The Duke’s Preview: Millbrook vs Heritage

9/3/26 Winchester, VA– Millbrook hosts Heritage in tonight’s Hike Kidz Foundation Game of the Week c/o Brickhouse Bar and Grill with coverage starting at 6:30 pm for the 7 pm kick-off on The River 95.3, Fox Sports 1450, TheRiver953.com, and The River 95.3 app.

The Pioneers will try to get the taste of a heartbreaking 39-37 loss to Loudoun Valley out a day earlier than normal thanks to the holiday weekend.

Millbrook took last year’s Dulles District champions to the wire and actually led by two scores in the second half before Loudoun Valley began to rally then march down the field for a game winning field goal.

RB Carter Kinley had a strong Week 1 showing and finished with 33 carries, 148 yards, and 4 TDs to earn Randy’s Player of the Week.

Last year against Heritage, Kinley led the way on the ground with 20 carries for 102 yards while Rylee Baker (now at Hargrave) finished the drives with 3 touchdowns.

With the graduation of Baker and departure of last year’s QB Keon Lewis to focus on basketball, Kinley will be asked to do a bit more for the Pioneers this season and he appears to have the skillset and toughness to handle 20+ carries a game.

In the 26-15 win over Heritage last season, Head Coach Nick Manuel secured his first win and Millbrook’s defense and special teams helped provide short fields for the offense, especially in the first half.

Heritage actually outgained 266-219, but the Pioneers converting on the shortened fields and a 2-for-1 stretch before halftime proved to be the difference.

Millbrook’s defense will see a few familiar faces for Heritage including QB Jonathan Heckman (started last year in place of injured starter) and RB Luke Olszewski.

Olszewski was a 1st Team All Region selection on offense and defense, both as an “all-purpose” player which highlights his versatility.

The Pioneers will miss Parker Edwards (now at Sherando), but defensive end Karl Moutemy set the edge well against Loudoun Valley and came up with 2 sacks.

Jude Cusick moved to linebacker this season after earning 2nd Team All-Area honors at defensive back last year, and led Millbrook with 11 tackles in Week 1.

On the outside, Millbrook will need to account for Heckman’s favorite returning target Brock Zakrzewski.

Last year, the Class of 2029 athlete accumulated 18 total TDs (10 receiving, 6 rushing, 1 kick return, and 1 punt return) and 1,140 yards with ZERO drops on offense and two INTs on defense.

He is a big play machine and in 2025 averaged 15.7 yards per carry, 22.6 yards per catch, and 64 yards per kick/punt return.

If Millbrook can contain Zakrzewski and Olzewski, while the offensive line continues to win battles for Carter Kinley then Coach Manuel’s crew should be able to extend the Pioneer’s winning streak vs Heritage to four straight.

I would like to see Rome Johnson get more involved through screen passes and reverses due to his home run hitting potential, but the offense may be a bit more basic this week due to shortened practice time and a QB making just his second varsity start.

Regardless, the Pioneers should be able to win the line of scrimmage and benefit from the hometown crowd while feeding off the disappointment of last week’s tough loss to take home win 1 of 2026, Millbrook 24-Heritage 14.

For a preview of all Week 2 matchups and a look back to Week 1, listen the Sports Dogs Podcast HERE.

Sports Dogs Podcast: High School Football Week 1 recap, Week 2 preview

In this episode, The Sports Dogs are barking a day early due to the shortened week for many schools.

Check out the episode HERE featuring:

  • Week 1 recaps including:
    • Strasburg vs Skyline in the first Game of the Week
    • Big wins by Sherando, James Wood, and Handley
    • A heartbreaker for the Pioneers
  • Week 2 previews of:
    • Game of the Week-Millbrook vs Heritage
    • Rematches of Broadway vs Strasburg and Loudoun County vs Sherando
    • Handley’s new game change and more..
  • The first Player of the Week nominees including Millbrook’s Carter Kinley and James Wood’s Jackson Ledford
  • an updated Power Five rankings
  • and more…

For more news from across the Shenandoah Valley, click here.

The Duke’s Hoops Preview: Millbrook vs Sherando doubleheader

1/16/26, Winchester, VA- Sherando takes the short trip to Millbrook for a classic Northwestern District rivalry basketball doubleheader in tonight’s Hike Kidz Foundation Game of the Week courtesy of Brickhouse Bar and Grill on Fox Sports Radio 1450, TheRiver953.com, and The River 95.3 app.

