In direct response to these unfortunate circumstances, 1-on-none is proud to announce the first ever 1-on-none MCPS Boys Volleyball All-County team. These are based off game analysis, our own opinions, and input from coaches and volleyball experts around the county. We believe that these gifted athletes made significant impacts on their respective teams and demonstrate the 1-on-none spirit of excellence. Please join us in congratulating all those who have been selected.
Player of the Year
OH - Nathan Goh, Junior, Clarksburg High School
1st Team All-County
OH - Andrew Ahn, Junior, Northwest High School
OH - Tobias Clark, Senior, Einstein High School
OH - Sebastiano Sani, Sophomore, Walter Johnson High School
MB - Ryan Harper, Senior, Walter Johnson High School
MB - Corwin Trouteaud, Junior, Winston Churchill High School
OP - Ben Lee, Junior, Winston Churchill High School
L - Luis Perez, Senior, Thomas S. Wootton High School
S - Joseph Morris, Walter Johnson High School
S - Charlie Lin, Winston Churchill High School
2nd Team All-County
OH - Andy Wang, Junior, Winston Churchill High School
OH - Matthew Hou, Senior, Thomas S. Wootton High School
MB - Terrell Wright, Senior, Northwest High School
MB - Kyle Foster, Senior, Thomas S. Wootton High School
OP - Sebastian Marcial, Junior, Walter Johnson High School
L - Noah Schiff, Senior, Winston Churchill High School
S - Noah Aurdos, Sophomore, Clarksburg High School
S - Brogan Black, Junior, Sherwood High School
Honorable Mention
OH - Seth Kauffman, Senior, Sherwood High School
OH - Aaryan Patel, Junior, Clarksburg High School
OH - Nathaniel Wu, Junior, Winston Churchill High School
OH - Owen Ehlers, Sophomore, Northwest High School
MB - Jason Soo, Senior, Clarksburg High School
MB - Aidan O'Connell, Freshman, Clarksburg High School
L - Michael Wang, Freshman, Blair High School
S - Jared Su, Sophomore, Wootton High School
S - Cameron Fong, Senior, Whitman High School
Thank you for reading! As always, if your team is looking for spirit wear, uniforms, or warm-ups, or if you just want some cool volleyball gear, check out 1-on-none at https://1-on-none.com and give us a follow at @1_on_none!
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It was a packed house at Magruder High School, where Clarksburg and Northwest battled it out in a tightly contested 3 set match, with Clarksburg winning in the end. Set scores were 28-26, 25-22, and 25-20. The Jaguars fought hard, but were unable to overcome the Coyotes potent offense, lead by Junior OH Nathan Goh. Clarksburg finishes the season with a perfect 12-0 record.
To commemorate this amazing achievement, 1-on-none has created a collection of championship hoodies, shirts, and long-sleeves which feature a 1-on-none "Clarksburg Champions" design on the front and record on the back. Remember this season with some championship gear. Grab yours quickly while you still can! Congratulations to Coach Dawn Dickinson and the Clarksburg Coyotes for a job well done!
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Last night, Clarksburg and WJ battled it out in the bottom half of the bracket in a 5-set nail biter. With the support of the home crowd behind them, Clarksburg won an intense back-and-forth match to head to the county finals.
On the other side of the bracket, as predicted, Northwest had an easy 3-set sweep over Blair and will be facing Clarksburg in the championship tomorrow.
Regular Season Records
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg (8-0) | Churchill (8-0) | Einstein (8-0) |
Northwest (6-2) | Walter Johnson (5-3) | Wheaton (6-2) |
Sherwood (3-4) | Wootton (4-4) | Gaithersburg (4-4) |
Poolesville (1-6) | Whitman (3-5) | Blake (4-4) |
Quince Orchard (1-7) | Blair (0-8) | Rockville (1-7) |
Paint Branch (1-7) |
Northwest vs Clarksburg Review
Both teams are very familiar with one another. Northwest High School and Clarksburg are roughly 15 minutes apart, and played in the same regular season pool. During the regular season, Clarksburg finished 8-0 in their division, and Northwest finished 6-2, with their only two losses coming against Clarksburg in two 3-0 sweeps. That 7-2 record gave the Jags the 5 seed, and placed them in the top half of the bracket, giving them a fairly easy path to the finals. Clarksburg, on the other hand, having lost a coin toss, were placed as the 2nd overall seed which forced them to face both Wootton and WJ, both from the hyper competitive Mid-county division.
Northwest's Path
6/7 - Northwest vs Poolesville : 3-0
6/10 - Northwest vs Wheaton : 3-1
6/14 - Northwest vs Blair : 3-0
Clarksburg's Path
6/8 - Clarksburg vs Quince Orchard : 3-0
6/10 - Clarksburg vs Wootton : 3-0
6/14 - Clarksburg vs WJ : 3-2
Interesting Notes
There are lots of questions leading up to this championship that will be played on Wednesday at 5pm. Hope you come out to watch this game live! A big shoutout to MCPS, Scott Zanni, the coaches and all of the players across the county for coming together and making this volleyball season possible. With all of the uncertainty surrounding the season in this truly unprecedented year, we are all grateful to have had a full season. Congratulations to Clarksburg and Northwest high schools for making it this far! We hope to see a great match tomorrow.
