 703 7.2 11 115 703 6.1 9 101 599 5.9 6 76 595 7.8 11

Top passers

Cmp-Att. Chuck Reese, Rockville 173-268 Sam Ellis, Wootton 122-227 G. Cooper, P. Branch 86-155 Mike Murtaugh, Q. Orch. 62-96 Renzo Farfan, R. Mont. 92-163 Nick DeCarlo, G’burg 48-74 Evan Smith, Whitman 51-102 C. Hennessey, N’wood 56-115 S. Morningstar, Pooles. 47-90 Raymond Burtnick, Blair 37-78

Top receivers Joey Cornwell, Rockville Jibri Woods, Wootton Trevon Diggs, Wootton Javonn Curry, P. Branch Ryan Stango, P. Branch Anthony Albert, Rockville Louison Biama, Rockville M. Brown, Q. Orchard S. Brigman, Rockville Michael Scott, Kennedy

Catches 49 41 45 32 26 34 25 16 34 24

Yards 1892 1596 1213 1102 967 806 636 596 540 528 Yards 590 548 485 484 454 413 387 310 301 366

Int. 7 7 5 1 4 4 7 2 7 5

TDs 24 14 17 12 10 4 5 5 5 5

Avg. TDs 12.0 7 13.4 5 10.8 7 15.1 9 17.5 6 12.1 6 15.5 4 19.4 6 8.9 5 15.3 1

QO gets tough games before playoffs Coach says difﬁcult matchups will help team prepare for postseason

Kelly catches

Senior receiver Steven Kelly doesn’t get many opportunities in Bethesda-Chevy Chase’s triple-option offense, but he makes the most of them. Kelly had ﬁve catches for 99 yards against Quince Orchard on Saturday, setting seasons highs. “We always knew he had the potential,” B-CC coach Josh Singer said. “I think, this year, he’s really starting to believe in his ability.” The 6-foot-4, 185pounder had a pass bounce GEORGE P. SMITH/FOR THE GAZETTE off his hands Saturday, but Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School wide receiver Steven Kelly pulls down he caught it as he fell to the this pass during Saturday’s game against Quince Orchard. turf. Singer said that was one of several excellent catches by the best, and that’s what we gomery County, you’ve got to Kelly this season, including want, and that’s what we’re beat all the great teams, and one against Montgomery Blair going to get. So, we’ve got there are great teams left on in double coverage that was eight weeks left of the season. “absolutely amazing.” And then state championship, our schedule. I love the big “I’m not surprised when games. I look forward to that. he does things like that,” that’s what it is.” Closing the regular season It’s a chance for our team to Singer said. “He’s proven that with four quality opponents show, hopefully, we’re as good he’s a great athlete when the pleases Mencarini. ball is in the air and he’s going “I wouldn’t want it any as we think we are.” to make a play to secure it.” Said McLean: “The season other way,” Mencarini said. “To be the best team in Mont- begins now.” dfeldman@gazette.net

Quince Orchard High School football coach Dave Mencarini, after his team beat Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School, talked to his players about how challenging the rest of the season will be.

FOOTBALL NOTEBOOK BY DAN FELDMAN Their ﬁnal four opponents are No. 7 Sherwood, No. 4 Gaithersburg, No. 6 Northwest and formerly ranked Thomas S. Wootton. Yet, Mencarini spoke about the next eight, not four, weeks. Eight weeks would take Quince Orchard through the regular season and playoffs and through its third straight state championship game. “We like to be positive,” defensive lineman Adam McLean said. “We work too hard to accept anything but

FEARLESS FORECASTS The Gazette sports staff picks the winners for this week’s games involving Montgomery football teams. Here are this week’s selections:

Montgomery County record All games

Seneca Valley at Watkins Mill Walter Johnson at Northwood Rockville at Damascus Einstein vs. Wheaton Churchill at Richard Montgomery Sherwood at Quince Orchard Wootton at Northwest Gaithersburg at Magruder Bethesda-Chevy Chase at Clarksburg Whitman at Springbrook Blair at Paint Branch Kennedy at Blake Brunswick at Poolesville Archbishop Carroll at Good Counsel St. Albans at Bullis Georgetown Prep at Anacostia Landon at St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes

Ken Sain

Dan Feldman

Nick Cammarota

Travis Mewhirter

Jennifer Beekman

Kent Zakour

89-20 175-41

88-21 175-41

87-22 171-43

83-26 172-44

86-23 170-46

84-25 165-51

Seneca Valley Northwood Damascus Einstein Churchill Q. Orchard Northwest Gaithersburg Clarksburg Whitman Paint Branch Kennedy Poolesville Good Counsel Bullis Geo. Prep Landon

Seneca Valley Northwood Damascus Einstein Churchill Q. Orchard Northwest Gaithersburg Clarksburg Springbrook Paint Branch Kennedy Poolesville Good Counsel Bullis Geo. Prep Landon

Return of Walter Johnson volleyball hitter makes sizeable impact

Last week, Walt Whitman High School golf coach Karl O’Donoghue said that the county was getting back to its old ways, perhaps not a far cry from its stretch from 2002-2008 in which a Montgomery team won a state title every year. “Overall, I think the county is coming back to as strong as it

PREP NOTEBOOK BY TRAVIS MEWHIRTER always is,” he said. “We’ve been slacking a bit over the past few years.” Well, not last year, when Thomas S. Wootton ended Urbana’s three-year string of state titles. But, from the scores turned in at the district tournament on Monday at Poolesville Golf Course, O’Donoghue appears prophetic. Five teams — Wootton, Walter Johnson, Winston Churchill, Whitman and Quince Orchard — had legitimate state title-contending scores and the county will be losing very little of a supremely talented core of players. The winner of the district tournament, Wootton’s Delaney Shah (68) is only a sophomore, as is second-place ﬁnisher Luke Schaap (70). Shah’s teammate, junior Justin Feldman, already has a state title, Capital Cup bragging rights, and a sub-30 stroke nine hole score under his belt before the start of this fall. The county’s regular season scoring champion, Whitman’s Graham Hutchinson, is just a freshman, while a host of others, namely Quince Orchard’s Colton Christensen, Wootton’s Graysen Bright, and essentially all of Churchill, will be back for

