Leesburg, Va. — The elements came to play on a May 21 showdown in Leesburg between the Riverside High School and Stone Bridge High School boys lacrosse teams. A cold, wet, and windy day evened the playing field between the two teams in their Potomac District tournament semifinal.
Even though Stone Bridge lost their previous matchup, 17-4, only a week prior, the Bulldogs were ready for their playoff rematch. Gaining a 4-3 lead in the third quarter, however, Riverside used its attack to score five unanswered goals to defeat Stone Bridge 9-6 and advance to the Potomac District championship.
“I thought we played hard,” Riverside head coach Nick Worek said. “When you get into the playoffs in this county and against teams that know you and see you all the time, you know you’re going to get the best from everyone. Stone Bridge played an unbelievable game, they were prepared. They had a great game plan coming into the game.”
The Rams received two three-goal performances from junior attacker Andrew High and junior attacker Grayson Oldknow. Riverside also got goal contributions from senior midfielder Chase Kramer, junior midfielder Jacob Stromberg, and junior midfielder Nate Woodward.
“I missed the [goal opportunity]at the beginning of the game, but I ended up getting through it,” High said. “I got out of my head and got the job done. The rain affected the sticks a little bit, but at the end of the day, you have to get the job done, and everyone came and got the job done.”
Stone Bridge sophomore midfielder Mark Lawrence scored three goals, but the Bulldogs’ defense couldn’t stop Riverside from propelling shots past goalie Nathan Ward. Senior attacker Luke Jahr, sophomore midfielder Owen Blake, and junior attacker Mac Hurst all added goals for Stone Bridge.
The Bulldogs started the game off hot, with Ward making big saves on Riverside’s chances at the goal. Stone Bridge capitalized with Lawrence and Jahr both getting on the scoreboard to put the Bulldogs up 2-0.
Riverside kept the pressure up throughout the first quarter. It paid off for the Rams as Woodward scored after Riverside quickly flipped the field following a save by sophomore goalie Jack Clark. The first quarter ended with Stone Bridge leading 2-1.
“[Jack Clark] has been fantastic the last two months,” Worek said. “He’s seeing the ball really well, and he makes a lot of big saves, keeps us in games. It’s a big momentum swing when a goaltender can make a save, and it gets our defense going.”
The Riverside pressure continued into the second quarter as High rocketed a shot towards the goal and scored to tie the game at 2-2 in less than a minute. The rain continued to pour down, and great defense stopped both teams from finding shooting chances in the middle of the second frame.
“There was a lot of rain, balls were dropping and hitting the floor,” Riverside senior defender Keegan Smith said. “Not everything was going our way. We got a few bad bounces at the start, but then we just kept grinding through it, and we got it done in the end. There’s no style points in the playoffs—a win is a win.”
Riverside finally broke through the scoring drought with just over a minute remaining before halftime. High found an open spot in the defense to score his second goal of the quarter after Clark made a point-blank save on the other end.
However, the scoring wasn’t done in the second quarter. Good ball movement led to Lawrence being open for his second goal to tie the game at 3-3 with only four seconds remaining before half.
Stone Bridge found momentum at the start of the third quarter. The Bulldogs started with multiple missed shot attempts until Blake was open for a goal that gave Stone Bridge a 4-3 lead.
Less than two minutes later, Riverside tied the game at 4-4 with a goal from Oldknow. The Rams weren’t done scoring in the third quarter as Kramer put one into the back of the net, then Oldknow scored his second goal of the game to end the third quarter with Riverside up 6-4.
“We’re a third-quarter team,” Worek said. “We’ve played in a lot of big games over the years, and our guys know what it takes to play four quarters and win. They didn’t panic, and they figured it out. We always talk about there’s no such thing as style points. It’s a win.”
The Rams’ goal-scoring continued in the fourth quarter when Riverside outshot Stone Bridge 12-4 in the last frame. Oldknow, Stromberg, and High all increased the Rams’ lead. The Bulldogs capitalized on an opening with a third goal from Lawrence and one from Hurst, but the lead had grown too large as Riverside held on 9-6.
With the win, Riverside (12-2) moves into the Potomac District title game against Briar Woods on May 23 in Leesburg. Stone Bridge (9-7) will turn its attention to a VHSL Region 5D tournament qualifier game against Independence on May 22 in Ashburn.
“Briar [Woods] has great players on their team,” Worek said. “They’re going to come and bring it, and they’re coming off a big upset win tonight. It’s another rivalry. We’re expecting them to bring their best, and we’re expecting a great battle on Friday.”
Scoring Plays
| Period | Time | Team | Play | Score |
| 1Q | 7:19 | Stone Bridge | Mark Lawrence | 0-1 |
| 1Q | 3:43 | Stone Bridge | Luke Jahr | 0-2 |
| 1Q | 1:24 | Riverside | Nate Woodward | 1-2 |
| 2Q | 10:59 | Riverside | Andrew High | 2-2 |
| 2Q | 1:17 | Riverside | Andrew High | 3-2 |
| 2Q | 0:04 | Stone Bridge | Mark Lawrence | 3-3 |
| 3Q | 7:57 | Stone Bridge | Owen Blake | 4-3 |
| 3Q | 5:33 | Riverside | Grayson Oldknow | 4-4 |
| 3Q | 4:02 | Riverside | Chase Kramer | 5-4 |
| 3Q | 0:01 | Riverside | Grayson Oldknow | 6-4 |
| 4Q | 4:49 | Riverside | Grayson Oldknow | 7-4 |
| 4Q | 4:34 | Riverside | Jacob Stromberg | 8-4 |
| 4Q | 3:54 | Stone Bridge | Mark Lawrence | 8-5 |
| 4Q | 2:40 | Riverside | Andrew High | 9-5 |
| 4Q | 2:12 | Stone Bridge | Mac Hurst | 9-6 |