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The Washington Catholic Athletic Conference is made up of more than a dozen teams, with five of them being Virginia/DC based schools. Today we take a look at a few of those Virginia/DC based teams as we prepare for the 2026 season high school season.

WCAC Season Previews:

Bishop O'Connell Knights  

2025 Record: 20-6

Moving from 15-12 in 2024 to 20-6 in 2025, the Knights saw some massive upgrades last season. Quality wins over Georgetown Prep (MD), Paul VI, and a clean sweep in Myrtle Beach were some of the highlights of 2025. However, after a winning streak of 11 games from April 8th to April 28th, O’Connell lost their first game in the WCAC playoffs and the VISAA playoffs. The biggest ask in 2026 will be replacing the offense that they lost with the departures of Noah Haught (Richmond), Kamari Chisolm (Hood), Will Headley, and Truman Leckey (Eastern Conn. State). Those four players hit .365 or better, with Haught leading the way at .443. While Haught led the team in batting average, Leckey led in RBI (29) and in stolen bases (16). The two returning big names on the offensive side are Chaz Walker and Jack Woda (ECU). Both hit around .360 for the season, with Woda leading the team in doubles (11), runs (29), and homeruns (3). While Haught certainly had the best “stuff” of any DJO arm, it was Drew Markey (Presbyterian) that carried the heaviest workload last season. Markey threw 47.1 innings and carried the lowest ERA (2.51) of any real qualifying arm. While it is not necessarily big strikeout numbers, he brings reliability and consistency to this staff, while also limiting free passes and big innings. Joining Markey should be Shota Fogus (Richmond). Fogus threw just over 28 innings last season with just under a 4.0 ERA. The biggest improvement area for the Spiders commit, from a statistical vantage point, would be in the K:BB ratio and BB/7. While the Knights certainly have some big losses from 2025, their additions may outweigh the losses, especially from an offensive standpoint. Bryant James (Virginia), Lucas Grubb, Cam Bates, and Daggu Rana should be massive adds to the athleticism, versatility, and offensive output of this team. They went from being a fairly athletic team, to having one of the best and most versatile lineups in the state. Bates and Rana should also contribute more than their share on the mound as well, only adding to an already solid staff. While they have an immense amount of team speed, strength up the middle of the defense, and some intriguing arms on the mound, it is the power production that could be the biggest question with this team. Insert Walker McElwain. If the physical right handed bat can consistently find the barrel in the middle of that order, there may not be many big tasks for the DJO pitching staff.

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Gonzaga Eagles  

2025 Record: 17-14

Massive losses off of a 17-14 Eagles team will make it tough for a successful 2026, but they do have six returners in the lineup and a few key contributing arms. Cash McDade (Baylor), Luke Forde (Catholic), and Andrew Hoffman all graduated, along with others. In addition to a sizable senior class, Bryant James transferred to WCAC foe Bishop O’Connell. While the Zags do lose a lot, they also return some very important seniors with Tyler Majkowski, Colin Madden (Hamilton), and Dylan Waits (Washington & Lee). Majkowski and Madden should be big contributors on the mound, while Waits will more than likely continue to be a steadying presence in the middle of the field and a sparkplug in the lineup. A few other names to note that could factor in this season and beyond are Chaz Willis, Harper Waters, Declan Schnabel, Jackson Schmidt, and Matteo Pipia. Pipia saw some important time last season and brings some two-way value to the Eagles’ squad. A few other names that could play important parts for this team are Gary Barton (2029), Anthony Lymus (2027), and Liam Finkel (2027). The Eagles have a solid combination of youth and experience. The biggest question may be which arm(s) will join Majkowski on the mound to push them through to wins over some of the top teams in the conference?

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Paul VI Panthers  

2025 Record: 27-9 *VISAA DI & WCAC Runner Up*

The Panthers can make an argument for having the best rotation in the state returning for 2026 despite losing pieces like Brendon Moehnke (Iona) and Matthew Roussey (CNU). Aiden Gallagher (JMU), Landon McGinn (Radford), and Carter Perdue (ECU) headline this pitching staff, and each one of them can give this team a very good chance to win when they are on the mound. Bryson Pickeral is also a name to know on this pitching staff, as he did get some innings on the varsity level last spring; he could carve out a bigger role behind these senior arms this spring. The Panthers bring back a lot of the offense from 2025 minus the power bat of Will Tighe (Shenandoah). Thomas Jewett (Radford) and Owen Peltier (VMI) are spark plugs at the top of the order and valuable pieces up the middle of the field for this team, and their everyday presence will be needed to succeed this spring. Ryan Bahr is an exciting returning piece, as he burst onto the scene as a freshman starting at the hot corner. Cole Karas and Ryan Vaxmonsky add to the offensive depth of this lineup. As long as this pitching staff receives run support, then they will be a hard team to beat throughout the year.

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St. John's College Cadets    

2025 Record: 30-1 *2025 WCAC Champions*

Not so sure that there is another team in recent memory that lost as much as the Cadets lost last season. Their 30-1 season and #4 national ranked team graduated nearly a dozen contributors, including the easily recognizable names of Sean McCabe (Charleston), Clayton Armah (Auburn), Nick Felton (ODU), Nate Hawton-Henley (Maryland), Caleb Hawton-Henley (Randolph-Macon), and Ren Devereux (Penn State). Devereux was Prep Baseball VA/DC Player of the Year last season after he was absolutely dominant on the mound and made huge contributions at the plate. While returning production is extremely limited, SJC does return Drew Christine (Tennessee). Think it is safe to say Christine slates to be staff ace this season, coming off of a much more limited role in the past. There are certainly question marks as to who will join Christine on this staff, but if the past is any indication, regardless of who gets the other innings on the mound, they will throw strikes and keep the Cadets in the game. At the plate it is a much taller task than any previous year, figuring out who will step into this lineup. Jackson Bringger, Jack Jenkins, and Cole Hodgkins (Catholic) are a few names that played a part last year. Gabe Taylor (Montclair State) provided a big lift off the bench last season and should be a much more regular contributor in 2026. Junior infielder Jake Armiger is another one to watch on this team. Armiger has some physicality and a solid set of tools to make an impact on this roster. They have some younger players (see Carson Jones, Danny Sullivan, Jackson Stewart, Jake Coblentz, Gunner Chapman) that bring athleticism, versatility, and solid bat to ball traits, but where they will factor in this season is TBD. While it is a far stretch to imagine this 2026 SJC competing for a national ranking, do not be surprised if they are yet again in the running for a WCAC title.