High School Football has ended and now the focus shifts to the hardwood, where there are already several early-season storylines to follow.
Since our initial rankings release to start off the 2023-24 campaign, we have 11 new teams making the Top Tens. Perhaps more noteworthy is that five teams that have won a State Championship within the past decade - Hayfield, Westfield, Stone Bridge, Smithfield and Hopewell - have fallen out of the rankings.
A freshman has burst onto the scene as Makel Minor of James Monroe erupted for 56 points with eight three-pointers in a recent win over Brentsville District. It's not only a school-record for the Yellow Jackets, but believed to be the most in Fredericksburg area history, surpassing the 51 scored by Caroline star David Ware in 2018.
While John Marshall saw its 38-game winning streak halted with a 64-58 loss to North Carolina power and fellow Top 25 nationally-ranked foe Myers Park in a game where they were out-rebounded 36-25, the Justices got a nice 63-55 overtime win over Sidewell Friends over the weekend. Junior guard Aiden Argabright led the way with 21 points on 5-of-8 shooting from behind the arc for a team that has also blitzed the likes of Hopewell (84-47) and Steward (90-45) in the early portion of the season.
With John Marshall suffering a defeat, it means the longest winning streak by a public school program in the state belongs to defending Class 1 State Champ Lancaster, winners of 32 in a row after handling Christchurch 70-40 to open this season at 3-0 overall.
South Lakes is off to a strong start at 4-0 behind Class of 2025 standout Jordan Scott, who had 23 points to open vs. W.T. Woodson, while Woodside took care of business at the Princess Anne Tip-Off Classic against Class 6 contender Patriot, 59-46. Junior forward Silas Barksdale had 20 points and seven rebounds to lead the way (see our Video Interview with him here).
You can see the full rankings below...
* Indicates record including Eastern District Tournament games
Honorable Mention:
George Marshall (4-0)
South County (3-1)
Freedom-Woodbridge (4-1)
Honorable Mention:
James River-Midlothian (3-1)
Norview (1-1; 0-0)
Hermitage (2-1)
Honorable Mention:
Blacksburg (4-1)
Henrico (3-1)
Honorable Mention:
Rustburg (5-0)
New Kent (4-0)
Meridian (5-0)
William Monroe (6-1)
Honorable Mention:
Lebanon (2-1)
Nelson County (3-2)
Honorable Mention:
Patrick Henry-Glade Spring (5-1)
Matthew Hatfield serves as Publisher for VirginiaPreps.com, part of the Rivals.com Network. Check out Hatfield’s Twitter page for more sports related updates, and you can also read his work in the Suffolk News Herald. To contact Matthew, please e-mail hatfieldsports2k4@yahoo.com, and be sure to Subscribe to Hometown Sports Productions where you can hear his Podcasts.