Leesburg, Va. — Coming off a big 55-0 win over Rocktown, the Loudoun Valley High School football team knew it would have its hands full against a red hot Heritage offense when the two teams met for a Dulles District matchup on October 25 in Leesburg. Despite the Pride coming off 63- and 56-point performances, the Vikings’ defense was up for the challenge, holding the Pride scoreless until the final 10 seconds of the game.
“The last two weeks Heritage put up 63 and 56, so we knew we had to come in strong defensively,” Loudoun Valley head coach Dave Bishop said. “That’s probably the most physical we’ve played all season. We challenged our kids all week on that and they showed up.”
Led by sophomore athlete Mack Gaffney—who tied a school record with 173 receiving yards, while catching two touchdown passes and throwing another—the Vikings dominated the Pride from start to finish, 40-6, securing a berth to the Dulles District playoffs.
“We knew we had to get this win if we wanted the chance to get the No. 2 seed and potentially host a playoff game,” Bishop said. “The coaching staff came up with a phenomenal game plan, we had a great week of practice, and the kids executed everything we put in, and it shows on the scoreboard.”
It didn’t take long for Gaffney to get involved. On the third play from scrimmage, he carried the ball three yards. Three plays later, facing a 1st-and-20, Gaffney hauled in a 42-yard pass from sophomore quarterback Zach Detweiler as the Vikings were knocking on the doorstep. Two players after that, Detweiler scored on a 1-yard touchdown run as the Vikings took an early 7-0 lead.
The Loudoun Valley defense had its first big defensive stand of the game on the following drive. On Heritage’s second offensive play of the game, junior running back Reed Alexander broke free for a 62-yard run, setting up the Pride with a 1st-and-10 on the Loudoun Valley 16.
On first down, the Vikings got into the backfield and brought down the Pride ball carrier for a 4-yard loss. A run by Alexander followed by a 7-yard completion set Heritage up with 4th-and-4 from the Loudoun Valley 10, where the Pride elected to go for it.
Once again, the Vikings met the ball carrier at the line of scrimmage, bringing him down and forcing a turnover on downs.
With the momentum and the lead, the Vikings offense retook the field to no avail as they and the Pride traded punts over the next four possessions.
After the second Heritage punt in as many drives, the Vikings took over on their own 33 and were looking to make a splash. Detweiler dropped back and delivered a 67-yard touchdown strike to Gaffney to extend the Loudoun Valley lead to 14-0, the score they’d take into the locker room for halftime.
“We went up 14-0 at halftime, but we just needed to stay locked in,” Gaffney said. “We had to keep pushing and continue to make stops on defense.”
Coming out of the intermission, the Loudoun Valley defense got right back to work, dropping Alexander and Heritage senior quarterback Mason Holst for 5- and 6-yard losses, respectively.
On the ensuing Loudoun Valley drive, the Vikings turned to sophomore running back Ethan Lafollette, who eventually rushed his team down to the Heritage 12 yard line. Following a negative rushing play and an incompletion, the Vikings trotted out sophomore kicker Orestes Parada who made the 30-yard attempt to extend the Loudoun Valley lead to 17-0 midway through the third quarter.
Another successful series for the Loudoun Valley defense gave the Vikings the ball back late in the third quarter. Following a sack, Gaffney went for a 16-yard run to pick up the first down, setting the Vikings up on the Heritage 34.
After an offsides penalty against the Pride, Detweiler hit Gaffney with a 29-yard touchdown pass, to put the Vikings up 23-0.
Following a three-and-out on defense, another Parada field goal, and another Heritage three-and-out, the Vikings reached down into their playbook and pulled out a trick play as Gaffney—who had lined up at receiver all night—dropped a 61-yard touchdown pass into the hands of junior receiver Jolyon White.
“We know [Mack’s] such an athlete that we want to move him around and get the ball in his hands,” Bishop said. “He’s a dude, so we just have to get him the ball.”
On the first play of the resulting Heritage drive, Loudoun Valley senior linebacker Chase Loftis jumped a route, picked off Holst, and returned the interception 32 yards for a touchdown.
The Pride did evade the shutout as Alexander scored on a 58-yard touchdown run with 10 seconds left, but the Vikings dominated from start to finish, 40-6.
Loudoun Valley (2-1, 5-3) will be back in action on October 31 when they host Dominion in a Dulles District clash. Heritage (1-2, 3-5) will travel to Rock Ridge on the same night with their playoff hopes on the line.
“We want to use these games as stepping stones, so we’re getting better, and, ultimately, at our best in November,” Bishop said. “We’re really trying to use these last two regular season games to propel ourselves into the postseason.”
Maya Lopez captured 150+ photos at the game!
Scoring Plays
| Period | Time | Team | Play | Score |
| 1Q | 8:00 | Loudoun Valley | Zach Detweiler 1-yard TD run (Orestes Parada PAT) | 7-0 |
| 2Q | 7:17 | Loudoun Valley | Zach Detweiler to Mack Gaffney 67-yard TD pass (Orestes Parada PAT) | 14-0 |
| 3Q | 5:07 | Loudoun Valley | Orestes Parada 30-yard field goal | 17-0 |
| 3Q | 0:59 | Loudoun Valley | Zach Detweiler to Mack Gaffney 29-yard TD pass (PAT missed) | 23-0 |
| 4Q | 6:16 | Loudoun Valley | Orestes Parada 33-yard field goal | 26-0 |
| 4Q | 4:53 | Loudoun Valley | Mack Gaffney to Jolyon White 61-yard TD pass (Orestes Parada PAT) | 33-0 |
| 4Q | 4:37 | Loudoun Valley | Chase Loftis 32-yard interception return TD (Orestes Parada PAT) | 40-0 |
| 4Q | 0:10 | Heritage | Reed Alexander 58-yard TD run (PAT missed) | 40-6 |