Top Two DMV Teams Win Their Championships

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On a Sunday the top two teams in the DMV were playing championship matches. The number two team Annapolis Area Christian were going up against Maryvale Prep in the International Athletic Association of Maryland (IAAM) championships. Annapolis swept them earlier in the season. The number one team Bishop O'Connell was going up against the number four team Holy Cross in a Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) match. Earlier this season O'Connell had also swept Holy Cross. This time the two were dueled in championship matches. Noone said it would come easy.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">O'Connell Wins Fifth WCAC Championship</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1059219,"width":"744px","height":"auto","aspectRatio":"1.4008499885136687","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2026/11/DSC_0023.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1059219" style="aspect-ratio:1.4008499885136687;width:744px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">O'Connell celebration</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In their opening match of the season the Knights had beaten Holy Cross 25-14, 25-19, 25-17. That match was played without [player_tooltip player_id='536721' first='Ana' last='Woods'] hitting right side. This time Holy Cross appeared to have all their horses.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Despite that, the first set appeared to favor the Knights early as they jumped out to a 7-2 lead. Holy Cross fired right back with some dancing serves from <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='472384' first='Kate' last='Bickel']</strong>. That five point lead quickly vanished transforming into a 9-12 deficit forcing the Knights to call a time out. The Tartans held the lead to 20-16 late in the game but <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='755675' first='Charlotte' last='Nelson']</strong> whistled some tough serves over the net to put the Knights back in it. With the Knights up 24-23 WCAC MVP <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='385968' first='Macie' last='Murray']</strong> wiped a tight set at the net off the block to give O'Connell an unexpected 25-23 win.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Tartans took an early lead in set two with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='622282' first='Emerson' last='Wolfe']</strong> firing rockets from the front and back row. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='472384' first='Kate' last='Bickel']</strong> always seemed to be in the right spot to pop up explosive spikes by the Knights outsides. Middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1004682' first='Aniston' last='Williams']</strong> also rejected a couple spikes. Again, Holy Cross built a comfortable lead as the game went into double digits but a couple clutch kills from right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='750056' first='Kiera' last='Jordan']</strong> brought the Knights back. Frosh <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='753097' first='Nadia' last='Wooten']</strong> rifled some vicious top spin serves over the net for aces. Again, the Knights recaptured the lead 24-23. Holy Cross attempted to tie the match with a hard back court spike. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='755675' first='Charlotte' last='Nelson']</strong> let it pass and it travelled inches out to give the Knights a second 25-23 victory.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bishop O'Connell controlled most of set three. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='746506' first='Carolyn' last='Maria']</strong> generated a couple aces to put the Knights up 3-0. Holy Cross was able to pull up by one at 14-13 but then the quiet <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='488812' first='Olivia' last='Boggs']</strong> made some noise. In the first two sets Holy Cross limited her to just one kill. She lit up three kills in a short span and the Knights built up their lead again. With a 21-16 lead it became a side out game for O'Connell to win. Holy Cross won the serve back at 24-20. It would take a gigantic effort to capture this last set. The first serve floated softly high over the net. O'Connell chose to watch it as it fell just inches behind the line for a 25-20 win.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='385968' first='Macie' last='Murray']</strong> led the Knights in kills with 15. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='753097' first='Nadia' last='Wooten']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='750056' first='Kiera' last='Jordan']</strong> were close behind with 9 kills apiece. Setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='746506' first='Carolyn' last='Maria']</strong> led the team in digs with 13, creating a number of out of system setting opportunities for <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='755675' first='Charlotte' last='Nelson']</strong>. She picked up seven assists as well as 11 digs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Next up for the Knights is the Virginia Independent School Athletic Association (VISAA) championships. For the second time in school history the Knights will try to win both the WCAC and the VISAA. The only time they have done that was in 2024 when they beat Holy Cross in the WCAC finals in four, then won their last two sets to defeat Flint Hill in five.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Interesting note - there were six players from the Metro 15 travel team competing in this match. For Holy Cross they had <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='622282' first='Emerson' last='Wolfe']</strong> and middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1004682' first='Aniston' last='Williams']</strong>. For the Knights they carried setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='746506' first='Carolyn' last='Maria']</strong>, right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='750056' first='Kiera' last='Jordan']</strong>, Liberos <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='755675' first='Charlotte' last='Nelson']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='892024' first='Claire' last='Kennedy']</strong>. All told Metro travel found ten players competing in this match. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='536721' first='Ana' last='Woods']</strong> (Metro 16) for Holy Cross and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='753097' first='Nadia' last='Wooten']</strong> (Metro 14), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='612396' first='Natalie' last='Hobson']</strong> (Metro 16) and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='385968' first='Macie' last='Murray'] </strong>(Metro 17).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["750056"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6ae8c9496c48f"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Kiera sometimes finds heselrf overlooked hitting from the right side. Teams tend to focus on left sides <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='385968' first='Macie' last='Murray'] </strong>and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='753097' first='Nadia' last='Wooten']</strong>. Teams who can only put up one block against Kiera will find that ball bouncing on their side of the floor. She appears automatic against one person blocks.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There are two skills about Kiera that remain hidden because she does not see a lot of time in the back row. The first, because Bishop O'Connell and even Metro run 6/2's she does not get a lot of opportunity to attack in the back row. The second, she doesn't get to show off her serve.