10 Montgomery County Players To Watch For The Fall Season!

The fall sports season is just around the corner, making now the perfect time to highlight some of the key players who look to lead their teams on championship runs in 2026. These 10 players all played large roles in the 2025 season, putting some expectations on their upcoming 2026 season. Click this link or scroll down to take a look at some of these pivotal contributors across the fall sports.

FOOTBALL

Paint Branch star running back Alijah Bah will look to add on to his impressive 2025 campaign where he finished with over 1,600 all purpose yards and 24 touchdowns. For a team that had one of the best offenses in the county, Bah played a huge role and will look to lead the Panthers on a deeper playoff run than in 2025, where they were a second round exit.

Winston Churchill’s quarterback Hunter Humphries enters his second year as a starter with the Bulldogs. His first starting campaign was a productive one, accumulating over 2,000 all purpose yards, adding 34 touchdowns to his impressive season. Supplementing those numbers was a selection to the First Team All County team. The Bulldogs may have finished third a season ago, but Humphries has higher ambitions in 2026.

BOYS SOCCER

Rising senior with the James Hubert Blake Bengals, Alhaji Koroma is ready to put up huge numbers in 2026. The Bengal striker scored an impressive 19 goals and added eight assists in 2025. Koroma became the 13th player in Bengals Boys Soccer program history to earn All-Met honors in 2025 and looks to repeat history in 2026.

GIRLS SOCCER

Sherwood Warriors defender Avah Scott is entering her sophomore season, coming off a second place finish in 2025. Scott’s impressive freshman campaign earned herself a spot on the East All-Division team, which she will look to repeat in the coming season. She has a tough road ahead to earn the honor for a second consecutive year as the competition is stiff, but Scott’s abilities on the pitch certainly make it attainable once more.

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FIELD HOCKEY

Julia Foster of the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Barons earned a selection to the 2025 All County Team, proving her spot as one of the top performers in MoCo Field Hockey. The rising junior played a pivotal role down the stretch, scoring a goal in the regional semifinal match. The team may have lost that game, causing an exit in the playoffs, but Foster is ready to lead her team back to the playoffs as the Barons chase their 14th title.

The Vikings of Walt Whitman will be led by rising sophomore Antonia Parrado in 2026. Parrado was great during her freshman campaign with the Vikings, but spent the spring playing on a bigger stage after she was selected to the U16 US National Team. Parrado has a lot of experience playing at a high level, as she is a two time champion of the USA Field Hockey’s Nexus Championship. She will bring that experience and use it to help lead the Vikings as they chase a championship in the fall.

VOLLEYBALL

Rising junior at Richard Montgomery Katie Mitchell has already committed to play B1G volleyball at the University of Minnesota, but still has two seasons left with the Rockets in 2026 and 2027. In just two seasons, she has posted over 500 career kills, including over 400 in just her sophomore season alone. To go with that, she also had 65 service aces and 176 digs in 2025. Mitchell also ranks at #1 among Maryland high school girls volleyball players, according to MaxPreps. The Rockets are well poised for a championship run in 2026 with Mitchell leading the way.

The Colonel Zadok Magruder Colonels will be led by rising senior Chloe Tanseco, who was selected to the Second All County team a season ago. Tanseco surpassed 1,000 career assists in 2025 and looks to lead the Colonels to a deep playoff run after an early elimination last season.

GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY

Rising sophomore with the Thomas S Wootten Patriots, Eleanor Finnegan is coming off an noteworthy freshman campaign, where she ran an impressive 18:08 in the 5K, which was the third fastest among Maryland high schoolers. She also recorded a 10:46 in the 3200 meter race at the county meet, finishing fifth among Maryland high schoolers.

BOYS CROSS COUNTRY

Bereket Eshetu of the Northwood Gladiators earned a personal record 15:59 in the 5K during the county championship meet, finishing fifth overall. An impressive sophomore campaign brings him to junior year where he looks for more.

PROGRAMMING NOTE 💭

Stay tuned to County Sports Zone for more preview articles and power rankings for Montgomery County high school sports in the coming weeks! Practices are in full swing and the regular season gets underway on September 4.

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