Gaithersburg Athletes Ready For State Tournaments

With the end of the school year comes playoffs for Montgomery County's spring athletes, and teams from , have earned high seeds in the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association's softball, lacrosse and baseball state championship tournaments.

Softball

The MPSSAA softball tournament begins Thursday, May 10, and the top-seeded Gaithersburg school is Gaithersburg High School. As the No. 4 seed in the Montgomery 4A West region, the Trojans open at home against No. 13 Bethesda-Chevy Chase.

Quince Orchard is seeded No. 12 in the Montgomery 4A West region and will travel to No. 5 Walt Whitman for its first round matchup. If Gaithersburg and QO advance to the second round, the schools will meet at Gaithersburg on Monday, March 14 in the regional quarterfinals.

Girl's Lacrosse

The MPSSAA girl's lacrosse tournament begins Wednesday night, but not for top-seeded Quince Orchard. The Cougar girls earned the 4A-3A North region's No. 1 seed and a first round bye. They will meet the winner of No. 8 Clarksburg and No. 9 Richard Montgomery on Friday, May 11 in the regional quarterfinals.

QO coach Jennifer Holliday told The Gazette she believes her team was motivated by a three-game losing streak to open the season.

“I think the three losses to start the year [against Urbana, Poolesville and Wootton] were really good for the girls,” she told The Gazette. “I don't think we would be as good as we are now because they realized what they needed to do.”

Like QO, Watkins Mill also avoided a first round matchup by virtue of its No. 3 seed in the region. Watkins Mill will face the winner of No. 6 Urbana and No. 11 Linganore on Friday.

The Gaithersburg girls earned the 4A-3A North region's No. 7 seed and host No. 10 Northwest at 4 p.m. Wednesday. 

Boy's Lacrosse

Also opening Wednesday, the MPSSAA boy's lacrosse tournament committee didn't think highly of the three Gaithersburg-area schools.

The highest-ranked of the three 4A-3A North region schools, No. 9 Gaithersburg opens on the road against No. 8 Thomas Johnson.

No. 11 Quince Orchard travels to No. 6 Magruder and No. 12 Watkins Mill faces No. 5 Richard Montgomery. 

Baseball

Although the MPSSAA baseball tournament bracket has not been released, The Gazette pegged Quince Orchard as a Montgomery 4A West region favorite and Gaithersburg as a dark horse.