2025-26 MCPS Year In Review: Winter Sports Recap

BOYS BASKETBALL 🏀

For the first time since Magruder’s 2012 title, Montgomery County is home to an MPSSAA boys basketball state championship winning team! In March, the Blake Bengals defeated the Whitman Vikings 60-44 in the 4A title game to capture the team’s first state title in school history in their first appearance since 2005. Blake and Whitman faced off in the 4A title game, but they were not the only MCPS teams to make the championship game, much less the state bracket as a whole. Click this link or scroll down to read about the MoCo boys basketball teams with the deepest playoff runs from this winter season!

1. Blake (2025-26: 25-3)

Following a regional championship loss to Sherwood last winter, Brandon Howell made the move from assistant to head coach for the Blake Bengals. In his first game leading the Bengals, Howell’s squad put 101 points on the board, the only time a Montgomery County school reached triple digits this year. After the Bengals’ record fell to 4-3 by the end of winter break, Blake went on a 15-game winning streak lasting the rest of the regular season. Blake and Whitman faced off in the MCPS county championship game where the Bengals won 67-55, and three weeks later, the two met again in the 4A state championship contest. Blake scored 16 points in three quarters in the final game while outscoring the Vikings in each en route to a 60-44 win, marking Blake’s first state title in school history. The Bengals will go on to the 2026-27 season without four seniors committed to play in college including Christian Kennard (West Virginia State), Eli Konkler (Stevenson), Tahj Martin (Wright State), and Baba Oladotun (Maryland).

2. Whitman (2025-26: 22-4)

After finishing as the 4A state runner up in two consecutive seasons, the Whitman Vikings, led by head coach Chris Lun, looked to get back on top for the first time in 20 years. Their season started impeccably, winning each of their first 16 games, including a pair of wins over rival Walter Johnson. Whitman’s regular season ended with a pair of losses to Richard Montgomery and Bethesda-CC, both of which by just one point. After a county championship loss to Blake, the Vikings entered the 4A North II bracket as the top seed, where they won their third game of the season against both Churchill and WJ to win the regional title. Whitman and Blake faced off for the second time of the season in the state championship game, where the Bengals won the state title 60-44. After the championship game loss, Coach Lun said he was still proud of his team and the loss should not take away from the team’s accomplishments.

3. Magruder (2025-26: 22-3)

The Colonels were the third and final MoCo boys basketball team to reach the state championship game. Magruder’s appearance came after a regular season that saw just two total losses. On opening day, Magruder took down Kennedy on the road 61-60 at the start of a six-game winning streak. After a loss to Paint Branch on the road, the Colonels won each of their next nine games, scoring no fewer than 61 throughout the stretch. Their second loss of the season came against the future 4A state champs before two more wins to end their regular season. Magruder’s regional semifinal game against Rockville was the lone game before the state championship where the defense gave up more than 60, but the Colonels still won the game by 13. Wins over Damascus, Overlea, and Frederick sent Magruder to the championship where the Colonels fell to South River 67-50. The appearance marked Magruder’s first since 2013, and head coach Dan Harwood will look to pick up back-to-back appearances and a state title next winter.

4. Seneca Valley (2025-26: 15-8)

The Screamin’ Eagles opened this season by winning six of their first seven including a narrow 44-42 win at home against Northwest and a more dominant 76-40 victory at Watkins Mill. After the second Seneca Valley loss of the season, a 61-41 defeat against Poolesville on the road, the team did not have any winning or losing streaks until the end of the season where SV won a pair against Quince Orchard and their second against Northwest. Their playoff streak started with their third win of the year against the Jaguars and was followed by a 66-61 home win against Thomas Johnson. The Screamin’ Eagles’ season came to a screeching halt in the state quarterfinals with a 75-60 road loss to two-seeded Meade.

5. Blair (2025-26: 15-7)

The Blazers’ season started off with three wins in their first six games. That stretch came before a great streak where Blair won nine of ten including two wins over Northwood, Einstein, and Rockville. With a 12-4 record, Blair lost a pair back-to-back before beating Springbrook and Richard Montgomery to round out their regular season action. The Blazers entered their regional bracket as the top seed, taking down Laurel 56-51 in the semis before falling by the same score in the regional championship at home against Eleanor Roosevelt.

6. Damascus (2025-26: 14-8)

Last season, the Damascus Hornets started their season with a 1-3 record, finished the regular season at .500, and won a playoff game. This season, the team opened by winning four of their first five, earning victories against Churchill, Sherwood, Wootton, and Clarksburg. The team started to sputter, dropping three of their next four, but bounced back by going 8-3 in the back half of the season. Each of their three best regular season offensive performances came in this 11 game stretch, as the Hornets scored 71 against B-CC, 72 against Rockville, and 77 at Watkins Mill. Their best performance of the whole season came in the first round of the playoffs in a 83-62 win over Northwood, but Damascus lost their second game of the season against Magruder in the regional championship. Ethan Ray and Jayden Thompson were both selected to the first all-division team representing the North region.

