It was an unwanted déjà vu situation all over again that proved costly for the Lake Braddock Bruins in the team’s state-semifinal football game against the Madison Warhawks.
Just like during an early regular-season game against the Warhawks, the Bruins fell behind 21-0 again in the Dec. 7 Virginia High School League Class 6 state-tournament semifinal, and never caught up.
Lake Braddock lost that regular-season clash on its home field, 36-15, and fell in the state semifinal at Madison, 42-19, to end its season with an 11-3 record.
The Bruins tried hard not to fall behind in the state semifinal, but it took them until the second half to score and really get rolling on offense.
Madison had the first possession of the game, scoring a touchdown on an eight-play 80-yard drive.
Lake Braddock punted on its first possession and had a punt blocked on its second that set up a Madison touchdown and a 14-0 lead. The Bruins then punted again the next three times they had the ball, had a pass intercepted in the end zone on its next and trailed 21-0 at halftime.
“That interception really hurt, because we had something going then right before the end of the half,” Lake Braddock coach Mike Dougherty told FFXnow.
The Bruins never punted in the second half, working to battle back by consistently moving the ball with a strong passing attack, but were hurt by a costly turnover and were stopped on a fourth-down attempt at the Madison one-yard line.
Like last season, Lake Braddock’s 2024 campaign ended with a state-semifinal loss after winning the 6C Region tournament. This fall, the Bruins won both the Patriot District and region championships to enter the state tourney with a 10-game winning streak.
The team finished 11-3 the last two seasons and was 9-3 the two previous two falls.
What’s promising about next season for Lake Braddock is starting quarterback Tyrone Jackson will be a senior. He passed for 365 yards and three touchdowns in the Dec. 7 loss to Madison.
Jackson helped lead an offense that averaged 50 points per game in three region-playoff contests prior to the loss to Madison.
