1. Paul VI (22-8)–Insane Panthers program won its 15th straight VISAA title, defeating St. Anne’s Belfield in Richmond. Very solid senior class goes, but there’s real potential for PVI to be even better than they were this season, next year.
2. Bishop Ireton (18-12)–Disappointing loss to St. Anne’s Belfield in the VISAA semis, but the Cardinals took another step this year. Kesha Walton continues to bring top-flight talent to Alexandria.
3. Madison (27-2)–A heralded freshman class is now graduating seniors, with three state titles in the books. Fitting the Warhawks did it with defense–we’ve said all along we regard Kirsten Stone as one of the best defensive coaches in the area. Let us be the first to say don’t sleep on the Warhawks next year, either.
4. Woodgrove (29-1)–Derek Fisher said after the state final loss to Menchville that “one day is not going to ruin a season’s worth of accomplishments.” It definitely doesn’t. School’s all-time leading scorer Ashley Steadman and a good senior class leaves, but there’s ample young talent returning to make another run next year.
5. Osbourn Park (26-2)–Even in the state title defeat to Madison, Osbourn Park impressed us. Relentless competitor Hailey Kellogg is a big loss, but most of this team will return next year.
6. Robinson (27-3)–Wasn’t quite ready to hang with Madison in the state semis. That doesn’t matter. This was a ground-breaking season for the Rams, who will be one of the favorites to win a Class 6 state title next year.
7. Langley (19-6)–Very strange, every year we seem to be most sad with the Saxons’ seniors graduating–seems like it was just ten minutes ago we were interviewing promising freshman AB Holsinger. Promise fulfilled–the Saxons gave Robinson all it could handle in the state quarters before falling.
8. Yorktown (21-5)–Loss to Langley in the regional semis doesn’t diminish a fine season in which Yorktown announced itself as a contender, and won the Liberty regular season and district tournament.
9. Meridian (24-2)–Even in defeat, Meridian gave us one of the games of the year versus Carroll County in the state final. College coaches, this is a program that you should always remember to take a look at when recruiting–always some hidden gems here.
10. Edison (24-5)–Even when we proclaimed Edison as a possible contender to Madison in the preseason, we weren’t sure that they were. Expectations for this young team this year were more than met when the Eagles gave Madison a good game in the state quarters. The stabilizing presence of Lisa Anderson will be missed next year, but this team will be a legitimate state contender.
11. Virginia Academy (22-9)–Concluded the year, as expected, by winning the VISAA DIII championship. Virginia Academy will move up to Division II next year and that’s a good thing, because most of the team returns next year.
12. Broad Run (21-4)–Upset in the 4C Regional Tournament doesn’t take away from the fine season the Spartans had. Yvonne Lee will graduate, but there’s some nice talent returning.
13. Oakton (19-5)–Fell to Langley in the 6D quarters but a heckuva season for the Cougars, who only lost twice to a team not named Madison.
14. Alexandria City (21-6)–Tough loss to Robinson in the Occoquan semis ended the Titans’ season, but it was a good one. There’s good young talent still here next year, despite the very significant losses.
15. Lake Braddock (19-9)–Disappointing end to the season against Edison to be sure, though the Bruins enjoyed a fantastic year. Their younger players showed they are more-than-ready to carry to torch in 2022-2023.
16. Loudoun Valley (19-7)–Like Broad Run also lost in the 4C Regional Tourney in their first game. It will be tough losing point guard Jane Bodamer, though the Vikings’ system and the talent in it isn’t going anywhere.
17. Briar Woods (17-9)–Team which essentially arrived a year early, making a postseason run behind improved young players and sensational sophomore Hope Drake. Upset a Glen Allen team in the state quarters that beat Woodbridge by double-digits earlier in the year, then led Woodgrove by double-digits in the state semis before falling.
18. The Potomac School (22-2)–It was a fantastic season for the Panthers despite the VISAA first round loss to O’Connell. There’s enough young talent to compete in the ISL higher division next year despite the loss of Kayla Rolph.
19. Woodbridge (18-8)–A fantastic year in which the Vikings were the class of the always-tough Cardinal District. Fell to Thomas Dale in the state quarters. Don’t sleep on the young talent that improved this year and will return next year, though obviously Reina Washington and Amani Melendez are huge losses.
Others Receiving Votes–O’Connell (4-19), West Potomac (14-9), Tuscarora (17-7), McLean (17-10), Patriot (17-7), Stone Bridge (11-11)