GREG DOHLER/THE GAZETTE

Thomas S. Wootton High School’s Delaney Shah of watches her shot off the fairway Monday during the Montgomery County District Golf Tournament. at least one more season as well. The future “is very bright,” Wootton coach Paul Williams said. “Even kids like Jordan [Weitz] who are just one or two holes away from being right there. ... I think the future is very bright. They’re going to get better, they’re going to play more competition over the summer, they’re going to get better and better and better as the next couple years go. Three years from now? I’m not sure what I’m looking at.” For now, he can settle on looking ahead two weeks, when his Patriots will begin their state title defense.

Volleyball Walter Johnson didn’t win a match for the first month of this season. It took them three matches just to pick up a set and another five to take a team to a fifth set, which it eventually lost to Bethesda-Chevy Chase. It was a strange start to one of the county’s traditionally strong programs in recent years. But what a difference the return of one of Montgomery County’s

Montgomery 4A South Division Team

Wootton* Whitman R. Montgomery B-Chevy Chase Churchill Walter Johnson*

All Div.

3-3 3-3 1-5 2-4 1-5 1-5

3-1 2-1 1-1 1-2 1-2 1-2

PF PA

166 80 113 119 124 173 73 160 39 178 33 185

Montgomery 4A East Division Team

Paint Branch Sherwood Springbrook* Blair Blake Kennedy

All Div.

5-1 5-1 3-3 3-3 1-5 1-5

3-0 2-0 2-2 1-2 0-2 0-2

PF PA

235 63 160 82 111 56 115 80 20 177 71 116

Montgomery 4A West Division Team

Gaithersburg Quince Orchard Northwest Clarksburg* Magruder

All Div.

6-0 6-0 5-1 3-3 1-5

2-0 2-0 1-1 0-2 0-2

PF PA

136 37 241 13 202 80 104 72 42 233

Montgomery 3A Division Team

Damascus Seneca Valley Rockville Einstein Watkins Mill Wheaton Northwood

All Div.

5-1 4-2 4-2 3-2 2-4 1-5 0-6

3-0 3-0 3-2 2-1 1-2 0-3 0-4

Montgomery 2A Independent Team

Poolesville

All

4-2 124 96

Private schools Team

PF PA

181 60 182 69 224 162 138 156 84 159 69 226 33 257

Bullis 5-1 184 88 Good Counsel 4-4 177 111 Georgetown Prep 3-3 166 154 Avalon 3-4 169 152 Landon 1-4 101 124 * Includes forfeit result

Last week’s scores

County should do well at state golf n

STANDINGS

most talented hitters can make. Senior Brigid Morris had been sidelined for the ﬁrst eight matches of the season with a concussion she suffered in a preseason scrimmage with Col. Zadok Magruder. In that span, the Wildcats went 1-7 and won just seven sets combined. Enter Morris, and Walter Johnson is 2-0, beating Clarksburg and the previously 4-1 Watkins Mill. During Morris’ two matches (as of Sunday night), the 6-foot outside hitter has racked up 24 kills, 23 digs, and four blocks, adding a much needed complement to fellow hitter Victoria Ansarah, who is second on the team with 42 kills, and lightening the load of libero Emily Burk. Morris’ return could throw a wrench into a hierarchy that ﬁnally seemed to settle down a bit. Matchups with Paint Branch and Gaithersburg, both teams with winning records, will prove to be a nice barometer of how far Walter Johnson has come since adding Morris back in. tmewhirter@gazette.net

Seneca Valley Seneca Valley Seneca Valley Northwood W. Johnson W. Johnson Damascus Damascus Damascus Einstein Einstein Einstein Churchill R. Montgomery R. Montgomery Q. Orchard Q. Orchard Q. Orchard Northwest Northwest Northwest Gaithersburg Gaithersburg Gaithersburg Clarksburg Clarksburg Clarksburg Springbrook Springbrook Whitman Paint Branch Paint Branch Paint Branch Kennedy Kennedy Blake Poolesville Poolesville Poolesville Good Counsel Good Counsel Good Counsel Bullis Bullis Bullis Geo. Prep Geo. Prep Geo. Prep Landon Landon SS/SA

Woodberry Forest 45, Landon 17 Poolesville 20, R. Montgomery 14 Seneca Valley 51, Northwood 0 Rockville 36, Watkins Mill 0 Clarksburg 28, Wootton 3 Fort Hill 47, Walter Johnson 3 Gaithersburg 6, Churchill 3 Sherwood 62, Magruder 0 Northwest 31, P. Branch 28, OT Springbrook 19, Blake 0 Blair 28, Wheaton 7 Georgetown Prep 48, R. Lewis 6 St. John’s 31, Good Counsel 6 Bullis 50, St. Ste. & St. Agnes 3 Avalon 34, Perry Street 14 Q. Orchard 49, B.-Chevy Chase 0 Einstein 20, Kennedy 18 Damascus 21, Walt Whitman 6

BEST BET Wootton at Northwest, 6:30 p.m. Friday. Northwest is inside the playoff picture, and Wootton is outside. Wootton beating Northwest won’t ﬂip that, but Northwest beating Wootton would go a long way toward solidifying it. Wootton’s high-powered offense looks to get back on track after scoring just three points last week.