The Briar Woods Falcons faced some tense moments down the stretch in their Virginia AA Division 4 state football championship game against Christiansburg Dec. 10 at Liberty University’s Williams Stadium in Lynchburg.

But like they have so many times during their magical run to consecutive state championships, the Falcons came through when it mattered most in a 28-26 victory over the Blue Demons.

Trailing 28-13 with less than four minutes remaining, Christiansburg scored a pair of touchdowns in less than two minutes to pull within two points of the Falcon lead.

That would be as close as the Blue Demons would get. Briar Woods junior Mike Barta intercepted a potential tying two-point conversion pass attempt, junior Matt Rolin recovered the ensuing onside kick and junior Cory Colder broke a couple of arm tackles on his way to a 17-yard run to net the Falcons a first down and allow them to run the final seconds off the clock for a hard-fought victory.

The victory gives the Falcons (14-1) their second straight state championship, becoming just the second Loudoun football team to accomplish the rare feat - Broad Run won back-to-back titles in 2008 and 2009. A Dulles District school has now won state football championships each of the last four years and a team from Ashburn has won state titles each of the last five years - Stone Bridge won the Division 5 crown in 2007.

“This one means a lot,” Briar Woods coach Charlie Pierce said. “The bull’s-eye was on these young men’s back for the whole year and they played to the best of their ability and they worked hard. This is a sweet state championship. I could not be more proud of our young men.”

Similar to last year’s 41-21 state final win over Harrisonburg, the Falcons overcame an early deficit to win Saturday. Sophomore QB Trace McSorley connected with senior Alex Carter and junior JT Logan on touchdown passes in the first half to give Briar Woods the lead for good.

McSorley, who improved to 27-3 as a starter in two varsity seasons, finished 10 of 20 for 124 yards.

“It’s probably like the best blessing in the world for me,” McSorley said of winning state titles in each of his first two seasons.

Junior Cory Colder - aided by a line that Pierce said has the “best communication by an offensive line that I’ve ever coached” - was the Falcons’ workhorse in the win. Colder carried the ball 27 times for 188 yards and a touchdown.

“We thought Cory had a tremendous amount of talent,” Pierce said. “We were just waiting for Cory to step up and assume that role.”

Colder lost a fumble early in the second quarter after taking a big hit from Christiansburg standout Brendon Motley, a defensive back/quarterback who is committed to play for Virginia Tech.

“Motley put a big hit on me and my whole arm went numb,” Colder said. “I didn’t know what the heck happened.”

Undaunted, Colder came back in a big way in the second half. He broke loose for a 33-yard touchdown run on the first series of the third quarter, and then helped set up Logan’s 1-yard scoring run on the next drive with four carries for 26 yards.

“The adrenaline kept going so I just kept fighting,” Colder said of playing through the pain. “I knew I couldn’t give up now being in the state championship. I had 24 minutes left in me.”

Logan’s second touchdown of the game, followed by senior David Clement’s fourth extra point extended the Falcons lead to 28-13 with 3:48 left in the third quarter. The advantage would have been even greater if not for a fluke play to close the first half.

With the benefit of an extra play after the game clock failed to start on time on the previous play, Motley heaved a long pass downfield that Carter went up to intercept around the 25-yard line. Instead, Carter was hit as he tried to haul it in and the ball popped up into the air and found Blue Demons receiver Kevin Thompson in stride, who raced into the end zone for a 69-yard touchdown.

Asked about the mood in the locker room after the play, Pierce said, “We just reassured them that the play is over. We have to move forward. The third quarter has always been good to us. The guys stepped up.”

The Falcons did just that with the consecutive scoring drives to open the second half. But Region IV champions Christiansburg would not go down quietly.

The Blue Demons (12-2) drove 75 yards on 15 plays on their first possession of the fourth quarter to pull within 28-20 with 3:42 left. On the next series, Motley intercepted McSorley and showed off his athleticism on a 36-yard return to set his offense up at the Falcon 17-yard line.

One play later, Joey Augustin found an opening around the left side and scored from 11-yards out to bring Christiansburg within a successful two-point conversion of tying the game.

On the conversion try, Motley rolled out to his left where he faced heavy pressure from Falcon senior Justin Baker. Motley’s hurried pass was intercepted by Barta in the end zone and Briar Woods held on to a 28-26 lead.

“All year, we’ve prided ourselves on our defense,” said Baker, a James Madison commit who led the Falcons with 10 tackles. “It just amazes me how we always come through. We stopped them when we needed to stop them. We bend but we don’t break.”

With only one timeout remaining, the Blue Demons attempted an onside kick that was secured by Rolin - a standout linebacker who recently gained a scholarship offer from Boston College. Rolin was drilled upon catching the kick but held on and the Falcons took over on offense.

Colder proceeded to ice the game with his physical 17-yard run on third down, and the Falcons took a knee on the next play to run the remaining seconds off the game clock and begin the celebration.

Carter - a Stanford commit who was recently named the Gatorade Virginia State Player of the Year - said this year’s title holds more meaning to him.

“It’s my senior year and like coach said, the target has been on our back since we won last year. Every single game, every moment has been meaningful to me. To be able to win tonight, words can’t describe how happy I am. This is my last time being with these guys. It’s bittersweet. I’m happy we won, but I’m sad this is my last time being able to play with my teammates.”

“The fact that we won back-to-back championships with these guys is a special accomplishment,” Pierce said of his senior class. “Since the end of the 2009 season, the leadership at Briar Woods has been second to none and that’s why we are where we are right now.”

For McSorley and the rest of the underclassmen, the goal remains the same next season.

“We can be satisfied for this year but once next year comes around ... it’s right back to it,” McSorley said. “The next goal is to come right back here and win another state championship.”

Briar Woods 28, Christiansburg 26

-First Quarter
C: Snell 73 run (kick failed) 5:51
BW: Carter 16 pass from McSorley (Clements kick) 0:05

-Second Quarter
BW: Logan 2 pass from McSorley (Clements kick) 0:08
C: Thompson 69 pass from Motley (Hamley kick) 0:00

-Third Quarter
BW: Colder 33 run (Clements kick) 9:15
BW: Logan 1 run (Clements kick) 3:48

-Fourth Quarter
C: Snell 4 run (Hamley kick) 3:42
C: Augustin 11 run (pass failed) 2:04

Briar Woods stat leaders

-Rushing: Colder (27 for 188 yards, TD), Cashman (2 for 30 yards), Carter (4 for 21 yards)

-Passing: McSorley (10 of 20 for 124 yards, 2 TD, Int.)

-Receiving: Carter (2 for 39 yards, TD), Gadsden (3 for 32 yards), Ramos (2 for 29 yards), Serigne (2 for 22 yards)

-Tackles: Baker (10), Rolin (9), Carter (7), Barta (6), Owens (5), Rizzardi (5)

-Sacks: Germany (1), Owens (1), Baker (.5), Rolin (.5)