Second Ten High Schools to Watch in the DMV

Below are teams ranked 11-20 in the DMV area. Currently, these teams lack the perceived depth of those in the top ten. What they need is for a frosh to step up or for a player from the junior varsity to make a contribution. That may take some time as the younger players acclimate their way through the faster paced varsity game.    Arundel - The Wildcats made it to the finals in the Class 4 State championships last year but lost to Urbana. My understanding is they will drop from class 4 to 3. With many returning players they should be a powerhouse and a favorite to win the States at the lower class. The big loss appears to be their captain and setter Emily Liu. However, they return a number of offensive weapons with [player_tooltip player_id='309025' first='Payton' last='Swinton'] hitting right side and possibly setting. [player_tooltip player_id='319715' first='Deviana' last='Walker'] takes strong swings from the left side while the 6'1" [player_tooltip player_id='477413' first='Kiara' last='Harmon'] attacks the middle. [player_tooltip player_id='284195' first='Daisy' last='Pentorn'] set for Virginia Jrs. this past club season and stands ready to take over the setting duties for at least three rotations. The Wildcats have a strong libero in [player_tooltip player_id='434861' first='Bailey' last='Swinton']. Lots of Maryland Jrs. influence on this team.   Millbrook - Their biggest loss is their setter and District MVP Madison Koeller. Despite her presence on the court last year they still fell short of James Wood, who won the District and Class 4 state championship. The listed setters are frosh [player_tooltip player_id='451960' first='Paisley' last='Cook'] and sophomore Alivia Knotts. Libero [player_tooltip player_id='218149' first='Giselle' last='Norris'] will take the year off and another frosh [player_tooltip player_id='437980' first='Katherine' last='Madden'] will be tasked to replace her. Returning are some potent offensive weapons in pins Grace Behneke and [player_tooltip player_id='243771' first='Berkeley' last='Konrady']. Another frosh [player_tooltip player_id='435748' first='Aaliyah' last='Green'] will also provide offensive output from the pins. The key to the Pioneer's success lies with how the frosh adapt to the faster pace of varsity ball. It appears to be a rebuilding year for the Pioneers, with enough returning players to make the second ten.    Battlefield - Last year Battlefield won the Cedar Run District with an impressive 13-1 record. They bring back a full contingent of players from that season so expect a rise in this ranking. Their 6'2" middle senior [player_tooltip player_id='182776' first='Brianna' last='Clay'] stands out as the offensive force for this team. Don't discount 5'7" outside [player_tooltip player_id='235275' first='Grace' last='Bianchi']. She dd not get mentioned much over the club season because she focused on beach. Another smaller outside who hopes to contribute to the offense is [player_tooltip player_id='235276' first='Taelin' last='Connolley']. [player_tooltip player_id='235279' first='Melorra' last='Arthur'] and [player_tooltip player_id='235278' first='Aava' last='Shingler'] will take care of the setting duties while Jaelle Hinkle returns as the libero. Those are six seniors who will provide veteran leadership. The lone non senior, junior [player_tooltip player_id='181311' first='Skyler' last='Tennant'] should contribute to the pin and back row play. Never underestimate a starting rotation filled with senior players.    Woodson - The Cavaliers also bring back a veteran roster and are my favorites to win the Patriot Division. The 6 foot pin hitter [player_tooltip player_id='233000' first='Maura' last='Fay'] can play both right and left side depending on the need. They picked up senior libero transfer [player_tooltip player_id='338991' first='Eve' last='McLaury'] from Colorado. She played defensive specialist/libero for Metro 17 and stands close to 6 feet, probably the tallest libero in the DMV. The Cavaliers will rely on senior [player_tooltip player_id='469251' first='Nora' last='Gilmer'] to set in the front row to take advantage of her 6 foot height and bring in sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='204152' first='Sofie' last='Ferrell'] to set in the back row.   The biggest offensive piece may fall on the shoulders of sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='210539' first='Emma' last='Gardner'] who last year as a frosh ranked number two on the team in kills. Her game has gotten much better since. The defense looks especially strong with the return of [player_tooltip player_id='233014' first='Stella' last='Gilligan'], the libero last year and defensive specialist [player_tooltip player_id='238862' first='Livia' last='Lee']. Stella focused on the beach last year and will bring her senior leadership to the back row. Livia brings hustle and a good serve to the floor. Senior Sabina Niedrick will fill many roles on the floor, but one of her most important may be as team captain. In their opener yesterday they destroyed South Lakes, so this rank may be too low. The big challenge will be finding playing time for the 20 or so players who fill their roster.    Bullis - The Bulldogs play in the Independent Schools League (ISL) with Flint Hill and Georgetown Day. They may have the most talked about player in the 6'4" [player_tooltip player_id='181300' first='Alexis' last='Ewing'], daughter of Patrick Ewing. She showed a lot of improvement in her game playing club, including seeing a lot of back row play and building confidence in her game. It remains a young team that should improve as the season progresses, led by sophomore setter [player_tooltip player_id='206729' first='Megan' last='Phan']. Their most consistent hitter last year may have been right side [player_tooltip player_id='181235' first='Sydney' last='Mayfield']. Libero [player_tooltip player_id='184604' first='Nia' last='Thomas'] will make sure the offense gets off on the right track with her passing and defense. The 6'1" middle [player_tooltip player_id='413080' first='Kyla' last='Harris'] will also contribute to the offense. A number of Virginia club players commuting to Maryland to play for the Bulldogs.    