The boys are tipping off first at 6 pm with pregame coverage at 5:45 pm, and then the girls following a ceremony for Millbrook’s Love Loud campaign.

Millbrook High School’s Love Loud game has become an annual tradition to honor, remember, and bring awareness to all types of cancer.

This year’s game honors Millbrook alum and former wrestling standout Dylan Wisman, who was diagnosed with a rare form of kidney cancer, and will support Wisman’s organization, The Outdoorsmen Fellowship, to raise awareness and encourage early screening.

Before the ceremony, the boys take the court with both teams sitting at 9-4 and heating up.

Sherando enters the matchup as winners of four in a row and seven of the last eight while Millbrook has won five of their last seven.

The Warriors have a balanced offensive approach led by Reth Puller (10.7 ppg) and Sean Benton (10.5 ppg) and a stifling defense.

Coach Garland Williams group has allowed only the Handley Judges to eclipse 70 points in a game and Skyline joins Handley as the only teams to go over 60 points.

Sherando will have their hands full with the Pioneers offensive attack led by Rylee Baker who is coming off the best game of his career.

Baker put up 40 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 steals in a dual against Ashby Copenhaver (31 points, 9 3-pointers) and James Wood.

Baker has been building to a performance like that all season long.

The senior leads the area in scoring by a wide margin at 21.5 points per game and already has105 more points on the season than the area’s second leading scorer on average, Wood’s Brodie Sirbaugh (17 ppg).

Keon Lewis is also coming off back to back double-digit scoring appearances and his best rebounding game against the Colonels with 9 (8 in the second half).

This should be a tightly contested matchup that comes down to the wire and will start early at 6 pm so call out of work early if you have to, it will be worth it!

The schools will then break for Love Loud’s ceremony and then the girls take the floor with both teams still looking to turn the corner in a waning season.

The Pioneers are coming off a win against James Wood that halted a six game losing skid and Strasburg ended a potential winning streak for Sherando after back-to-back wins against Warren County and Liberty.

While the teams haven’t quite put it all together, they both posses star power with two of the area’s most prolific scorers in Jane Moreland and Avery Ryan.

Moreland ranks 3rd in the area in points at 15.8 and 2nd in the area in rebounding with 9.7 per game.

Ryan is just behind her in scoring at 15.6 per game while shooting efficiently and ranking 2nd in 3-point, free throw, and field goal percentage.

Both have the ability to take over the game and may need to if their teammates are struggling.

Some of the younger pieces for these teams are starting to settle in like sophomores Grace Moreland for Millbrook and Kinsley Richardson for Sherando.

The younger Moreland recently put up 17 points against Handley and averages 8.9 per game while Richardson averages 11.3 points per game and is Sherando’s leading rebounder at 6.4 per game.

Both boys and girls matchups appear very even on paper and I predict a split decision for these district bouts with Millbrook’s offense led by Baker to become the 3rd team to reach the 60s against Sherando’s defense, Pioneers win 64-58.

For the girls matchup on the other hand, Sherando’s defensive focus under 1st year coach Regina Downing will start to pay-off.

Sherando makes some clutch free throws late for the 48-44 win.

For Josh Kirby’s chat with:

  • Millbrook girls coach Cary Bartlett, click here.
  • Sherando boys coach Garland Williams and Millbrook boys coach Erick Green Sr., click here.

For more local sports coverage, check out the latest Sports Dogs podcast here.

Sports Dogs Podcast: 2026 Kick-Off

Happy New Year from the Dogs!

We’re back from the Holiday Hiatus to talk about the Commanders’ recent Black Monday moves, a look at the College Football Playoff semifinals, and The Duke looks at what’s happening in local high school hoops.

A lot is going on in the sports world this first week of 2026, and we’re barkin’ about it, courtesy of Energy Windows LLC.

Visit Dave at https://energywindowsllc.com or by calling 540-671-9243 and bring your vision to life! 

To listen to the latest Sports Dogs Podcast on The River 95.3 online, Spotify, Amazon or iTunes, click here.

For more news from across the Shenandoah Valley, click here. 