Thank you for reading! As always, if your team is looking for spirit wear, uniforms, or warm-ups, or if you just want some cool volleyball gear, check out 1-on-none at https://1-on-none.com and give us a follow at @1_on_none!
]]>And just like that, we are in the final four. As predicted, the East fell in all of their matchups last night, leaving Northwest and Blair on the top side of the bracket. Blair is going through one heck of a season, going from 0 wins in the regular season to the final four.
On the bottom half, Clarksburg came out with a quick 3-0 win over Wootton, and WJ emerged as the victor in a tightly contested back-and-forth 4-set match with each set going into the high 20s.
"What If's"
Due to COVID, the 2021 season has certainly been an unusual one. Here's a quick run-down we like to call, the "what if's" of the 2021 season.
If there's anything we can say about this year, is that it certainly has not been short of intrigue. In a year when we thought volleyball may not even happen, here we are in the Final Four of the MCPS playoffs. The bottom half features WJ vs Clarksburg, and Blair vs Northwest on the top. Both matches will be played on Monday. Stay tuned for additional pre-game predictions and analysis. We wish all four teams the best of luck as the playoffs continue.
Thank you for reading! As always, if your team is looking for spirit wear, uniforms, or warm-ups, or if you just want some cool volleyball gear, check out 1-on-none at https://1-on-none.com and give us a follow at @1_on_none!
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The first round of playoffs are over, and we are quickly into the 2nd round. Below are some highlights and opinions on the first round of 16.
#16 Blair Upsets #1 Einstein
In an unexpected turn of events, #16 Blair took down #1 in the first round. This upset is further evidence of just how much weaker the East division was than Mid-county, who we've been saying is the strongest division in the county all season. Blair could not win a single regular season match in Mid-county, with teams like Churchill, WJ, and Wootton, while Einstein enjoyed an easy undefeated run in the East. If this match is any indication, our prediction is that the East division teams will fall as soon as they play anyone outside their group. Look for Blake to be upset by Blair, and Wheaton to lose to Northwest.
Top Half vs Bottom Half
This year's seedings were based off regular season record, as they should be, but due to Covid restrictions and teams only playing within their division, the regular season records were largely skewed. Teams playing in the East had their records inflated due to a very easy strength of schedule. We now have a situation where most of the East teams (Einstein, Gaithersburg, Blake, Paint Branch, Wheaton) were placed in the top half, making the top half of the bracket significantly weaker than the bottom. Blair (0-8 regular season) now has a very real chance at getting to the semi-finals, and Northwest (7-2 regular season) has a clear path to the finals. How it plays out remains to be seen, but my prediction is that Northwest will fully take advantage of their opportunity and end up in the County Championship.
The Bottom Half Quarters = The Semis
In contrast, the quarter finals on the bottom half of the bracket have set up some very intense matches early in the tournament. Tomorrow's games are WJ vs Churchill at Churchill, and Clarksburg vs Wootton at Clarksburg. In our opinion, this should have been the semi-finals for the county championship. Keep in mind that WJ has taken Churchill to 5 sets before, and so has Wootton. Clarksburg has yet to be seriously tested this season, but they will definitely face a challenge in the Wootton Patriots, who come out of the Mid-county division at 4-4.
Rochester Can-Am Throws A Monkey Wrench
Another unintended consequence of having such a late start to the Spring season is that we are now losing players for all sorts of late-in-the-school year types of events. This past weekend was the Rochester Can-Am bid tournament, which several club players from Moco participated in. The tournament lasted through Monday, which prevented Northwest's starting H1, Andrew Ahn, from participating in the rescheduled opening round Poolesville match. Owen Ehlers, H2 for Northwest, was able to drive back from Rochester early to play for the Jags and help lead their team to a 3-0 victory. Nathaniel Wu, starting H2 for Churchill, suffered an injury at this same tournament and will now be unavailable for the rest of the playoffs. Fortunately for Churchill and Northwest, both teams were able to get past the first round short-handed. We will see how Churchill fares after a late season shuffle in their lineup, and a really unfortunate injury to one of their starting outside hitters.
Beach Week?
We are hearing reports that several seniors were missing from the playoffs due to beach week. With graduation happening before the end of the volleyball season, some players decided to go to the beach instead of finishing their high school volleyball careers. Whether the players who decided to leave early will negatively impact their teams remains to be seen, but this is certainly a situation we didn't see coming.
Watch the Games!
Restrictions on spectators have been lifted just in time for the playoffs. We hope you go watch a game and support Montgomery County Boys volleyball! We wish the best of luck to all of the teams still alive in the 2021 MCPS Boys Volleyball season.
Thank you for reading! As always, if your team is looking for spirit wear, uniforms, or warm-ups, or if you just want some cool volleyball gear, check out 1-on-none at https://1-on-none.com and give us a follow at @1_on_none!
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UPCOUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Northwest | Sherwood | 3-2 |
Clarksburg | Quince Orchard | 3-0 |
MID-COUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Walter Johnson | Blair | ? |
EAST MONTGOMERY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Blake | Paint Branch | ? |
Thank you for reading! As always, if your team is looking for spirit wear, uniforms, or warm-ups, or if you just want some cool volleyball gear, check out 1-on-none at https://1-on-none.com and give us a follow at @1_on_none!