Urbana - Last year they defeated Arundel for the Class 4A state championships. They did lose a number of key offensive pieces in middle Logan Burge and outside Claire Thompson. They also lost libero Julia Gustafson and setter Sofia Rodriguez. Time to reload. Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='321677' first='Charis' last='Burge'] (not on roster/possible transfer to Bullis) should combine with her sister [player_tooltip player_id='478953' first='Kaelynn' last='Burge'] to take over the setter responsibilities. The 5'10" Charis was also one of their top hitters last year so she should fill a right side role as well. Expect [player_tooltip player_id='321679' first='Simone' last='Assasie'] and [player_tooltip player_id='346736' first='Ava' last='Hinnant'] to provide a presence in the middle.    St. Johns - This will be a young team that can cause some damage. The two outsides, [player_tooltip player_id='235283' first='Racquel' last='Frazier'] and [player_tooltip player_id='238356' first='Morgan' last='Reeves'] hit the ball hard. Last year the two played just three rotations, replaced by the libero in the back row. Morgan played six rotations in club ball, showing potent offensive potential hitting from the back row. The two young setters [player_tooltip player_id='221032' first='Wynn' last='Eaton'] and [player_tooltip player_id='235322' first='Avery' last='Prendergast'] return. Last year the two rotated setting a 5/1. This year they may share a 6/2. The two most difficult players they need to replace on the roster are middle Pam McCune, who played six rotations and libero Maya Reeves. The 5'10 Emilie Jabbour will fill one of the middle slots. The libero position will be determined from practices and scrimmages.    Freedom - They lost their big hitter from last year in Emma Kerwin. She ended up with twice as many kills as her closest teammate. They do return middle [player_tooltip player_id='235284' first='Caitlin' last='Johnson'], who stands 6'4" and finished second on the team in kills last year. To set the middle you need good passing and they also lost their libero Payton Dejean. They will rely on libero [player_tooltip player_id='428533' first='Isabel' last='Morales'] to fill that role. [player_tooltip player_id='470561' first='Grace' last='Francis'] hopes to fill the outside responsibilities, with help from right side [player_tooltip player_id='352832' first='Kiley' last='Robinette']. [player_tooltip player_id='241010' first='Gwyneth' last='Vu'] will provide a veteran presence at the setting position.    Independence - They return a number of key pieces from last year, including setter [player_tooltip player_id='235327' first='Jenna' last='Hathaway'] and outside [player_tooltip player_id='235296' first='Makenzie' last='Dvorznak']. Last year the 5'10" Jenna hit right side but she may return to her setting role while still bringing some offense to the right side. The biggest new roster piece may be frosh [player_tooltip player_id='290176' first='Kieran' last='Rhoton'] (pictured above), who adds some big time offense to the pins. Another frosh [player_tooltip player_id='471485' first='Kaelyn' last='Wharton'] may help with the setting. Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='240901' first='Maddy' last='Klees'] remains another option at setter. At 5'11" she can also fill a role as a middle.    Colgan - They have a number of unknowns after the loss of setter Alexis Scipione and their 6'4" middle Brielle Kemavor. They will miss the leadership of Alexis and the dominating presence at the net with Brielle. A key returnee is 6'0" outside [player_tooltip player_id='209790' first='Aubrey' last='Hatch'], who will be relied on to be more of an offensive presence for the team this year. Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='238593' first='Tehillah' last='Garrison'] will be expected to contribute more at the pins. At 5'9" she did not get an opportunity to play a lot of outside for a tall and talented Metro 15 team. [player_tooltip player_id='207594' first='Paula' last='Sigurani'] brings a strong libero presence that can keep the team in system. [player_tooltip player_id='333653' first='Elizabeth' last='York'] and [player_tooltip player_id='388777' first='Jordan' last='Miller'] are expected to take over the middle positions. Finding a setter to take over the offense will be a key piece.   On the bubble are James Madison, North Hagerstown, Glenelg, Briar Woods, Loudoun County and Alexandria City.   Chesapeake Chirps: Some big games played Monday. Langley swept past Lake Braddock, Madison did the same to Yorktown and ditto for Chantilly over Washington Liberty. James Woods won in four over Dominion with [player_tooltip player_id='181302' first='Kennedy' last='Spaid'] leading the team in kills with 14. [player_tooltip player_id='181280' first='Brenna' last='Corbin'] with her 18 digs appears to be filling the libero role and [player_tooltip player_id='180282' first='Paige' last='Ahakuelo'] went to town with eight aces....Some big five set wins on Tuesday with Covenant over Albemarle, Hanover over Powhatan, George Marshal over Oakton and Briar Woods over Loudoun County. Riverside swept Battlefield.

Below are teams ranked 11-20 in the DMV area. Currently, these teams lack the perceived depth of those in the top ten. What they need is for a frosh to step up or for a player from the junior varsity to make a contribution. That may take some time as the younger players acclimate their way through the faster paced varsity game.