It took until the postseason, but the Washington-Liberty boys volleyball team emerged as a true Cinderella story.
That’s when the third-seeded boys volleyball squad, playing its inaugural season in the varsity high-school sport, won the Liberty District tournament by upsetting the No. 1 seed, host and defending champion McLean Highlanders, 3-1, in the championship match.
Success came after W-L lost its opening two matches of the season and fell twice to McLean in previous contests this fall by 3-0 and 2-0 final margins.
Following the district tournament, the Generals topped Oakton in a first-round match of the 6D North Region tournament to reach the semifinals and extend their winning streak to five.
First-year teams usually don’t enjoy such postseason success or even qualify for the competitions.
“Our first day of tryouts, I thought there was potential because of our players’ determination, excitement and height,” W-L coach Colson Bade told ARLnow.
“Our players might not have perfect form — or perfect anything — but as they have played more and more they have gotten better,” Bade said. “We have given them the opportunity to figure things out for themselves.”
Washington-Liberty (9-3 overall record) was 3-0 in the district tournament, including a win over the second-seeded Wakefield Warriors, another first-year program, in the semifinals.
The Generals’ 16-player roster includes just two with significant club-team experience, with others having little or no previous playing experience.
“We have really worked on our mental side. Because of that, our mentality has been pretty incredible,” Bade said. “It is definitely the biggest improvement we’ve made this season.”
Seniors James Dashzeveg and Stephan Burducea are W-L’s top two players. Both were chosen first team all-District and all-Region. Burducea leads the Generals in kills and blocks, while Dashzeveg is the leader in assists.
Burducea worked hard “to prove himself in the playoffs,” Bade said.
Burducea is also a leader in aces along with junior Orgil Soronzonbold, a second-team all-District selection.
Also chosen second team all-District were seniors Bilguun Gankhuyag and Alden Humphrey. Marcelo Dos Santos Cheung, a leader in aces, was chosen honorable-mention all-District. Senior Sam Trickey and junior Reginald Cotton are other top players.
In other recent Washington-Liberty sports action:
Football: The regular season ended with losses in two straight close Liberty District football games for the Generals.
As a result, the squad finished with a 6-4 overall record and a third-place 4-2 district mark.
Next, sixth-seeded W-L plays a first-round away contest in the eight-team 6D Northern Region tournament, Friday, Nov. 13 at 7 p.m. against the third-seeded South Lakes Seahawks.
The two losses were to the visiting Yorktown Patriots, 31-28, in an all-Arlington clash on Oct. 31, and then to the host and district champion Langley Saxons, by a 34-21 score, on Nov. 6.
Against Langley, the Generals scored on their first two possessions to lead 7-0 and 14-7, then fell behind 21-14 at halftime and 34-14 in the fourth quarter. Washington-Liberty scored its three touchdowns on passes from Tyler Flint-Steinig. Two went to Colby Arenson and the other to Luke Jones.
Against Yorktown, Flint-Steinig completed 29 of 51 passes for 344 yards and two touchdowns. Arenson caught 11 of those throws for 136 yards and a TD, Jasper Dennis nine for 96, Jones five for 76 and Matthew Herring two for 26 and a score. Dennis and Jamal Sullivan had rushing TDs for W-L.
The Generals never led but twice rallied from 14-point deficits to tie the score at 28 late in the fourth quarter. Yorktown made the winning field goal with a minute to play.
On defense, Tyler Hawkins and Amin Elgindy each had two sacks and Benjamin Kerr and Mikale Gray-Fenny one each. Miles Whitaker made eight solo tackles and Kerr and Adam Dodini recovered fumbles.
“We kept coming back and showed a lot of fight and resilience,” Washington-Liberty head varsity football coach Josh Shapiro said.
Prior to the Yorktown game, W-L defeated the host Herndon Hornets.
Against Herndon, Flint-Steinig threw for 349 yards and four TDs. The Generals gained 437 total yards, with Sullivan rushing for 76 and a score and Gray-Fenny for 45.