Thank you for reading! As always, if your team is looking for spirit wear, uniforms, or warm-ups, or if you just want some cool volleyball gear, check out 1-on-none at https://1-on-none.com and give us a follow at @1_on_none!
]]>UPCOUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Northwest | Poolesville | 3-0 |
MID-COUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
No games |
EAST MONTGOMERY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
No games |
Today's Games
Today's games across the county are as follows:
UPCOUNTY
Sherwood vs Northwest 7:00 @ Sherwood
Clarksburg vs Quince Orchard 7:00 @ Quince Orchard
MID-COUNTY
Walter Johnson vs Blair 7:00 @ WJ
EAST MONTGOMERY
No games.
Rankings By Division
As it stands so far, here are the rankings by division:
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg (7-0) | Churchill (8-0) | Einstein (8-0) |
Northwest (5-2) | Walter Johnson (4-3) | Wheaton (6-2) |
Sherwood (2-3) | Wootton (4-3) | Gaithersburg (4-4) |
Quince Orchard (1-3) | Whitman (2-5) | Blake (3-4) |
Poolesville (0-6) | Blair (0-5) | Paint Branch (0-5) |
Rockville (0-6) |
Thank you for reading! As always, if your team is looking for spirit wear, uniforms, or warm-ups, or if you just want some cool volleyball gear, check out 1-on-none at https://1-on-none.com and give us a follow at @1_on_none!
UPCOUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Clarksburg | Northwest | 3-0 |
Sherwood vs Poolesville? |
MID-COUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Wootton | Walter Johnson | 3-0 |
Whitman vs Blair? |
EAST MONTGOMERY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Wheaton | Blake | 3-1 |
Paint Branch vs Rockville? | ||
Einstein | Gaithersburg | 3-0 |
Today's Games
Today's games across the county are as follows:
UPCOUNTY
No games.
MID-COUNTY
No games.
EAST MONTGOMERY
No games.
Rankings By Division
As it stands so far, here are the rankings by division:
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg (7-0) | Churchill (8-0) | Einstein (8-0) |
Northwest (4-2) | Walter Johnson (4-3) | Wheaton (6-2) |
Sherwood (2-3) | Wootton (4-3) | Gaithersburg (4-4) |
Quince Orchard (1-3) | Whitman (2-5) | Blake (3-4) |
Poolesville (0-5) | Blair (0-5) | Paint Branch (0-5) |
Rockville (0-6) |
Opinion
The regular season is coming to a close, but not without some late season drama. Wootton defeating WJ 3-0 makes the playoff picture much more interesting. The top teams in the county, by record, are Churchill, Clarksburg, and Einstein. However, let's be clear - record is not everything. Einstein, playing in a weaker division, has not been challenged by any teams on their regular season schedule thus far. Wootton's record is also very deceptive. From their record, they may appear like a middle-of-the-pack team, but even their 3-0 losses to Churchill have been close. It appears that the Patriots are getting hot at the right time. Taking down WJ in 3 sets yesterday is a big confidence booster, and a message to the rest of the county that Wootton is not to be overlooked.
It seems that if we were to rank teams by record only, this would be the current power rankings for the top 8:
1. Clarksburg or Einstein (identical records)
3. Churchill
4. Wheaton
5. Northwest
6. Walter Johnson
7. Wootton
8. Gaithersburg
However, the eye test tells me that the real power rankings should look more like this:
1. Clarksburg
2. Churchill
3. Wootton
4. Walter Johnson
5. Northwest
6. Einstein
7. Sherwood
8. Wheaton
What do you think? Am I completely off the mark? Feel free to leave your comments below!
Thank you for reading! As always, if your team is looking for spirit wear, uniforms, or warm-ups, or if you just want some cool volleyball gear, check out 1-on-none at https://1-on-none.com and give us a follow at @1_on_none!
UPCOUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Sherwood | Quince Orchard | 3-0 |
Northwest vs Poolesville? |
MID-COUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Churchill | Walter Johnson | 3-1 (25-21, 26-24, 21-25, 25-18) |
Whitman | Wootton | 3-2 (22-25, 25-16, 25-18, 20-25, 15-10) |
EAST MONTGOMERY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Einstein | Wheaton | 3-0 (?) |
Blake | Rockville | 3-1 (25-12, 14-25, 25-7, 25-19) |
Today's Games
Today's games across the county are as follows:
UPCOUNTY
No games.
MID-COUNTY
No games.
EAST MONTGOMERY
No games.
Rankings By Division
As it stands so far, here are the rankings by division:
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg (6-0) | Churchill (8-0) | Einstein (7-0) |
Northwest (4-1) | Walter Johnson (4-2) | Wheaton (5-2) |
Sherwood (2-3) | Wootton (3-4) | Gaithersburg (4-3) |
Quince Orchard (1-3) | Whitman (2-5) | Blake (3-3) |
Poolesville (0-5) | Blair (0-5) | Paint Branch (0-5) |
Rockville (0-6) |
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UPCOUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Clarksburg | Poolesville | 3-0 (25-5, 25-7, 25-11) |
Northwest | Quince Orchard | 3-0 (25-9, 25-18, 25-10) |
MID-COUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Wootton | Blair | 1?-0 (25-18, ?) |
Churchill | Whitman | 3-0 (25-17, 25-11, 25-20) |
EAST MONTGOMERY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Gaithersburg | Blake | 3-2 |
Einstein vs Paint Branch? |
Today's Games
Today's games across the county are as follows:
UPCOUNTY
No games.
