Sports Roundup: Colonials Boys Tennis Undefeated

The Thomas Jefferson High School Colonials boys tennis team hasn't missed a beat in 2011 as they’re putting together another undefeated regular season, but the boys baseball and girls softball teams are struggling. Here's the latest sports roundup, featuring the Colonials and the Falls Church High School Jaguars.

Thomas Jefferson Colonials

Boys Lacrosse

The Colonials have already matched last season’s win total of four with three games to go, but victory number five won’t be easy to come by with tests against Langley (two-time defending Virginia AAA champs), Chantilly and South Lakes. The Seahawks escaped with a 9-8 win a year ago, so a win in this year’s season finale would provide TJ with some much needed momentum heading into the Liberty District playoffs.

Girls Lacrosse

A year after finishing above .500, the Colonials are enduring one of their worst seasons ever. A 20-2 win over girls lacrosse newcomer Stuart is the only bright spot on a schedule that includes five losses by double digits.

Baseball

TJ again finds itself at the bottom of the ultra-competitive Liberty District. The Colonials strung together consecutive wins for the first time in 2011 during a spring break doubleheader with Potomac and Cardozo, but remain winless in district play.

Softball

The girls are also struggling on the diamond in 2011, failing to produce a run in their last four games. A 6-2 win over Marshall represents the Colonials only district win.

Boys Tennis

After losing four seniors from a state finalist team in 2010, the Colonials haven’t missed a beat in 2011 as they’re putting together another undefeated regular season. Langley and McLean have provided the only real challenges for TJ, each taking the Colonials to the last match in 5-4 decisions.

Girls Tennis

Steve Myers is proving that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. As dad John continues to build a tennis dynasty with the boys’ team, son Steve is doing the same for TJ’s girls. Despite losses to Langley and McLean, the Colonials remain an elite team in both the Liberty District and Northern Region. A combination of depth and youth makes this a scary team both now and down the road.

Boys Soccer

With Langley and McLean established as the cream of the crop in the Liberty District, Jefferson is fighting for position in a log jam at the middle. Four teams own either 1-3 or 2-3 district records, and the difference between a three seed and a six seed could prove monumental. The Colonials are hoping a 2-1 overtime win over Stone Bridge on March 22 wasn’t a fluke – the Bulldogs have five straight shutout victories since then – but Jefferson has fallen in three straight road contests with two more to come before returning home for the first time in nearly a month to take on Fairfax on May 3.

Girls Soccer

After scoring just once during an 0-3-1 start to 2011, the Colonials have put seven in the net while going 2-2-0. Those two losses, however, were both shutouts, coming against South Lakes and McLean. TJ has a chance to continue to find scoring with a home match up with Stuart on Wednesday night before closing out the regular season with district games against Madison, Fairfax and Langley.

Falls Church Jaguars

Boys Lacrosse

A National District title in 2008 and another appearance in the championship game in 2009 are starting to look more like aberrations rather than progress. After falling to 3-9 a year ago, the Jaguars have stumbled to a 2-7 record in 2011. Falls Church had a chance to build some momentum heading into spring break after consecutive wins against Stuart and Wakefield, but fell to Mount Vernon by one goal.

Girls Lacrosse

The Jaguars responded to a slow start by winning three out of four and now sit at third place in the National District standings with a 3-3 record. After losing seven seniors from last year’s squad, improvement in scoring margin against nearly every opponent compared to 2010 and a roster featuring just five seniors appears to have the Jaguars ahead of schedule as they look to contend in the district.

Baseball

The Jaguars’ futility on the diamond perhaps reached new lows in 2011 with losses to Hayfield by scores of 36-0 and 26-0. The Jaguars have been shut out in three straight games on two different occasions this year, the most recent coming Wednesday at the hands of Washington-Lee. Falls Church has survived the 10-run rule just three times all year, and despite decent pitching, completely lacks firepower and fielding.

Softball

The Jaguars are struggling equally at softball, and have now failed to hold an opponent to single digit runs since 2009, a streak of 26 consecutive games and 28 consecutive losses overall.

Boys Tennis

The Jaguars have a chance to match last year’s record of 5-9, a definite improvement over consecutive 1-11 seasons in 2008 and 2009, and they’ve done so after losing five of their top six seeds from a year ago to graduation. Now, a team that features just one senior, four juniors and a sophomore in its top six has a chance to prove it can compete in what has become a surprisingly talented National District in recent years.

Girls Tennis

Despite starting the season with seven straight losses, the Jaguars have won three of their last four matches, including earning series splits with Edison and Mount Vernon. With a very winnable match against Wakefield on Wednesday – the Jaguars were missing two of their top six seeds for a 6-3 loss on March 25 – and another contest with Hayfield, which Falls Church beat 5-4 heading into spring break, the team has a chance to win five district matches for the first time since 2006.

Boys Soccer

The Jaguars have had no shortage of offense, scoring 19 goals in nine game, but have managed only a 5-4 record. A difficult contest with a stingy Yorktown squad on Friday will be Falls Church’s final home game of the year, but the Jaguars play three sub-.500 teams to close out the season and have already easily surpassed last years mark of 2-11 and should finish 2011 with a  winning record in the National District.

Girls Soccer

On the girls’ side of the pitch, the Jaguars are also on the rise. At 3-6, Falls Church has won its most games in a season since a 5-9-2 campaign in 2006. With four games remaining, two coming against Yorktown and Stuart, the Jaguars are in good position to equal that mark. The eight goals scored in a shutout win over Wakefield on April 11 were the most offense the Jaguars have produced in recent memory, and were only three fewer than Falls Church scored in all of 2010.