<b>Laiti a Hokie</b>
Despite leading the Robinson football team in tackles for the past two seasons, the decision that soon-to-be senior Brian Laiti brought to the ground most recently has the talented player feeling pretty good about the 2009 fall season.
On Friday morning, July 17, Laiti committed to play football at Virginia Tech in 2010, a choice that Laiti said would allow him to focus on offseason workouts and his senior season with the Rams.
“It feels really good because now I can just focus on lifting and getting ready for my senior season,” Laiti said. “That’s all I really care about right now.”
Laiti was a second team All-Northern Region selection for Robinson (5-5) last fall, posting a team-best 143 tackles and five sacks. A 6-foot-3 1/2, 210-pound outside linebacker, Laiti was one of the area’s most sought-after recruits before he committed to Tech.
In making his decision, Laiti cited the tradition at Virginia Tech, along with the consistently strong defense that has been a hallmark under head coach Frank Beamer. Laiti picked Virginia Tech from a list that included Maryland, West Virginia, Boston College and Syracuse.
“Virginia Tech is the best fit for me,” Laiti said. “It’s my future, and I just went with it.”
<b>Dehghani Medals</b>
Mehdi Dehghani of Burke earned medals at both the 2009 American Athletic Union (AAU) Taekwondo Championships in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. and the 2009 USA Taekwondo (USAT) Senior National Taekwondo Championships in Austin, Texas. The AAU event was June 28-July 2, the USAT competition June 29-July 5. Dehghani, 18, is a student at Phan University of Martial Arts in Burke and a 2009 Lake Braddock graduate. He’ll attend Virginia Commonwealth University this fall. Dehghani, a co-captain for Team MOOTO USA, placed in the top four in his weight category, ensuring a spot at the 2009 Team Trial Fight-Offs. In addition to winning three bronze medals in 2008, Dehghani won gold at the 2008 and 2009 Virginia State Qualifiers.
<b>Robinson Represented</b>
The USA Track and Field Region III Championships took place July 9-12 at Prince George’s Sports and Learning Center in Landover, Md., and three Robinson athletes performed well enough to qualify for the Junior Olympic Championships July 28-Aug. 2 in Greensboro, N.C. Joey Muzzio placed first in the intermediate boys’ high jump by clearing 6 feet, 4 3/4 inches. Erica Denham was second in the midget girls’ 1,500-meter run, finishing with a time of 5 minutes, 29.20 seconds. Genamarie McCant ran on two successful relay teams. Her 4x400 team took first with a time of 3:49.09, while the 4x100 squad was third at 47.98.