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>She did get the opportunity to play back row against St. Johns and was unstoppable. Her serves are bullets but she has a tendency to crash her serves into the net or sail them out of bounds. She had 5 aces, five service errors but scored 11 points with her 16 serves against St. Johns. Her back row spikes that rocketed over the net never returned.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Kiera has a quiet intensity to succeed. She is second on the Knights in blocking, second in hitting percentage at .403 and third in kills. At 6'1" she gets excellent arm extension. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1004682"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6ae8c9496c4c7"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Another player who fails to receive a lot of attention is Aniston. Playing middle, she does not get the same number of sets as left side [player_tooltip player_id='622282' first='Emerson' last='Wolfe'] or right side [player_tooltip player_id='536721' first='Ana' last='Woods']. However, when she gets her sets she puts the ball away.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At 6'0" with an approach jump of 10'2" she can get her hands high over the net to reject a number of attempted kills. She leads Holy Cross in blocks and sits in second place in hitting percentage.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='750056' first='Kiera' last='Jordan']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1004682' first='Aniston' last='Williams']</strong> are teammates at Metro 15. If they are side by side with the block I can't imagine how that ball gets over the net. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Annapolis Area Christian Sweep for their Second Consecutive IAAM Title</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1059403,"width":"749px","height":"auto","aspectRatio":"1.2132709908475925","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2026/11/IMG_5374.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1059403" style="aspect-ratio:1.2132709908475925;width:749px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Annapolis Area Christian</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The super frosh have now become super sophomores. As super frosh they had a nice season last year, losing only two matches, both at the Endless Summer tournament against Kellam and Georgetown Day. This year they have been unbeatable against local competition, sweeping all but two of their matches. Matches against Paul VI and Holy Cross went four. Before the season started Bishop O'Connell appeared on their schedule in a possible four team tournament. That tournament was cancelled because of scheduling issues. Their only three losses came against the 23rd ranked Corner Canyon (Utah), the 63rd ranked Newport Harbor (California) and Palos Verdes (California) at the Las Vegas Durango tournament. They currently rank 94th in the top 100 by Max Prep.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the IAAM playoffs they earned a bye then swept past Archbishop Spalding 25-11, 25-11, 25-8. As usual, [player_tooltip player_id='748513' first='Scarlett' last='Netherton'] led the way with her 16 kills. She also played a stellar defense with her 8 digs. That win put them into the championship match against Maryvale Prep.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Maryvale Prep had beaten Annapolis Area Christian in five sets in the IAAM championship in 2023. They repeated their championship in 2024 defeating St. Paul's Girls in the finals. Last year, with their super frosh Annapolis was able to sweep Maryvale in 2025. In a regular season match this year Annapolis swept Maryvale 25-10, 25-12, 25-10.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>However, in the first set of the championship match Maryvale showed some fight. With <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='547072' first='Victoria' last='Small']</strong> digging some hard driven spikes and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='764659' first='Sophia' last='Harari'] </strong>banging balls from the left side Maryvale made a game of it. Annapolis eventually won 25-22.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='748513' first='Scarlett' last='Netherton']</strong> stood out with her 12 kills while <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='762823' first='Brie' last='Mouton']</strong> won some jousting matches at the net giving Annapolis a run away second set win 25-11. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='781700' first='Gianna' last='Bonnett']</strong> played a solid back row while <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='545725' first='Abisola' last='Adeyemo']</strong> contributed to the offense with six kills and provided a presence at the net with her blocking. Maryvale again showed sone fight in the third set but came up short 25-21.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For Annapolis, their season is done. Now, the players can focus on travel ball. Many of them played for Metro National 15 last year. They will return to play for Metro National 16 this year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["781700"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6ae8ce2e1e720"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Another underappreciated back row players who fails to receive a lot of credit is [player_tooltip player_id='781700' first='Gianna' last='Bonnett']. She plays the role of defensive specialist for her club and her high school team. At our last showcase Prep Dig gave her the appreciation she deserves by naming her the MVP at our last Exposure event.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>She is such a solid back row player, making all the defensive plays while also being steady with her passing. Two liberos play ahead of her that are rated at the top of their class, [player_tooltip player_id='896390' first='Harper' last='Walker'] for Annapolis in the class of 2029 and [player_tooltip player_id='932773' first='Jemma' last='Peterson'] for BAVA who ranks as the top libero in the class of 2030. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Even though she does not play libero Gianna is ranked as the third highest back row player in the class of 2029 behind only [player_tooltip player_id='747458' first='Angelie' last='Rose Carrasco'], who recently earned Libero of the Year in the Cardinal District and [player_tooltip player_id='896390' first='Harper' last='Walker'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["764659"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6ae8ce2e1e74f"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Her 5'8" height might be considered undersized for an outside. She only ranks 136 in our class of 2027. But she gave Annapolis Area Christian a handful in their championship match.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jeremy raved about her in an evaluation last year. She leads Maryvale in kills. Those kills are not the result of her power but her savvy of knowing where to hit the open spots. She is also a solid six rotation player who can play a strong defense. Sophia sits second to [player_tooltip player_id='547072' first='Victoria' last='Small'] in digs while also filling an important role in serve receive.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sophia also leads the team in service aces. A strong six rotation player who brings the versatility to hit outside or play libero, if the need exists.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->