Early season standouts in NOVA: Public School

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At the start of the season, the public school basketball in NOVA has been competitive and entertaining. I've enjoyed watching the abundance of talent at the public schools just as much as the private schools. The standouts listed are girls who have elevated their level of play to start this first chunk of the season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Anna Helstrom","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2024","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'9u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"12123","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Park View ","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Park View has been impressive at the start of the season, and a lot of that is due to the play of Anna Helstrom. Anna has elevated her game in basically every category, and it's translated into Park View being 6-3 so far. Park View won 9 games last year and looks like a much-improved team, and Anna is leading that. She is one of the best passers in the state, averaging 6.6 assists per game and leading Park View in scoring with 16.7. She has improved defensively and has been terrific on the glass. This Park View offense runs through Anna, and she is having an outstanding start to her senior season.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["675532"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"The Falls Church Jaguars are 6-1 and have been stifling on the defensive side of the ball. [player_tooltip player_id='675532' first='Simone' last='Pendleton'] is an outstanding defender and one of the best in the area. She is this team's leading scorer and has had some big performances to start the year. She had 23 against Annandale, and in a game vs Fairfax where there was a combined 58 points from both teams, Simone had 14. Simone does a lot for this team on both ends and what she's done has gone a long way. This Falls Church team is looking outstanding so far.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["260613"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"When [player_tooltip player_id='260613' first='Sadie' last='Shores'] decided to transfer back to Woodgrove, it was obvious that they'd be an absolute force. They have run through teams and have yet to play competitive games. At 8-0 they look like one of the best public schools in the state. [player_tooltip player_id='260613' first='Sadie' last='Shores'] has been as consistent as any player in the state and has put together some massive games. Her most impressive game of the season was a 27-point outing against an outstanding James Madison defense.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["597331"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"Gainesville has been fantastic again, and [player_tooltip player_id='597331' first='Madison' last='McKenzie']'s improvement is why. She was great last year and was her team's leading scorer, but her added aggressiveness on the offensive end this year has helped up her game. She had 24 against James Madison, her best performance so far. She has been solid all year and is still her active self on defense as she has been the past few years.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_4_player_details_player_name":"[player_tooltip player_id='1092542' first='Sarah' last='Chawki'] ","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_4_player_details_graduating_class":"2025","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_4_player_details_height":"5'6u0022","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_4_player_details_position":"12121","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_4_player_details_school":"Edison ","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_4_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_4_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_4_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"[player_tooltip player_id='1092542' first='Sarah' last='Chawki'] was not a name on my radar heading into this season, but she has been phenomenal. Sarah is a good spot-up shooter and crafty when she gets to the rim. She hit a game-winning one-legged three-pointer to win a game against Thomas Jefferson and has had multiple big games. My first opportunity to watch her live was in a game against a fantastic Centreville team, where she put in 20 points and almost led her team to a huge win. Edison is 4-2, and their two losses are by a combined 4 points. This Edison team is fun to watch, and more people should have their eyes on [player_tooltip player_id='1092542' first='Sarah' last='Chawki'].","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":5,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-658b9a5a79681"} /-->