STARTERS
G. Julian Rivera, Highland–In a long, successful season like Highland’s, having a resilient, tough, do-it-all guard like Rivera paid serious dividends. Rivera often is considered a defense-oriented, pass-first point guard, and his passing and defensive skills certainly stood out most for Highland. Teams that gave Rivera too much space quickly found out how he could torch them on offense, however. In several big Hawks wins, the 6’1″ guard delivered key buckets in spurts when his team needed him to.
G. Chance Perkins, Highland–Perkins has been an exciting player over the years in Northern Virginia and we will be sorry to see him go. A fearless combo guard, Perkins is simply a baller. This season he delivered instant offense in a hurry, often from beyond the arc with his quick-release jumper. Perkins also once again did some good work defensively, frustrating opponents with his footwork and quick hands. Perkins will play at Grambling next season.
F. Riley Jacobs, St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes–Jacobs improved steadily throughout his high school career, and this season the forward’s hard work paid off as he went from a very good to a dominant player. The All-IAC selection averaged 18 points per game and 10 rebounds a game. He went for 25 points and 13 boards in a playoff victory over Blue Ridge, which sent the Saints to the VISAA Division I Final Four. Though his interior offense was valuable, so was his defense, as Jacobs protected the paint about as well as anyone. He’ll play at UMBC next season.
F. Jaquan Womack, Paul VI–It was appropriate that the PVI wing ended his career as the winningest Panther in program history. Womack was exactly that, a winner. The 6’7″ wing received Second Team All-WCAC honors this year, but easily could have been a first team choice. An efficient scorer, Womack provided key buckets throughout the year both on the drive and from long-range. A good defender and team-player, he will play at Towson next season.
F. Nate Ament, Highland–The rise of one of the most heralded Northern Virginia recruits in years is complete. We saw the potential in Ament years ago, but can’t say we saw him as a possible #1 overall NBA Draft pick in 2026, which is what some people say now. That’s how good Ament is. The 6’9″ forward is a good ball-handler with a spotless jumper, and the physicality to fight anyone inside. He headed an amazing senior Hawks class that also included Jeremiah Gorham and Josh Hamilton, who also deserve to be on this team. He’ll play at Tennessee next season.
RESERVES
G-F. Shane Lincoln–Lincoln garnered a lot of respect around the area this season. In the WCAC he was a second team selection. The 6’5″ Lincoln scored a good amount, using his length, speed, and solid footwork to attack the rim both in transition and the half court. The thing we really liked was his defense. Providing several key blocks and steals at big moments, Lincoln helped O’Connell a ton with his toughness and physicality. His versatility and rebounding allowed the Knights to vary their lineups considerably.
F. Colin Pollock, Saint Stephen’s & St. Agnes–The Saints this year were blessed with not just one, but two frontcourt standouts. Pollock, like Jacobs, was also a double-double machine. If one got into foul trouble, the other was there to pick up the slack. Pollock has always been good, but the 6’9″ wing has gotten stronger and more consistent. He scored a career-high 29 points in a game late in the season, and when his outside shot is falling he’s flashed dominance. Pollock does a ton of things well and he’ll play at Navy next season.
G. Kobe Davis, Flint Hill–Flint Hill was loaded with talented backcourt players this season, but when the Huskies were missing Kobe Davis it really showed. Davis, a 6’2″ guard, was voted First Team All-MAC in his final high school season. He’s a physical warrior capable of simply powering the ball away from weaker guards. His offense is often sparked by his physical defense, though he has a good half-court offensive game as well on the drive and beyond the arc. Even in tough Flint Hill losses to Sidwell Friends and STAB in the postseason, Davis hit for 20 or more in both of those games.
G. Jack Loyd, Flint Hill–As good as Davis could be, the Huskies often called Jack Loyd’s number when they needed a bucket late. The tall shooting guard, also First Team All-MAC, could be very hard to handle coming off of his teammates’ physical screens. Very good at shooting in the air and in rhythm from anywhere, Loyd is a very good long-range shooter. When he gets hot, like when he scored 28 in a win over Sidwell, he could carry the Huskies. Excellent at getting low and an underrated dribbler, Loyd will be missed next season in Oakton.
G. Jackson Britt, Evergreen Christian–Britt really enhanced his reputation this year with a ton of good games for Evergreen Christian. In one road win versus Virginia Academy Britt was the hero, sinking the Patriots on a dramatic last-second drive. Earlier in the season, the 6’3″ combo guard delivered a triple-double in a win against those same Patriots. A good ball-handler and shooter, Britt is tenacious on defense as well. We loved how active he was on the boards, too. Britt will play next season at Eckerd College.
F. Adlan Elamin, Paul VI–Elamin was a big factor for the Panthers this season. A “three-and-D” next-level prospect headed to Utah State next season, Elamin certainly did a good job on defense this season protecting the paint and locking up opponents on the perimeter. At 6’8″ plus, few could bother Elamin’s shot from long-rage, either. A starter for the Panthers, he rarely had eye-popping offensive games, but he delivered as needed. In the WCAC Championship game he was held scoreless–until two clutch free throws late to ice things.
G. Aiden Caulker, O’Connell–You could pretty much put several more Knights seniors on this team (Liam Koelsch, Wyatt Norton, Matt Dalton), but we went with Caulker here. O’Connell turned over a lot of its roster in the offseason, but retained Caulker, which helped a lot with the transition. We like Caulker first because he’s tough defensively, able to guard quick perimeter standouts and bang down low if needed. A 6’4″-plus guard, he’s all over the passing lanes. The Honorable Mention WCAC selection is also fairly efficient from long-range on offense.
HONORABLE MENTION
David Neaves (Christ Chapel); Luke Vander Woude (Seton); Gavin Enriquez (John Paul the Great); Wyatt Norton (O’Connell); Liam Koelsch (O’Connell); Matt Dalton (O’Connell); Josh Hamilton (Highland); Jeremiah Gorham (Highland); Davian King (Episcopal), Eugene Schneeberg (Potomac School), Caleb West (Flint Hill); Everett Jones (Flint Hill); Kendall Jones (Flint Hill); Matthew McLaurin (Virginia Academy); Michael Manser (Virginia Academy); Deng Wutchok (Virginia Academy); Nathan Vaughn (Evergreen Christian), Jordan Smith (Evergreen Christian)