Herndon, South Lakes Come From Different Places In This Year’s Baron Cameron Bowl

By BRIAN McNICOLL

What a difference a year makes.

Last year, when South Lakes met Herndon for the Baron Cameron Bowl, the Seahawks came in 2-2 after a 40-16 victory over Mount Vernon, but they were still trying on roles and sorting out things on offense.

Herndon came in 3-1 on the season with a senior-laden team led by a big, physical running back in Brayden Humphries whom the Seahawks simply could not tackle for much of the day. The Hornets had seniors at quarterback and nearly every skill position. They had won a playoff game the previous season for the first time in 38 years, and they were primed for another postseason run.

Humphreys ended up with 161 yards and two long touchdown runs in the Hornets’ 26-14 victory in a game that turned on a failed onside kick by South Lakes.

This year, South Lakes is again relying on underclassmen to come through, but the Seahawks are 3-1 with one near-miss on the road against state title contender Battlefield, and it is the Hornets “still trying to find an identity on offense,” according to South Lakes Coach Jason Hescock – and still trying to find their first victory.

Herndon has lost 14-8 to Tuscarora, 48-7 to Langley, 18-6 to Chantilly and 20-10 to Briar Woods. South Lakes has defeated Yorktown 29-28, Robinson 24-7 and West Potomac 28-13 and lost to Battlefield, 20-14, on a stunning late kickoff return.

A wounded Herndon team looking to not only retain the Baron Cameron Cup but to maintain its lead in the overall series, which is now 14-13 in its favor, poses a dangerous threat to South Lakes, Hescock said.

“They still have speed. They still have a good running back. They have two quarterbacks who do different things for them, so you have to watch that. But more importantly, we have to play to our potential. We have tended to play to our competition – strong against good teams and not as strong against teams we had the advantage over. We had a lot to clean up after Robinson and even more after West Potomac. But we’ve had the bye and we’re healthy and ready to go.”

Hescock said Joey Kister, Andrew Hodson and Michael Baxter are back healthy the bye week and that the rest of the team was relatively injury free. He’s hoping it’s time for the Seahawks to break through. “Every week we find a way, but we’re not dominating. It’s time to dominate.”

Senior running back Dalton Blakeney, one of two Seahawks to have played extensively when South Lakes last defeated Herndon in 2023, said he expects the Seahawks to do just that on Saturday. “We’re going to run the ball,” said Blakeney, who has averaged 21 carries per game. “We’re focusing on one kind of run, and I think it’ll be a high-scoring game for us if we make it work. Our offensive line has been incredible … much better chemistry this year. Everyone working together. I’m looking forward to it.”

Just as the calendar has turned to October, the schedule has reached the heart of the matter. After the backyard brawl with Herndon – “No extra motivation is ever needed for this game,” Hescock said – Concorde District play begins. Chantilly, which beat South Lakes on the last play of the game last year, comes first, followed by Oakton, which won in overtime when a South Lakes extra point hit the upright, follows, then Centreville, Madison and Westfield.

Again, not an easy game in the bunch, Hescock said. “Chantilly whipped up on Herndon, so it’ll be a good gauge for us in playing a common opponent,” he said. “But we can’t look past Herndon. Herndon will play extremely hard. They’ll give us everything they have. But we want to get our Cup back, and this is our chance.”