The Duke’s Hoops Preview: Skyline vs Millbrook

1/6/26 Front Royal, VA- Millbrook hits the road to visit Skyline in tonight’s Hike Kidz Foundation Game of the Week courtesy of Brickhouse Bar and Grill on Fox Sports Radio 1450, TheRiver953.com, and The River 95.3 app with coverage starting around 7:15 pm for the estimated 7:30 pm tip-off.

Both teams began there seasons with strong starts and will need to sustain that success as the calendar turns and district play starts to heat-up.

While Millbrook is in Class 4 and Skyline is in Class 3, both are members of the Northwestern District and usually put on a show for the fans in attendance.

This is the first of two matchups this season and last year the teams split the season series 1-1.

The homestanding Hawks won their first six games to start the season before stumbling into two losses in the Ram Hardwood Classic.

Skyline led throughout the first half against Spring Mills before fouls began to pile up and the size of the reigning West Virginia State Champions began to take its toll.

The Cardinals pulled away with a 17-4 run to close things out.

The following night against Central, it was more of the same through the first 3 quarters with Skyline leading the entire way.

Then in the fourth quarter, Central tightened up their defense leaving the Hawks scoreless in the final frame and Derek Batiz- Lugo took over scoring the game winning 3 pointer and the game’s final 9 points.

Skyline bounced back into the win column, 66-47, on their most recent outing against Sherando with a balanced scoring attack that saw 5 players in double figures (Cameron Kerns 13 points, Day’Shawn Haley 12 points, Zayden Burks 12 points, Mark Jeffries 10 points, Bentley Frye 10 points).

Millbrook will look for their bounce back against Skyline after a tough loss at home to Handley.

Millbrook hung around with one of the favorites to win the VHSL Class 4 title before falling 63-55.

The Judges were without top scorer Will Braun-Duin, but Jaevon Brisco (20 points), Kyren Oglesby(16 points), and Christian Dinges (19 points) shouldered the load in his absence.

Fouls piled up on the Pioneers which led to Handley reaching the bonus in 3 of 4 quarters and they made it count shooting 17/22 from the line.

Coach Erick Green Sr.’s squad did not go quietly into the night and won the fourth quarter 20-14 behind senior leader Rylee Baker and sophomore spark plug Keanen Dennis.

The loss halted Millbrook’s second four game winning streak this season, but now the Pioneers will head back on the road where they have played incredibly well this season.

Seven of Millbrook’s eight wins have came on the road and all four games in the most recent winning streak came on the road with Baker silencing crowds across the region.

During that stretch, he averaged 26.8 points per game and each win came by 12+.

Baker will need a performance on pace with those outings to take out the Hawks Tuesday night and the game appears to be a matchup of a team with the best player on the floor vs the more balanced team.

Skyline’s team defense has improved lately and could be the difference to limit Baker and the Pioneers.

Millbrook should have an advantage on the glass due to their size, but Skyline’s athleticism will make that size a liability when attempting on-ball defense.

I look for Skyline’s balanced approach to help them hold on after a back-and-forth game, Hawks 67-Pioneers 65.

Click here for Josh Kirby’s interviews with tonight’s coaches Harold Chunn and Erick Green Sr.

The Duke’s Preview: Skyline vs Millbrook

Skyline heads to Millbrook tonight in the Dave’s Diversified Services Game of the Week on The River 95.3, Fox Sports Radio 1450, theriver953.com, and The River 95.3 app with pregame coverage starting at 6:30 pm for the 7 pm kick-off.

The Pioneers will look to end a two game losing skid while the Hawks have rebounded from losing their first three games to a three game win streak.

The game has all the makings of a high scoring affair where both team’s strengths appear to matchup with the other’s weaknesses.

Millbrook boasts a high flying passing attack led by one of the area’s top quarterbacks Keon Lewis.

Lewis leads the area in passing completions and attempts, but also interceptions with 7.

He has two dangerous receiving threats in Rome Johnson and Cam Clark who have combined for over 600 receiving yards and 6 touchdowns.

This duo could cause problems for a Skyline defense that has given up big games to some of the other top receivers in the area.

