Ashburn, Va. — For the third time in four years, the Stone Bridge High School football team is heading to the VHSL 5A State championship. After cruising past rival Broad Run in the VHSL Region 5C championship, the North Stafford Wolverines were all that stood between the Bulldogs and their eighth trip to a state championship game. And on a cold, damp December 1, Stone Bridge senior running back Nick Mell rushed for five touchdowns as the Bulldogs ran past the Wolverines, 49-26, in front of a home crowd in Ashburn. “We’re getting better every week, and we just have…
Author: Owen Gotimer
Owen Gotimer
Owen Gotimer is an award-winning journalist and small business owner from Leesburg, Virginia. After graduating from Heritage High School, Owen spent his college years at Syracuse University, where he studied broadcast and digital journalism in the renowned Newhouse School of Public Communications, before earning a Masters degree in social media, culture, and society from the University of Westminster. Owen owns OG Media, a full-service marketing partner specializing in website design & development, content creation, and graphic design & print. Additionally, Owen is the president of of the Jeffrey C. Fowler Memorial Scholarship.
Read More
Leesburg, Va. — Last season, the Rock Ridge High School boys basketball team played in seven games decided by one score; the Phoenix won just two of those seven games. So when Heritage High School pulled within a basket with less than six minutes left in the fourth quarter of their tipoff tournament match up on November 30, Rock Ridge faced their first real test of the season. “There were a lot of really close games last year that we were on the wrong side of, and we’re hoping we’re more experienced to win those games this year,” Rock Ridge…
Leesburg, Va. — Having failed to reach the .500 mark the last three seasons, the Loudoun County High School boys basketball team wanted to start 2018 off on the right foot. And the Raiders did just that as they used a balanced offense to defeat Rock Ridge, 64-57, to open their season on November 29 in Leesburg. “It was a complete team effort,” Loudoun County head coach Mark Alexander said. “This is a close-knit group. I’ve known some of these kids since I coached them in Little League. It’s just an awesome group, so it was good to see them…
Ashburn, Va. — The Battle of the Burn is usually Loudoun County’s most anticipated sporting event of the fall. So when Stone Bridge traveled to Broad Run High School for the VHSL Region 5C championship – which doubled as Battle of the Burn Part II – on November 23, the fans came out in droves. “This is a tough atmosphere to manage. You can’t even hear,” Stone Bridge head coach Mickey Thompson said. “We had two play calls missed because the numbers I was giving the guy who does our board, he couldn’t hear. The noise in this stadium is…
Ashburn, Va. — Like most high school football teams, the Broad Run Spartans faced adversity throughout their season. But there was one major challenge the Spartans hadn’t had to overcome until their VHSL Region 5C semifinal game against Tuscarora High School on November 16: a halftime deficit. As they had all season, Broad Run rose to the challenge, coming from behind to defeat the Huskies, 28-14, to advance to the VHSL Region 5C championship game. “We’re in a good place right now. Our kids keep working hard,” Broad Run head coach Matt Griffis said. “It’s a tight-knit group that truly…
Purcellville, Va. — Woodgrove High School senior Sophie Hudak has made a commitment to continue her running career at James Madison University starting in the 2019-2020 school year. “I picked JMU because the moment I stepped foot on the campus, it felt like home,” the 5-foot-3 Hudak said. “I visited a lot of schools during my recruitment process, and I just kept feeling that something was missing, until I got to JMU. Everyone on my overnight was so friendly, from the staff, the team and the students; they all made me feel so welcomed on campus.” While Hudak ultimately decided…