District Preview: Concorde District

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Concorde district is one of the toughest and grittiest districts in Virginia. All the teams compete and play defense. It should be a grind all year and highly competitive. This is how I see it playing out.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>South Lakes<br></strong>South Lakes was really solid last year, going 13-11 overall and 5-5 in district. Their defense was solid all year, and it was big in them having the success they had. South Lakes struggled to score at times, but they often could rely on Jessica Dornak in big moments. They could dump it down to her in the post, and she could give them much-needed points. She's gone now, so that's production that they need to fill. They also lost [player_tooltip player_id='743997' first='Madison' last='Washington'], who decided to transfer to PVI and was poised for a big Sophomore season. Due to the loss of talent South Lakes has experienced, along with this difficult district, I see South Lakes finishing last.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Westfield</strong><br>In 5th, I have Westfield. Westfield has one of the best players in the district, Emma O'Conner. She won DPOY in a district loaded with defensive talent. Emma has improved offensively, and you'll see a jump from her on that side of the floor. Westfield won 3 district games last year mainly because they struggled to score. If that stays the same, they will likely finish in this district's bottom half.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Chantilly</strong><br>In 4th, I have Chantilly. I think Chantilly will be one of the most improved teams in the district. Chantilly was young last year, and despite winning one game in the district and going 6-16 overall, they were still super competitive. They have a lot of great players, like starting PG Alivia Terry. Alivia was terrific last year and was second team in the Concorde district. Alivia is an excellent spot-up shooter and handles the ball well. [player_tooltip player_id='857043' first='Emerson' last='Mustard'] is another player to look out for. Over the next few years, Chantilly is a team to watch.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Oakton</strong><br>Oakton hangs its hat on being tough defensively. Everyone on this roster takes pride in playing defense, and they make life difficult, especially on opposing guards. A big reason for that is sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id='876808' first='Sophie' last='Toole']. She hounds opposing guards and is one of the better perimeter defenders in this district. The other player I love on this team is [player_tooltip player_id='755774' first='Brooke' last='Chang']. I saw her at the DMV 250 expo over the summer, and she looked terrific. She can score from everywhere and has improved a lot as a distributor. And, of course, which is almost a necessity if you want to get minutes for Oakton, she is a solid defender. I like them finishing 3rd again in this district and winning close to 20 games this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Centreville</strong><br>Centreville has as much talent as any public school in NOVA this season. Most of their talent comes from their guards and wing/guard hybrids. Their best player is senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='376362' first='Jahniya' last='Marion']. She is excellent both ways and sets up teammates nicely while scoring from all three levels. Sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id='719276' first='Claire' last='Kang'] does much of the ball handling for this team, and she grew a lot throughout the season last year. A handful of other players on this team are also outstanding players. Centreville was the best offensive team in this district and one of the better ones in the area. With them returning most of their roster and most of them developing over the summer, they should be hard to top. I was close to picking this team to finish first, but I decided to leave them at second.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>James Madison<br></strong>In a district of great defenses, James Madison reigns supreme. They have one of the best defenses in the state, and it's played a massive part in them winning four straight state titles. James Madison lost some great pieces in Kayla Dixon and Sarah Link. But they have enough to repeat as district champs. [player_tooltip player_id='670490' first='Stella' last='Gougoufkas'] might be the best player in the district, and she has been one of the biggest risers in the 2024 class. She plays defense like the rest of this team, but she is a physical and talented scorer who can get a bucket from anywhere on the court. [player_tooltip player_id='746329' first='Avery' last='Griepentrog'] is one of the best defenders in this district and provides James Madison with a lot on the glass as well. With some of the teams surging, James Madison will have to dig deep every night if they want to finish first. I think their talent and pedigree will push them over the line, but it will be a fight at the top.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->