MID-COUNTY
No games.
EAST MONTGOMERY
No games.
Rankings By Division
As it stands so far, here are the rankings by division:
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg (6-0) | Churchill (7-0) | Einstein (6-0) |
Northwest (4-1) | Walter Johnson (4-1) | Wheaton (5-1) |
Sherwood (2-3) | Wootton (3-3) | Gaithersburg (4-3) |
Quince Orchard (1-3) | Whitman (1-5) | Blake (2-3) |
Poolesville (0-5) | Blair (0-5) | Paint Branch (0-5) |
Rockville (0-5) |
UPCOUNTY
Clarksburg and Northwest finished their days with 3-0 sweeps over their opponents yesterday. As the season progresses it looks like the top two teams in this division are separating themselves further from the pack.
MID-COUNTY
Churchill's win over Whitman puts them at 7-0. The 3-0 sweep extends the Bulldogs' lead in the division, but looking at the game scores, the teams in the division are much closer than the match record would lead you to believe. Wootton gets another win to keep them in the top 3 of Mid-county.
EASTERN MONTGOMERY
Einstein continues their unbeaten streak and remains the top of Eastern Montgomery. They are currently tied with Clarksburg for the number 1 seed in the playoffs.
]]>It looks like coed and boys have switched the order of their matches, so Coed plays first. This has moved all the boys games to be later in the evening.
Today's games across the county are as follows:
UPCOUNTY
Quince Orchard vs Northwest 7:00 @ Quince Orchard
Poolesville vs Quince Orchard 7:00 @ Poolesville
MID-COUNTY
Whitman vs Churchill 7:00 @ Whitman
Blair vs Wootton 7:00 @ Blair
EAST MONTGOMERY
Blake vs Gaithersburg 7:00 @ Blake
UPCOUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Clarksburg | Sherwood | 3-1 (25-20, 21-25, 25-23, 25-16) |
Quince Orchard vs Poolesville | (cancelled) |
MID-COUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Walter Johnson | Whitman | ? (25-23, ?) |
Churchill | Blair | 3-0 (25-15, 25-7, 25-20) |
EAST MONTGOMERY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Einstein | Rockville | ? |
Blake | Paint Branch | 3-2 |
Wheaton | Gaithersburg | 3-0 (25-19, 25-11, ?) |
Today's Games
Today's games across the county are as follows:
UPCOUNTY
No games.
MID-COUNTY
No games.
EAST MONTGOMERY
No games.
Rankings By Division
As it stands so far, here are the rankings by division:
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg (5-0) | Churchill (6-0) | Einstein (4-0) |
Northwest (3-1) | Walter Johnson (4-1) | Wheaton (5-1) |
Sherwood (2-3) | Wootton (2-3) | Gaithersburg (3-3) |
Quince Orchard (1-3) | Whitman (0-4) | Blake (1-2) |
Poolesville (0-4) | Blair (0-4) | Paint Branch (0-3) |
Rockville (0-4) |
Basically, volleyball games are now open to the public, and it's still FREE admission. Put your mask on, support boys volleyball, and go watch a match!
]]>Today's Games
Today's games across the county are as follows:
UPCOUNTY
Clarksburg vs Sherwood 5:30 @ Sherwood
Poolesville vs Quince Orchard @ Poolesville
MID-COUNTY
Walter Johnson vs Whitman 5:30 @ Walter Johnson
Churchill vs Blair 5:30 @ Churchill
EAST MONTGOMERY
Rockville vs Einstein @ Rockville
Paint Branch vs Blake 7:00 @ Paint Branch
Gaithersburg vs Wheaton 7:00 @ Gaithersburg
Rankings By Division
As it stands so far, here are the rankings by division:
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg (4-0) | Churchill (5-0) | Einstein (4-0) |
Northwest (3-1) | Walter Johnson (3-1) | Wheaton (4-1) |
Sherwood (2-2) | Wootton (2-3) | Gaithersburg (3-2) |
Quince Orchard (1-3) | Whitman (1-3) | Blake (1-2) |
Poolesville (0-4) | Blair (0-4) | Paint Branch (0-3) |
Rockville (0-4) |
UPCOUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Clarksburg | Quince Orchard | 3-0 (25-4, 25-6, 25-13) |
Northwest | Sherwood | 3-0 (25-20, 25-10, 25-13) |
MID-COUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Churchill | Wootton | 3-2 (20-25, 25-17, 25-20, 23-25, 15-9) |
Walter Johnson | Blair | 3-0 (25-17, 25-21, 25-17) |
EAST MONTGOMERY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Wheaton | Paint Branch | ? |
Gaithersburg | Rockville | 3-0 (25-19, 25-23, 25-10) |
Today's Games
Today's games across the county are as follows:
UPCOUNTY
No games.
MID-COUNTY
No games.
EAST MONTGOMERY
No games.