7. Walter Johnson (2025-26: 15-7)

In 2025, the Wildcats finished with a 5-17 record and were eliminated in their first playoff game. This seasons, WJ had a much better start, winning their season opener against Rockville followed by a 51-point win at Einstein. After losing a pair, the Wildcats went on to win eight of their next ten, coming in four wins followed by two losses then another four wins. Walter Johnson win four of their final six to end the regular season at 14-6, their best record since the 2018-2019 season. The Wildcats won their third game of the season against Bethesda-CC in their first playoff game before Whitman, the future 4A runners up, ended their season in the regional championships.

8. Sherwood (2025-26: 11-12)

The first half of the Warriors’ season had plenty of back and forth. For the first half of Sherwood’s season, the team found themselves on either a two-game win streak or a two-game losing streak. The best wins in this span were by 38 against Gaithersburg on the road and by two at home against the Paint Branch Panthers. At the start of February, Sherwood went on a four-game slide against Magruder, Blake, Paint Branch, and Whitman, several of the county’s top teams. The Warriors bounced back by winning two straight, but lost the last two of their regular season, going into the postseason with a 9-11 record. Sherwood took down Reservoir and Oakland Mills in their first two playoff games, bringing them back to .500, but three-seeded Mt. Hebron ended Sherwood’s season 64-42 in the regional championship game.

GIRLS BASKETBALL 🏀

After being eliminated in the regional semifinals a year ago, the Whitman Vikings completed an undefeated season, beating Richard Montgomery in the 4A championship 51-40. The win, ending a 26-0 campaign, gave Whitman the team’s first state championship in a decade. The Vikings and Rockets, however, were not the only Montgomery County teams to reach the state bracket. Click this link or scroll down to read about the MoCo boys basketball teams with the deepest playoff runs from this winter season!

1. Whitman (2025-26: 26-0)

Last winter, the Vikings’ season came to a close in just the regional semifinals, marking back-to-back seasons where Whitman was eliminated in the second round. At the start of this campaign, Whitman got off to an incredible start, defeating Blair at home in the season opener by 70, followed by a 57 road win over Kennedy and a 58-22 revenge win against the B-CC Barons. Of the Vikings’ 21 regular season games, just four were decided by a single-digit point margin. Once in the regional bracket, Peter Kenah’s squad took down Gaithersburg by 15 and Churchill by 16, capturing the team’s first regional title since the COVID shutdown. In the state bracket, the top 4A team defeated Eleanor Roosevelt and Flowers, both by at least three scores, sending the Vikings back to the state title game for the first time since 2017. Whitman was led by senior Kaylah Tchofua, who recorded 14 points and 13 rebounds, on the way to their third win of the season over Richard Montgomery 51-40. The game marked Whitman’s first championship win since their 2016 title over the Western Doves 71-55.

2. Richard Montgomery (2025-26: 23-5)

In 2025, the Rockets finished their season with a pair of playoff wins and a 13-10 overall record after losing each of their first six regular season games, all but one by no more than two scores. This season was the total opposite, as Richard Montgomery won seven of their first eight, including a 67-point win over Wheaton where the RM defense held the Knights to just seven total points. The defense did the same twice more throughout the regular season, holding Northwood to eight and nine points in two games during a nine-game winning streak. Despite a loss in the last game of the season to Whitman. The top seed in the 4A North II took down Blake by 20 and Einstein by ten to secure the team’s third straight regional title. In the state bracket, the Rockets entered the 4A state bracket as the two-seed, beating Dulaney by 15 before edging out the reigning runner-up Western 57-56. Going into the state championship, Richard Montgomery was looking for their first state title since 1996, but the Rockets fell short in their third game against Whitman 51-40. The Rockets’ biggest loss this season is Katie Diao, who finished her career ranked second in school history with 1552 career points and will continue her career in the Ivy League for the Yale Bulldogs next winter.

3. Clarksburg (2025-26: 19-4)

The Coyotes reached the state semifinals last winter, falling to the future state champion North Point. This year’s team started their season by beating Sherwood by 31 and Bethesda-CC by a dozen. After a ten-point road loss to Urbana, head coach Sissy Natoli’s squad won eight straight, highlighted by a pair of games where their opponent scored fewer than 20 points (12 allowed at Watkins Mill and 16 at Northwest). Clarksburg finished the season winning seven of their last nine to go into the postseason with a 17-3 record. The Coyotes took down Seneca Valley and Thomas Johnson in the regional bracket, advancing to play Flowers in the state quarterfinal. Facing the Jaguars at home, Clarksburg’s season ended in upset fashion, as the Coyotes fell 42-38. Destiny Turner finished as the team’s top scorer, averaging 17.7 points and 10.9 rebounds per game.

