Bethesda-Chevy Chase tops Walter Johnson, earns berth in Maryland 4A West playoffs

Walking off the field following their fourth consecutive victory Friday night, Bethesda-Chevy Chase’s players took pride in putting together back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 1967. A few minutes later, though, their coach walked to a dark area behind the stadium after a 28-14 victory at Walter Johnson and pulled his players off their buses to share the news that set off a raucous celebration.

“We can’t use practice jersey 95 anymore!” Coach Rich Noland shouted over the idling bus engines, having spent the previous five minutes with reporters on the field as he anxiously awaited scores from other games that determined B-CC’s fate. “We are in!”

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And with that, the Barons jumped, hugged and danced jubilantly, having earned their first playoff berth since 1995.

“No one else believed!” yelled junior Julian Banks.

Even Noland acknowledged that until a 30-12 victory over Clarksburg last week, he was unsure whether the Barons (6-4) could make it to the playoffs. “Are you kidding me?” he asked reporters bearing news that B-CC appeared to be in the Maryland 4A West region playoffs, contrary to what the Barons coaching staff believed.

While third-ranked Quince Orchard and 20th-ranked Churchill had secured 4A West playoff spots, the region’s other two playoff berths were up for grabs. The teams in position to advance with victories Friday both lost; Whitman fell to 16th-ranked Paint Branch, 36-8, while Clarksburg was stopped on a key fourth-and-goal play midway through the fourth quarter and lost to Springbrook, 20-13.

That left the door open for B-CC and Gaithersburg. Diondre Anderson and Cory Applequist each rushed for two touchdowns and Applequist intercepted a pair of passes in the fourth quarter as the Barons held on to beat WJ.

While the Barons won their final four games to earn a meeting with Quince Orchard, Gaithersburg had to snap its five-game losing streak Friday night to advance. With a lineup battered by injuries and nine players watching from the sidelines, the Trojans received clutch performances from their stars Billy Brown and Simba Gwashavanhu to beat Wootton, 40-14.

Brown, a wide receiver and defensive end who left last week’s game with an irregular heartbeat, did not practice all week and was not cleared to play until Friday. He caught three touchdown passes, a two-point conversion pass and had three sacks.

Gwashavanhu sprained his ankle last week, but had a pair of touchdown catches. Replacement running back Larry Kpadehyea, taking the place of Solomon Vault, who broke his ankle last week, rushed for more than 100 yards and returned an interception for a touchdown.

“It’s a little embarrassing getting in at 5-5, but after the year we’ve had and the injuries we’ve had, it’s a bit of poetic justice,” said Gaithersburg Coach Kreg Kephart, whose team will play Churchill on Friday.