Rankings By Division
As it stands so far, here are the rankings by division:
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg (4-0) | Churchill (5-0) | Einstein (4-0) |
Northwest (3-1) | Walter Johnson (3-1) | Wheaton (4-1) |
Sherwood (2-2) | Wootton (2-3) | Gaithersburg (3-2) |
Quince Orchard (1-3) | Whitman (1-3) | Blake (1-2) |
Poolesville (0-4) | Blair (0-4) | Paint Branch (0-3) |
Rockville (0-4) |
UPCOUNTY
Clarksburg defeated QO yesterday in a fairly uneventful 3-0 match. Northwest also swept Sherwood in what was expected to have been a much closer game. The Jaguars played a consistent offensive game without much flair, but it was enough to force Sherwood into a lot of mistakes in their defense and transition.
MID-COUNTY
The match of the day was clearly Churchill vs Wootton, which ended in 5 sets with Churchill coming out as the eventual victor. This game went back and forth with good play on both sides. Once again, it would be no surprise if the Patriots unexpectedly knock off a top seed early in the playoffs. It appears they are inching closer to turning some of these tight games into wins.
WJ vs Blair was a quick 3-0 for the Wildcats, who were clearly in control from the beginning to end.
EASTERN MONTGOMERY
Gaithersburg vs Rockville started out fairly close, with set 1 and 2 going 25-19, 25-23, but Rockville lost some momentum in the third set and eventually crumbled. The Rams may be 0-4 in record, but have challenged some teams in the East over the last few games.
UPCOUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
No games. |
MID-COUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Churchill | Whitman | 3-0 (25-17, 25-12, 25-20) |
Wootton | Blair | 3-0 |
EAST MONTGOMERY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
No games. |
Today's Games
Today's games across the county are as follows:
UPCOUNTY
Clarksburg vs Quince Orchard 5:30 @ Quince Orchard
Northwest vs Sherwood 5:30 @ Northwest
MID-COUNTY
Churchill vs Wootton 5:30 @ Churchill
Walter Johnson vs Blair 5:30 @ Blair
EAST MONTGOMERY
Wheaton vs Paint Branch 7:00 @ Wheaton
Rockville vs Gaithersburg 7:00 @ Rockville
Rankings By Division
As it stands so far, here are the rankings by division:
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg (3-0) | Churchill (4-0) | Einstein (4-0) |
Northwest (2-1) | Walter Johnson (2-1) | Wheaton (3-1) |
Sherwood (2-1) | Wootton (2-2) | Gaithersburg (2-2) |
Quince Orchard (1-2) | Whitman (1-3) | Blake (1-2) |
Poolesville (0-4) | Blair (0-3) | Paint Branch (0-2) |
Rockville (0-3) |
AP EXAM WEEK
This week's games happen to coincide with AP Exams, which will impact several teams around the county due to scheduling conflicts. Clarksburg, for example, will be missing starting OH Aaryan Patel today vs QO, and will be missing OH Nathan Goh on Thurs vs Sherwood. It will be interesting to see how the exam week will impact this week's matches across the county. If you know of other teams that will be affected by AP's, feel free to share in the comments!
UPCOUNTY
Clarksburg faces Quince Orchard today, the last remaining team they have yet to play in Upcounty. Even without Patel, this will be a tough matchup for the Cougars, who currently sit at 1-2.
Northwest vs Sherwood should be a really competitive game today. Both teams are sitting at 2-1 and should be pretty evenly matched. If Sherwood continues to develop their talented young middle, Nathan Natoli, and tighten up their serve receive, they will be tough to beat. On Northwest's side, it looks like the Jags have yet to settle on their lineup. Over the last few matches I have seen Owen Ehlers and Andrew Fuentes switching off at setter/OH, and Terrell Wright playing both middle and opposite. Once they figure out their optimum lineup, the Jags should be able to develop a better offensive rhythm as they head closer to post-season.
MID-COUNTY
Churchill swept Wootton yesterday and are continuing to steadily develop under head coach JJ Rathnam. The Bulldogs are starting to implement a triple block defensive scheme and are steadily improving their offense behind primary OH Andy Wang and MB Corwin Trouteaud. They clearly have their sights set on postseason competition and are preparing accordingly.
Wootton was once again without OH Hayden Agan, but the Patriots were still able to easily sweep Blair yesterday. Wootton has the biggest MB in the county in Kyle Foster and a hard-hitting outside hitter in Matthew Hou, but will need to improve their backrow defense to stand a chance against Churchill, who they will face today at 5:30.
Blair has the misfortune of being grouped in a tough division and will be challenged once again in today's matchup with WJ. WJ's young setter, Joseph Morris, is doing a great job of orchestrating this team's offense, which shows flashes of greatness mixed with inconsistency. As the season goes on, if the Wildcats continue to mesh, they can become a serious force to reckon with in the playoffs.
EASTERN MONTGOMERY
Wheaton faces Paint Branch and Gaithersburg plays Rockville. Wheaton has some size in their front row, but will definitely need to strengthen their serve receive before playoffs. That said, they should still have more than enough to beat Paint Branch today.
Gaithersburg and Rockville are more closely matched than their records may lead you to believe. I predict Gaithersburg will win today, but this could easily go in Rockville's favor if the Rams have a hot serving day.
UPCOUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
No games. |
MID-COUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
No games. |
EAST MONTGOMERY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Wheaton | Blake | 3-1 (25-18, 28-26, 26-28, 25-18) |
Rockville vs Paint Branch? | ||
Einstein | Gaithersburg | 3-0 (25-13, 25-5, 25-13) |
Today's Games
Today's games across the county are as follows:
UPCOUNTY
No games.
MID-COUNTY
Churchill vs Whitman 5:30 @ Churchill
Wootton vs Blair 3:45 @ Wootton
EAST MONTGOMERY
No games.
Rankings By Division
As it stands so far, here are the rankings by division:
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg (3-0) | Churchill (3-0) | Einstein (4-0) |
Northwest (2-1) | Walter Johnson (2-1) | Wheaton (3-1) |
Sherwood (2-1) | Wootton (1-2) | Gaithersburg (2-2) |
Quince Orchard (1-2) | Whitman (1-2) | Blake (1-2) |
Poolesville (0-4) | Blair (0-2) | Paint Branch (0-2) |
Rockville (0-3) |
Opinions
UPCOUNTY
There hasn't been much activity in Upcounty as of late. No games scheduled in this division today, but there are a bunch of games slotted for tomorrow that will be an interesting watch.
MID-COUNTY
Churchill vs Whitman and Wootton vs Blair today. Wootton has been missing starting outside hitter, Hayden Agan, for quite some time now. Hopefully he will be returning soon and the team will begin to get back to full strength.
EASTERN MONTGOMERY
Lead behind Senior outside hitter Tobias Clark, Einstein easily rolled over Gaithersburg on Friday winning one of their three sets by 20 points. Einstein and Wheaton are playing at a higher level than the rest of the teams in the division. Unfortunately for them, neither team will be challenged very much until playoffs.
UPCOUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Clarksburg (3-0) | Northwest (2-1) | 3-0 (25-13, 25-14, 25-16) |
Sherwood (2-1) | Poolesville (0-4) | 3-0 (25-12, 25-16, 25-22) |
MID-COUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Walter Johnson | Wootton | ? |
Whitman | Blair | ? |
EAST MONTGOMERY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
No games. |
Today's Games
Today's games across the county are as follows:
UPCOUNTY
No games.
MID-COUNTY
No games.
EAST MONTGOMERY
Blake vs Wheaton 5:30 @ Blake
Rockville vs Paint Branch 5:30 @ Rockville
Einstein vs Gaithersburg 5:30 @ Gaithersburg
Rankings By Division
As it stands so far, here are the rankings by division:
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg (3-0) | Churchill (3-0) | Einstein (3-0) |
Northwest (2-1) | Walter Johnson (2-1) | Wheaton (2-1) |
Sherwood (2-1) | Wootton (1-2) | Gaithersburg (2-1) |
Quince Orchard (1-2) | Whitman (1-2) | Blake (1-1) |
Poolesville (0-4) | Blair (0-2) | Rockville (0-2) |
Paint Branch (0-2) |
Opinions
UPCOUNTY
Clarksburg swept Northwest 3-0 yesterday 25-13, 25-14, 25-16, making a clear statement that they are the top contender out of Upcounty. With the exception of QO (1-2), who they will face next week, Clarksburg has now swept every team in their division.
MID-COUNTY
WJ defeated Wootton yesterday, and are continuing to improve as a team. Will they be able to give Churchill a better match the next time they face off? So far this year, the Bulldogs have looked like they are a clear step ahead of everyone else in Mid-County, but Wootton has yet to play with their full lineup, and WJ seems to be improving each week.
EASTERN MONTGOMERY
This division is full of games today. Wheaton and Einstein should come out winners, but the Rockville / Paint Branch match is a toss-up. We will see how everything shakes out this evening.
UPCOUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
No games. |
MID-COUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
No games. |
EAST MONTGOMERY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Blake | Rockville | 3-1 (18-25, 25-19, 25-10, 25-12) |
Wheaton (2-1) | Einstein (3-0) | ? |
Gaithersburg (2-1) | Paint Branch (0-2) | 3-0 (26-24, 25-20, 25-22) |
Today's Games
Today's games across the county are as follows:
UPCOUNTY
Clarksburg vs Northwest 5:30 @ Clarksburg
Sherwood vs Poolesville 5:30 @ Poolesville
MID-COUNTY
Walter Johnson vs Wootton 5:30 @ Walter Johnson
Whitman vs Blair 5:30 @ Whitman
EAST MONTGOMERY
No games.
There are two big matchups to watch today. Clarksburg vs Northwest in Upcounty, and WJ vs Wootton in Mid-county. Clarksburg and NW will battle it out for the top spot in the division, while WJ and Wootton are fighting for the number two position in Mid-county.
Rankings By Division
As it stands so far, here are the rankings by division:
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg (2-0) | Churchill (3-0) | Einstein (3-0) |
Northwest (2-0) | Walter Johnson (1-1) | Wheaton (2-1) |
Sherwood (1-1) | Wootton (1-1) | Gaithersburg (2-1) |
Quince Orchard (1-2) | Blair (0-1) | Blake (0-1) |
Poolesville (0-3) | Whitman (0-2) | Rockville (0-2) |
Paint Branch (0-2) |
Opinions
UPCOUNTY
Clarksburg vs Northwest will certainly be a big game for both teams. This is an interesting matchup as both teams somewhat mirror each other in their makeup. Both have dominant H1s, solid H2s, strong middle play, and skilled setters. I predict a close match that will be determined by oppo play, and team defense, with the edge going to the Coyotes.