Handley’s Will Yoder put up 145 yards and 3 TDs on 9 receptions against the Hawks and Central wide outs Vincent Charity (6 rec 162 yds 3 TDs) and Sean Stead (4 rec 133 yds TD) had huge games two weeks ago in the 42-40 shootout Skyline win.

The Hawk’s offense has been able to take some pressure off the defense as their strength comes from the ground game led by Zayden Burks.

Burks is a dynamic back with breakaway speed and an array of moves to get into space.

He’s the only area back with over 1,000 rushing yards and is starting to distance himself from the pack.

Strasburg’s Quincy Williams is second with 813 yards then Central’s Chris Brown at 633.

Burks would be the first to tell you he couldn’t do it without his offensive line led by Sr. OT Barrett Stephens (6’3″ 260 lb.).

The junior back could run wild against the Pioneers who have given up chunk rushing plays in their two game losing skid.

Both Sherando and James Wood had huge days on the ground with JWHS QB Owen Neal rushing for 145 yards last week and Sherando’s combo of QB Jacob Henry and RB Jaylen Tasco-Murray helping the Warriors to 392 rushing yards.

As many high school games do, this one could come down to who makes the fewest mistakes as Skyline has had issues with penalties and Millbrook’s turnovers have loomed in losses.

I look for the Hawks to ride their current momentum and running game to another high scoring win,

Millbrook scores a late touchdown but the two point attempt comes up short, Skyline 40-Millbrook 38.

For a preview of all this week’s games, a look back at last week, and more, check out the latest Sports Dogs Podcast here.

The Duke’s Hoops Preview: Skyline vs Millbrook

Tonight tips-off our coverage of the High School Basketball Game of the Week on Fox Sports Radio 1450, theriver953.com, and The River 95.3 app with the Skyline Hawks hosting the Millbrook Pioneers (0-1) starting at 7:15 pm.

Skyline returns a ton of talent from last year’s roster including late season call-up Zayden Burks, Isaiah Maxwell (5.3 ppg), Andre Ford (7.3 ppg, 4.5 rpg), Ahsan Adul-Qasim(6.3 ppg), and First Team All-District and All-Region selection Dwayne Tucker (18 ppg, 9.8 rpg, 2.6 spg).

Tucker is also one of the area’s leading returners in points, steals, rebounds, and field-goal percentage.

The Hawks biggest losses came in guards Colby Wood and Caden Thorne, but will have Burks, Cole Logan and Dayshawn Haley ready to step up at their former roles.

Coach Harold Chunn’s squad utilized a fast paced style and aggressive defense to advance to the Regional Semifinals last year, before falling to James Monroe at home.

This is a team that plays at another level on their homecourt in recent years and has allowed only three home losses over the last two seasons: two playoff losses and one loss to Class 4 state title contender Handley.

Millbrook is continuing to shift the culture of their basketball program in the second year under the local-legend Erick Green Sr.

Coach Green wants his Pioneers to focus on a balanced, team approach and will be led by returning contributors Rylee Baker(51.5% 3p, 75% FT) and 6’4″ Shaun Rooks (8.7 ppg, 1 bpg).

Rooks and 6’4″ freshman Braylon Fauver will have their hands full Tuesday night with Skyline’s senior forward.

Tucker had a career night against the Pioneers last year totaling 27 points including an exclamation point of a dunk in the fourth quarter during the 88-74 win.

Skyline’s wealth of varsity experience will play a huge roll against a Millbrook team still finding itself after a 69-33 loss to Broad Run on Monday night.

I predict the Hawks soar to a win on opening night over the Pioneers, 74-66.

Check out the full list of upcoming games on Fox Sports Radio 1450, theriver953.com and The River 95.3 app with the schedule below!

The Duke’s Preview: Millbrook vs Handley ft Coach Smith

The Handley Judges (8-1) head down Route 7 to take on the Millbrook Pioneers (3-5) in the High School Football Game of the Week on The River 95.3, Fox Sports Radio 1450, and streaming on The River 95.3 app and theriver953.com with coverage starting at 6:30 pm for the 7 pm kick-off.

While Handley has a lot ahead of them including a looming showdown against Sherando with playoff seeding and the Apple Cup on the line, they can’t over look Millbrook.

When two Frederick County/Winchester teams matchup, the familiarity and hometown rivalry can overcome any perceived imbalance based on wins and losses.