Arenson had nine catches for 114 yards and a TD, Herring caught six for 68 and Jones four for 78 and two TDs. Ethan Foster kicked a 39-yard field goal. Hawkins returned a blocked punt for a score.
During the regular season, Flint-Steinig threw 28 touchdown passes and for 2,799 yards and completed 217 passes. The winning regular-season record is Washington-Liberty’s fourth in a row, with the region playoff berth its fifth straight.
Field hockey: When the week began, the Generals’ strong field hockey season continued as the girls high-school squad had reached the semifinals of the Virginia High School League’s Class 6 state tournament.
The Generals (16-4) rallied from a 1-0 deficit to defeat the Cosby Titans, 2-1, near Richmond in a first-round match on Nov. 7.
With the comeback win, Washington-Liberty has advanced to the state semifinals for the first time, the farthest the Generals ever have advanced in the postseason.
Prior to the state tourney, Washington-Liberty finished second in the 6D North Region tournament with a 2-1 record and reached the semifinals of the Liberty District tourney to earn a region berth.
Washington-Liberty entered the postseason with a 12-2 record, and now stands 4-2 in the playoffs entering the state semifinal.
In the state win over Cosby, Abby Bodnar and Elsa Fitzharris scored the goals, with Sophia Smith having an assist. Caroline Owens earned the win in goal.
“After falling behind 1-0, our athletes didn’t allow frustration or the magnitude of the moment to dictate how they responded,” W-L coach Arianna Villegas said. “They remained composed, trusted one another, and fought their way back. To me, that comeback was a reflection of the resilience and collective accountability we’ve been working to establish all season. They didn’t wait for someone else to change the game. They took ownership of it together.”
In the region tournament, W-L lost to the host Oakton Cougars, 2-1, in the championship game with Rachel Hogan scoring the goal off Smith’s assists.
In the semifinals, Washington-Liberty defeated the Liberty District tournament champion Marshall Statesmen, 2-1, in overtime. Mckenna Kee scored the first goal and Bodnar the game winner in OT.
In the region first round, W-L nipped the South Lakes Seahawks, 2-1 in double overtime. Bodnar and Margaret Erwin (game winner) netted the goals with Bodnar and Kee having assists.
Owens has earned all of the playoff wins in goal. She was chosen the district’s Goalie of the Year.
“Our goalkeeper has been nothing short of exceptional throughout this postseason,” Villegas said. “She’s been an absolute force in goal, making an incredible number of critical saves.”
Owens was chosen first-team all-district along with Bodnar and Kee. Erwin, Smith, Keena Dorney and Olivia Olesak made second team. Honorable mention selections were Fitzharris, Harper Rath and Elena Floros.
Kee was chosen first-team all-region with Bodnar and Owens making second team.
Cross-country: The Washington-Liberty Generals girls cross-country team had a strong postseason in district, region and state championship meets.
The Generals finished second in the Liberty District, third in the 6D North Region, then seventh in the season-ending Virginia High School League’s Class 6 state event.
Among the seven top runners for W-L in those meets were four freshmen. They were Allison Ervin, Susanna Richard, Lilia Thompson and Eva Von Mertens. The others were senior Sophia Collins and juniors Maddie Brys and Ella Engelhardt.
Richard finished fourth in the district meet (18:30), 18th in the region (19:07) and 43rd in the state (20:42). Ervin was sixth in the district (18:40) and region (18:20) and 22nd in the state (19:54). Brys was ninth in the district (19:02) and region (18:39) and 39th in the state (20:29). Collins was 15th in the district (19:47), 26th in the region (19:30) and 81st in the state (22:19).
Thompson was 16th in the district (19:52), 32nd in the region (19:48) and 67th in the state (21:41). Von Mertens placed 24th in the district (20:19), 38th in the region (20:25) and 57th in the state (21:15). Engelhardt was 27th in the district (20:37), 47th in the region (20:46) and 87th in the state (22:55).
District and region meets were run on the same 2.9-mile Burke Lake Park course, with the state meet at the longer 5,000-meter Oatlands course in Leesburg.