MID-COUNTY
WJ and Wootton is a very interesting matchup today. Although both teams have talent at all positions, I expect Wootton's size and athleticism to overtake WJ here.
EASTERN MONTGOMERY
Einstein is now sitting on top of the East and may keep their position there for the rest of the regular season. Wheaton will have more shots at them, but Einstein, lead by senior outside hitter Tobias Clark, is currently the team to beat in this division.
UPCOUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Sherwood | Quince Orchard | 3-0 |
Northwest (2-0) | Poolesville (0-3) | 3-0 (25-9, 25-14, 25-22) |
MID-COUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Wootton | Whitman | 3-0 |
Churchill (3-0) | Walter Johnson (1-1) | 3-0 (28-26, 25-13, 25-22) |
EAST MONTGOMERY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
No games. |
Today's Games
Today's games across the county are as follows:
UPCOUNTY
No games today.
MID-COUNTY
No games today.
EAST MONTGOMERY
Blake (0-1) vs Rockville (0-2) 5:30 @ Blake
Wheaton (2-0) vs Einstein (2-0) 5:30 @ Wheaton
Paint Branch (0-1) vs Gaithersburg (1-1) @ Paint Branch
From today's games, the big matchup will be Wheaton vs Einstein. This battle of the unbeatens features two teams that have been sweeping their opponents thus far this season. We will see who comes out with the early season Eastern Montgomery crown.
Rankings By Division
As it stands so far, here are the rankings by division:
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg (2-0) | Churchill (3-0) | Wheaton (2-0) |
Northwest (2-0) | Walter Johnson (1-1) | Einstein (2-0) |
Sherwood (1-1) | Wootton (1-1) | Gaithersburg (1-1) |
Quince Orchard (1-2) | Blair (0-1) | Blake (0-1) |
Poolesville (0-3) | Whitman (0-2) | Rockville (0-2) |
Paint Branch (0-1) |
Opinions
UPCOUNTY
In Upcounty, Clarksburg looks like they are establishing early dominance by sweeping both Poolesville and Sherwood.
Northwest is also currently undefeated, and swept both their opponents (QO and Poolesville). These two unbeaten teams will face off tomorrow, and we will get a clearer picture of where everyone stands after this big matchup at Clarksburg High School on Thursday.
MID-COUNTY
Similar to Clarksburg, Churchill seems to be pulling away from the rest of their group by sweeping all of their opponents. They are the first team to win 3 matches this season, and have done so against two of the strongest teams in their division - Wootton and WJ.
Speaking of Wootton and WJ, tomorrow's matchup between them will be a huge one. WJ, coming off a stinging 3-0 loss from Churchill, will be facing off against a big Wootton team that wants to take down the returning champs. Both teams should be motivated to solidify their position at number 2 in the division.
EASTERN MONTGOMERY
Wheaton and Einstein have both come out of the gate blazing hot. Both teams are sitting at 2-0 and have been sweeping their opponents in the East. I am looking forward to seeing how this matchup plays out.
UPCOUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Clarksburg (2-0) | Sherwood (0-1) | 3-0 (25-18, 25-19, 25-8) |
Quince Orchard (1-1) | Poolesville (0-2) | 3-2 (22-25, 25-22, 19-25, 25-20, 15-12) |
MID-COUNTY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Churchill (2-0) | Blair (0-1) | 3-0 (25-16, 25-16, 25-16) |
EAST MONTGOMERY
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Wheaton (2-0) | Rockville (0-2) | 3-0 |
Einstein (2-0) | Paint Branch (0-1) | 3-0 |
Gaithersburg (1-1) | Blake (0-1) | 3-0 |
Today's Games
Today's games across the county are as follows:
UPCOUNTY
Quince Orchard (1-1) vs Sherwood (0-1) 5:30PM @ Sherwood
Northwest (1-0) vs Poolesville (0-2) 5:30 @ Northwest
MID-COUNTY
Wootton (0-1) vs Whitman (0-1) 5:30 @ Wootton
Churchill (2-0) vs Walter Johnson (1-0) 5:30 @ Churchill
EAST MONTGOMERY
No games today.
From today's games, Churchill vs WJ will certainly be the one to watch. The Bulldogs play at home and have a shot at the unbeaten returning champs. This will certainly be an interesting early season matchup, and one that will set the tone for who will be the top contender out of Mid-county.