Millbrook plays tough and physical football, but has been plagued by injuries this season and were missing 16 student-athletes against Sherando last week.

Most notably, the losses have came in the backfield with leading rushers Kyler Jackson and Cameron Clark missing multiple games this season.

Clark returned last week against the Warriors but was unable to finish the game.

The running game will be crucial to maintain possession of the ball and keep Handley’s high-powered offense off the field.

The Judges average 49.6 points per game without even playing the starters for the majority of second halves this season.

The backfield combination of senior running back Hassan Akanbi and freshman quarterback Triston Darling have taken the Valley by storm this season.

Akanbi averages 13 yards per carry and joined Skyline’s Zayden Burks as the lone running backs in the 1,000 yard club this season.

Darling and Akanbi both have reached the endzone 17 times a piece on the ground with Darling adding another 9 passing touchdowns to his total.

Handley’s explosive offense has allowed them to build leads quickly like the 49-0 advantage at halftime against Liberty last week.

If the Judges jump ahead of Millbrook early, the heavy rushing style of the Pioneers has had a difficult time overcoming leads.

Coach Jake Smith will have his team ready to avoid the “look ahead” game and set up a winner take all matchup with the Warriors next week, Judges 49-16.

To listen to my interview with Handley’s Coach Jake Smith, click here.

For a breakdown of all of this week’s games, a look back at last week, and much more, listen to the latest Sports Dogs Podcast here. 

The Duke’s Preview: Skyline vs Kettle Run ft Coach Heath Gilbert

UPDATE: Friday’s broadcast has been cancelled. Skyline and Kettle Run will play on Saturday at noon. The rescheduled game will not be broadcasted.

Skyline (1-2) welcomes Kettle Run (3-0) to Front Royal for Homecoming in Friday night’s Game of the Week on The River 95.3, Fox Sports Radio 1450, theriver953.com and The River 95.3 app with coverage starting at 6:30 pm for the 7 pm kick-off.

The Hawks are flying high after their first win of the season last week over Millbrook, 23-14.

Skyline jumped out to an early lead thanks to an 81 yard running back pass from Zayden Burks to Isiah Maxwell for a touchdown.

Those two playmakers and a solid defensive effort helped Skyline to a 23-0 advantage heading into the 4th quarter.

Burks finished with 188 yards rushing to go with his touchdown pass and Maxwell led the game in receiving with 156 yards and two touchdowns.

Millbrook’s fourth quarter rally was stalled thanks to a time consuming Skyline drive (see what I did there) that resulted in no points but took nearly 10 minutes off the clock.

Skyline’s offense was their best defense by keeping a Millbrook offense that entered the game averaging 39.7 ppg off the field and limited the Pioneers to just three first half drives.

That will need to be the recipe against Kettle Run who boasts a high-flying offense with a strong passing game and an All-State running back.

Kettle Run knocked off Skyline in the regular season and playoffs last year by a combined score of 103-13.

The first game saw the Hawks keep it close early on with a 7-0 score through the first quarter before Kettle Run’s offense got hot and never cooled off.

Skyline’s lone score in that game came via a botched snap to the punter recovered for a touchdown.

In the playoff matchup, the Cougars were without All-State running back Colton Quaker so Haydyn Bell stepped up and simply scored a school record 5 touchdowns on his own.

Quaker, Bell, and All Region QB Jacob Mulhern return for the Cougars who appear to have picked up where they left off last season, averaging 42 ppg and allowing just 16.3 ppg.

Skyline must jump on Kettle Run early and Coach Heath Gilbert and Co. will need to dig into their bag of tricks once again to get things started like they did against Millbrook.

Another potential equalizer could be tonight’s field conditions as the area has received substantial rain this week.

A chance of rain remains in the forecast for the duration of tonight’s game so maintaining possession of the football and a solid running game will be amplified.

Skyline will carry some momentum into tonight’s game coming after the win and with the fanfare of Homecoming week so I do anticipate a closer matchup than recent years.

Kettle Run’s depth and veteran talent will help them take home the victory on the road, 47-17.

To listen to my chat with Skyline Head Coach Heath Gilbert, click here.

To hear the latest Sports Dogs Podcast looking back at last week’s games and ahead to tonight’s action, click here.