Purcellville, Va. — Behind a core group of seniors, the Loudoun Valley High School boys basketball team headed into their VHSL Class 4 State quarterfinal matchup with Jefferson Forest with high expectations. These seniors had been here before—escaping Western Albemarle on the road in a state quarterfinal in 2022.
In their 2024 state quarterfinal, the Vikings used their experience to navigate some major foul trouble, which sent senior forwards Nate Boner and Cole Kielhorn to the bench for most of the third quarter. Despite that obstacle, the Vikings never trailed in their 59-42 win over the Cavaliers in a VHSL Class 4 State semifinal on February 27 in Purcellville.
“Our team always knew we could make it this far, but it’s an honor to actually accomplish that,” Loudoun Valley senior guard Landen Conrad said. “We just have to keep the energy up.”
After Conrad and Danielson got their team out to a 24-16 lead, the Vikings turned to their defense to create some additional separation.
Allowing the third fewest points per game amongst Loudoun teams this winter, Loudoun Valley prides itself on its defense.
In their matchup with the Cavaliers, however, the Vikings would have their hands full with senior guards Isaiah Scott and Cooper Stamn as well as sophomore forward Levi Hamilton.
“We tried to limit [Stamn] and [Scott], who are both great players,” Loudoun Valley head coach Chad Dawson said. “Our kids are very defensive-minded, and they’ve really bought in. This is probably the best defensive team I’ve ever coached.”
While the trio of Hamilton, Scott, and Stamn combined for 27 points, they grabbed just 13 combined rebounds, which was a big win for the undersized Vikings, who saw Danielson and sophomore forward Tal Rose grab 8 boards apiece.
“Tal has been playing very explosively. He’s only a sophomore, and he’s just getting better and better and better,” Dawson said. “He rebounds at the highest point, which is great because we’re not the biggest team.”
The rebounding effort was even more impressive considering the Vikings’ two leading rebounders—Boner and Kielhorn—both headed to the bench early in the third quarter with foul trouble.
“Our bench really had to step up tonight, because we were in foul trouble,” Conrad said. “Tal, John [Hasle], and Tristen [Conrad] really did a great job with that. They kept the energy high and just did what they needed to do on both ends of the floor.”
After Jefferson Forest cut the lead to 41-36 early in the fourth quarter, Loudoun Valley got its two biggest rebounds of the night. On back-to-back possessions, Danielson corralled offensive rebounds and finished his putbacks—earning an and-one on the second bucket—as the 5-point lead quickly ballooned to 10.
“Joey battled inside which was big because our two biggest rebounders were out with foul trouble,” Dawson said. “We needed guys to step up, and they did.”
With about six minutes left in the game, Boner re-entered as the Vikings got their floor general back just in time to manage the clock. And despite Kielhorn fouling out midway through the fourth, the Vikings had created enough separation to simply control the clock, limit second chance opportunities, and capitalize at the free throw line to keep Jefferson Forest at bay and earn a trip to a VHSL Class 4 State semifinal.
“We knew coming in it was going to be a tough defensive game,” Danielson said. “With a couple of our starters in foul trouble, we wanted to run the clock a little bit. We did a really good job of executing that game plan. We played smart and took care of the basketball which helped us extend the lead and keep them from coming back.”
The Loudoun Valley win—paired with a Tuscarora win over Charlottesville—sets the stage for the fifth matchup of the season between the Vikings and the Huskies. Tuscarora (8-0, 24-3) has the 3-1 edge in the series, but by virtue of winning the VHSL Region 4C title, Loudoun Valley (5-3, 18-9) will get to host the Huskies at Purcellville-based Woodgrove High School with a trip to the state championship on the line.
“Our crowd and our community are so great,” Dawson said. “They do a great job of getting behind us and supporting us, so we’re very fortunate [to be playing in Purcellville].”
Sam Mesecar captured 250+ photos at the game!
Loudoun Valley Stats
| Player Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks | FT |
| Joey Danielson | 20 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4-for-5 |
| Landen Conrad | 16 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 6-for-7 |
| Tal Rose | 12 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4-for-7 |
| Nathan Boner | 6 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2-for-2 |
| Tristen Conrad | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1-for-2 |
| Cole Kielhorn | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2-for-2 |
| John Hasle | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Gavin Supplee | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Nathan McCann | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Michael Kabban | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Will Saba | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Totals | 59 | 28 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 19-for-25 |
Jefferson Forest Stats
| Player Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks | FT |
| Cooper Stamn | 11 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5-for-6 |
| Levi Hamilton | 9 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3-for-6 |
| Isaiah Scott | 7 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4-for-4 |
| Benjamin Lesniak | 6 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6-for-6 |
| Connor Lane | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Cam Parker | 3 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1-for-2 |
| Miles Mosley | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Totals | 42 | 23 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 19-for-24 |