Rankings By Division
As it stands so far, here are the rankings by division:
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg (2-0) | Churchill (2-0) | Wheaton (2-0) |
Northwest (1-0) | Walter Johnson (1-0) | Einstein (2-0) |
Quince Orchard (1-1) | Wootton (0-1) | Gaithersburg (1-1) |
Sherwood (0-1) | Whitman (0-1) | Blake (0-1) |
Poolesville (0-2) | Blair (0-1) | Rockville (0-2) |
Paint Branch (0-1) |
Winner | Loser | Scores |
Clarksburg (1-0) | Poolesville (0-1) | 3-0 (25-15, 25-8, 25-17) |
Northwest (1-0) | Quince Orchard (0-1) | 3-0 (25-10, 25-19, 25-11) |
Churchill (1-0) | Wootton (1-0) | 3-0 (25-20, 26-24, 25-20) |
Walter Johnson (1-0) | Whitman (0-1) | unknown |
Wheaton (1-0) | Gaitherburg (0-1) | unknown |
Today's games are scheduled as follows:
Upcounty
Clarksburg vs Sherwood 5:30 PM @ Clarksburg
Quince Orchard vs Poolesville 5:30 PM @ Poolesville
Mid-County
Blair vs Churchill 3:45 PM @ Blair
East Montgomery
Rockville vs Wheaton 5:30 PM @ Rockville
Paint Branch vs Einstein 5:30 PM @ Paint Branch
Gaithersburg vs Blake 5:30 PM @ Gaithersburg
Good luck to all teams playing today! As always, if your team is looking for spirit wear, uniforms, or warm-ups, or if you just want some cool volleyball gear, check out 1-on-none at https://1-on-none.com and give us a follow at @1_on_none!
Upcounty
Poolesville vs Clarksburg 5:30PM @ Clarksburg High School
Northwest vs Quince Orchard 5:30 @ Northwest High School
Mid-County
Churchill vs Wootton 5:30 @ Wootton High School
Walter Johnson vs Whitman 5:30 @Whitman High School
East Montgomery Division
Rockville vs Einstein 5:30PM @ Einstein High School
Blake vs Paint Branch 5:30PM @ Blake High School
Gaithersburg vs Wheaton 5:30PM @ Wheaton High School
Please note that due to COVID restrictions, spectators must pre-register and games are NOT open to the public. Hopefully as COVID numbers decrease, restrictions will gradually be reduced so we can watch some boys volleyball this year! We wish all the athletes and coaches who are participating today the best of luck.
Upcounty | Mid-county | Eastern Montgomery |
Clarksburg | Wootton | Wheaton |
Quince Orchard | Churchill | Rockville |
Northwest | Whitman | Einstein |
Sherwood | Blair | Paint Branch |
Poolesville | Walter Johnson | Gaithersburg |
Blake |
For the 2021 season, each group will be playing within itself, and "inter-group" play will be limited to the playoffs.
The Sweet 16
Another major change this season is that there are only 16 total teams that are playing boys' volleyball. Schools without teams this year include: Kennedy, Magruder, Northwood, Richard Montgomery, Seneca Valley, Springbrook, and Watkins Mill. It's presumed that this lack of participation is mostly related to the pandemic, and schools not finding enough players who were willing to play. Of those schools, Richard Montgomery's absence is particularly surprising, as they were positioned to have a real shot to finish in the top 5 in 2021.
As unfortunate as all of that is, having 16 teams does make the playoff situation interesting. The county has decided that the playoffs will include all 16 schools, so regular season play will be used for seeding. This should provide for a really exciting post-season, as every team will have a shot at the championship. As we all know, upsets happen, and we fully expect there to be some surprises come end of the season.
Pre-Season Predictions
Upcounty - The upcounty division should be Clarksburg's to lose. Clarksburg is loaded with several club players, including potential POTY Junior Nathan Goh, and Senior Opposite Hitter Jason Soo. Sherwood will certainly challenge Clarksburg for the top spot behind Seth Kauffman and Brogan Black, but will have a tough time against the depth of Clarksburg's roster. Northwest, despite having another POTY candidate in Andrew Ahn, will likely finish 3rd in this group. As long as Clarksburg stays healthy, the Coyotes should finish with the best record in the division.
Midcounty - From top to bottom, this is clearly the toughest grouping in the county, with returning champions WJ and perennial playoff contenders Churchill having to battle it out for the top spot. Wootton is also a dangerous team, and could end up being the big surprise of 2021 behind Seniors Matthew Hou, Kyle Foster, and Junior Hayden Agan. With those three, Wootton certainly does not lack in size or power, but the question will be if they have the ball control to topple Churchill and WJ. Walter Johnson certainly has the experience to go all the way, lead by Senior Ryan Harper and several young club players, but can they do it without 2-time POTY Francesco Sani? Churchill certainly has the deepest roster of any team in the county, boasting a full lineup of club players including Juniors Corwin Trouteaud, Andy Wang, and Senior Charles Lin, but they also have a history of falling short in the playoffs. Do this year's Bulldogs finally have enough to get past the hump? This exciting division is absolutely full of questions, but when the dust settles, my prediction is that Churchill will finish at the top of the Midcounty division.
Eastern Montgomery - The largest grouping in the county is certainly shrouded in mystery, but based off Coach Alex Theoharis' consistent record of developing tough teams, Wheaton should be the team to beat. However, without a full season in 2020, it's really tough to say what any of these teams will look like in 2021. Will there be a Cinderella story coming out of this group? It will certainly be one to watch closely, especially as we head into the playoffs. Watch for a team to get hot at the right time, and surprise someone in June.
There you have it folks, 1-on-none's first MCPS Boys Volleyball post. As the season progresses, follow us for in-depth updates and analysis! As always, if your team is looking for spirit wear, uniforms, or warm-ups, or if you just want some cool volleyball gear, check out 1-on-none at https://1-on-none.com and give us a follow at @1_on_none!
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