4. Wootton (2025-26: 16-7)

Despite finishing two games below .500 last season, the Patriots still won a regional title, but their season ended in the first round of the state bracket. This season, Wootton opened their schedule with a 41-point road win against Poolesville, the first in a 4-0 start. The Patriots did lose three of their next four, but bounced back, winning six of their next seven. The 6-1 streak included a 10-point win at Quince Orchard, and their biggest win in three seasons as they took down Northwood 72-6. After getting revenge on Walter Johnson at the end of the regular season, Wootton went into the playoffs with a 14-6 record and as the top seed in the 3A North II region. In the regional bracket, the Patriots defeated Rockville and Damascus by a combined 77 points to win their second straight regional title. Their season came to a close in the state quarterfinals once again, as Wootton lost 58-36 on the road against Edgewood in Harford County. Senior Maya Bellamy and Junior Malia Bellamy led Wootton’s team on the statsheet, averaging 13.8 and 12.7 points per game respectively, totalling 582 on the season between the two.

5. Poolesville (2025-26: 14-8)

The Falcons got off to a rocky start this season, losing their season opener by 41 at home against Wootton, and two games later, dropping another home game to Sherwood. With a 1-2 record on the season, Poolesville went on to win five of their next six, including a 43-point win over Paint Branch where the Falcon defense held the Panthers to single digit points. Poolesville had another game where they allowed single digit scores, beating Watkins Mill on the road 45-9. Wins against Magruder and Northwest ended the team’s regular season with a 13-7 record, sending Montgomery County’s lone 2A team into the regional bracket. After a home win over Liberty in the semis, the Falcons traveled to Washington County to face the Williamsport Wildcats, where Poolesville fell 38-31.

6. Einstein (2025-26: 15-7)

The Titans got off to a strong start this winter season, opening their campaign with a 6-1 record including four wins coming by more than 20 points. That strong start was leveled out by a 2-3 streak, but it is noteworthy that two of the three losses were by three or fewer scores. Einstein ended their season winning six of their last eight, including their best win of the season, a 74-1 rout at home against Northwood, and a final regular season record of 14-6. In the regional bracket, Einstein defeated Springbrook by 27 before suffering their third loss of the season to the future 4A runner up, Richard Montgomery, 55-45, ending their season in the regional championship.

7. Churchill (2025-26: 20-3)

In 2025, the Bulldogs started their season with a 15-2 record before losing four of their last five games, including the regional championship against Bethesda-CC. This season saw a much better ending and an equally strong beginning. Churchill won each of their first six games of the season, including their best defensive performance of the season, allowing just five points at Seneca Valley. The team’s lone regular season losses both came against the 4A state champion, Whitman. The closest the Bulldogs came in any other game was a six point revenge win over the Barons and a four point win at Clarksburg. Finishing the season at 19-2 was good for the two-seed in the regional bracket, where the Bulldogs won their third game of the season against B-CC before losing their third of the year to Whitman,

8. Damascus (2025-26: 13-11)

The Hornets had a rough start to their season, opening by losing each of their first six games. The start included a 48-point loss on opening day to Churchill, a 35-point loss at Wootton, and a 24-point loss at Clarksburg. Coming out of winter break, Damascus bounced back, winning 11 of their next 12, including a pair of wins over Northwest, Rockville, and Seneca Valley. The end of the season saw the Hornets avenge an early season loss to Poolesville before losing their final two games, ending with a 12-10 record. In the postseason, the Hornets took down Magruder for the second time before a 69-33 loss to Wootton ended their season.

TRACK AND FIELD TEAM SPOTLIGHT 🏃

During this past winter’s outdoor season, the Churchill Bulldogs were the only team from MoCo to finish in the state’s top three. The boys team finished second to Crofton in the 4A state championship, ending the event with 38.5 team points. The silver medal ending was aided by seniors Jacob Breitstein and Bakari Taylor who won gold in the shot put and high jump. Churchill also had their 4×200m team place second in the 4A class, while senior Santiago Gutierrez set a personal best in the 3200m, also winning silver. Stay tuned to CSZ for a newsletter release dedicated to recapping cross country along with both indoor and outdoor track and field!

WRESTLING 🤼‍♂️

Whitman was crowned the 4A state dual wrestling champions this past winter season! The Vikings defeated Richard Montgomery 69-12 in the semifinals before a 62-12 win over Crofton in the title game. The championship victory marks Whitman’s first since 2005, and their first top four finish in 16 years. The Rockets placed fourth in the 4A class in the team’s first state bracket appearance since 1973. Stay tuned to CSZ for a newsletter release dedicated to MoCo wrestling in the coming weeks!

SHARE YOUR STORIES

Know a coach, teammate, or fan going above and beyond? Nominate them for a feature! Your story idea could be highlighted in next week’s edition.

Email us at [email protected].