Whenever the boys lacrosse teams from Robinson and W.T. Woodson meet, it's an event. This past Saturday was no different, as dedicated fans that braved weather better suited for football watched the Cavaliers knock off the visiting Rams, 12-8.

Woodson senior Reed Smollar scored seven goals and dished out two assists as the Cavaliers broke open a game that was tied at 4 early in the second quarter. After getting the assist on senior midfielder Adam Tinklepaugh's goal that put Woodson up, 5-4, Smollar scored his team's next five goals and the Cavaliers led, 10-6, heading into the fourth quarter.

Robinson never trimmed the deficit under four from that point on, and the Cavaliers earned a win over the defending Northern Region and unofficial state champions.

Because of inclement weather prior to spring break, Saturday was the season opener for the Rams. The loss was just their second in two seasons to a public school team and Woodson is responsible for both. Woodson (2-1), has now beaten Oakton and Robinson, two teams many feel are region title contenders. The Cavaliers' lone loss is to Port Washington (N.Y.).

``I wasn't surprised that we lacked some composure," Robinson coach Tom Tufts said of his team's performance. ``Certainly, it would have been nice to have put some more things together. There were key times when we had wide-open situations where we just overthrew the ball. We just didn't catch and throw well. And [Woodson] is an excellent team. They've got a couple of games under their belt and this is our first time out so we'd like to get a couple more looks and see how we can put things together."

Last year, the Cavaliers, who at the time were the defending region champs, topped Robinson in their regular season meeting. But the Rams went on to win region and state titles and Woodson lost in the region quarterfinals to Madison, the Cavaliers' earliest tournament exit since 1994.

The year before, Robinson beat Woodson during the regular season. But the Cavaliers beat the Rams in the region final before securing the state title.

See a trend developing here?

Robinson and Woodson have clearly established themselves as the elite programs in Northern Virginia, having combined to win nine of the last 10 region titles. They have reached such heights using a similar formula: continuity in the coaching staff, attracting multi-sport athletes and reaping the benefits of a strong feeder program.

``Historically, this is the greatest rivalry in the history of Northern Region lacrosse," Woodson coach Jon FitzGerald said.

FitzGerald and Tufts have held their current positions for 15 and 12 years, respectively, and deserve much of the credit for the success their teams have enjoyed.

``Coach FitzGerald has been at Woodson a long time," Tufts said when asked why Woodson and Robinson have dominated the region over the last decade. ``And we've had a great support group at Robinson, with the parents groups and feeder programs and that type of thing."

FitzGerald, who played for Tufts on an Alexandria Club team after graduating from college, echoed his former coach's sentiments.

``Coach Tufts and I are just committed to our programs," FitzGerald said. ``We work hard getting athletes out and I think a lot of the other programs have had a lot of changes among the coaches."

Robinson and Woodson also benefit from a strong youth program in Braddock Road Lacrosse, which feeds both schools. No high school program in the area is consistently successful without a strong feeder program. Besides serving as a skills base for many of the players, Braddock Road Lacrosse has also intensified the rivalry between the Rams and Cavaliers because many of the players were teammates as youngsters.

``I played with a bunch of Robinson guys in Braddock Road," Woodson senior midfielder Stevie Solomon said. ``It makes it more fun playing against your friends."

In some cases, the Rams and Cavaliers are re-united at the college level. Jay Horowitz and Wes Speaks, Woodson and Robinson graduates, respectively, are currently senior co-captains for Towson University.

Both Robinson and Woodson also do an excellent job of attracting athletes from other sports. Six of Robinson's starters on Saturday were members of the Rams' Group AAA title winning football team this past fall, including quarterback Brian Gulley and All-Journal Defensive Player of the Year Adam Fassnacht.

``The feeder program has a good impact," FitzGerald said. ``But what both Robinson and Woodson do is work hard on getting ninth-grade athletes out, even those who haven't played lacrosse, especially football players. It's great to have feeder programs, but I have two or three starters on my team now that didn't pick up a stick until ninth grade. So it's a combination of getting good athletes out at the ninth-grade level and the feeder program obviously helps as well."

The standards these teams have set for themselves also breed success. Neither coach left the field Saturday particularly pleased. Despite the win, FitzGerald lamented about what has been an uneven start to the season.

``We've been struggling since the first practice," FitzGerald said. ``We're trying to find who our leaders are. [Against Robinson], we had several people step up and Reed Smollar was one of them. But we've been like this big monster without a head for the first five or six weeks and we're still searching for an identity.

``It was the first game for Robinson and I'm sure they'll get better. But we need to get a lot better as well."

The odds are that by the end of the season, Robinson and Woodson will both be good enough to have shot at making it a combined 10 region titles in 11 years.