2011-2012 DC Area

[Smuttynose Island]

So it's the night before my UVA session and I'm bored. This area isn't too big on these things, but hey one of you RM kids is bound to respond to this, right? Anyways here's how I see things shaking out at the beginning of the year.

1 or 2. St.Anselm's - This team was one of the best teams in the region last year and they don't lose either Jacob or Aidan. They should also be a top ten team nationally this year.
1 or 2. TJ A - With James reuniting his old B teammates and John's negging problem seemingly solved this team will be scary on any set. They should be especially frightful on NAQT questions and I honestly believe that they have a shot at winning HSNCT next year.
3. GDS - Not quite as good as the above two teams, but definitely the third best team in the area at this point. They finished T-13th at HSNCT and don't lose anyone if I recall correctly.
4. RM A- Sam will be joining last year's RM B which should make for a rather good team. It's doubtful that they will replicate their success last year, but they should give the the above teams some fits over the course of the year.
5. Whitman A - Although they lose their delightful coach, they return most of their scoring from last year. They, especially Basil, seemed to really improve over the course of last year and there is no reason why that trend should not continue.
6. Blair A* - It appears as if they return Daniel Hefner, who put up over 70pp20TUH at Maryland/DC states in route to them finishing second ahead of a Jacobless St. Anselm's and a fully loaded RM B. Even though he had very good support at that tournament, if they return even one of two of that supporting cast, they will be frightfully good at NAQT. Their production does seem to drop off at higher difficulty tournaments if their performance at Maryland Spring is anything to go by, which is why I'm putting them below Whitman.
7. Charter A* - This team returns its lead scorer from HSNCT, which saw them exit after a 5-5 prelim record. They also return Ravi, who put up over 30pp20TUH at HSNCT while playing on their 4-6 B team, which should translate to success in local competition.
8. Caesar Rodney - Although they seem to have chronic commitment problems with most of their members, Coach Chrzanowski is a very dedicated coach and Alexa is a very dedicated (and good) player.
9. Gov A - This team really takes a blow from losing Tommy and JR. Good news is that they all appear to be rising juniors. This team has a lot of potential to *improve over the summer and they did manage to go 5-5 at HSNCT last year. (Odds are this is the team that I most likely messed up on)

* symbolize revisions, usually a result of learning that they return good players that I was unsure about.

[Down and out in Quintana Roo]

Not bad. I agree with most of your top teams, but to put MW above us is pretty silly. Even if they lose those great players, the experience the team gets from writing a tough but great tournament each year helps them tremendously. I wouldn't rank a CR team over them until we actually beat them, which might not happen. I appreciate the compliment though!

In terms of commitment, we definitely have Alexa who is working hard this summer. Pratyusha is back and is trying to be a lock-down science player, and we have a new member Bryce who's great at geography and improving at history and other social sciences. I'm not sure if we have a reliable fourth member right now, but we're working on it.

[Angry Babies in Love]

I mostly agree with your rankings, but with Gov above CR (for now) and St. Anselm's above TJ (for now). GDS doesn't lose any of their major scorers and I can see them knocking off TJ and St. Anselm's at various points in the year. I also see RM improving as the year goes on, maybe moreso than some of the other teams. And watch out for Whitman, Basil's getting good.

[salmon of wisdom]

Great list. Whitman does not lose anyone from their A or B team though.

[Black-throated Antshrike]

I like the ranking's except honestly I don't think that CR will be better than GOV or Charter. Yeah Brianna, Keyi, and myself are all gone (These are the only seniors our entire team lost), but we retain Bohan who was our best player after me. She is a strong lit player and the other two girls were both lit players so she had some points taken away from her by that. She's also gotten alot better at science and some history. We also have this one girl that's going to be a sophomore and put up around 70ppg on our C team. She could very likely be the fourth member on the A team. We return all of our B team members, notably Ravi who will take over for me with the hard core sciences and history and knows a damn lot for it. I personally think the rankings would go Gov, Charter, then CR (sorry Andrew). Also I have never even heard of this Blair until now so this might be all a load of crap.

[Nine-Tenths Ideas]

Blair will be a decent team, but it's contingent on how many tournaments they go to. I think Daniel Hafner has another year.

[Kouign Amann]

Sure, I'm pretty terrible at NAQT, but Daniel Hafner and co. beat St. Anselm's (minus Jacob) at NAQT States this year. If he's back, Blair is nothing to sneeze at.

Other predictions: Throughout the year, St. Anselm's will put up better stats (most of the time?) than TJ, but that team will continue to have our number, like they did for most of Spring 2011. They will find a way to win at key junctures. Also, except for James, everyone on that team will be insane. Not insanely good, just regular old insane. At points, they will invoke the spirit of Daniel Hothem to bring even greater insanity to their games.

[theflyingdeutschman]

If Blair actually shows up to things, I would predict them to be maybe a little better than Whitman. I think their best player(Daniel Hafner) is a rising senior, and our B team beat them on the final question twice, while our A team actually lost to them once.

[Smuttynose Island]

I like the ranking's except honestly I don't think that CR will be better than GOV or Charter. Yeah Brianna, Keyi, and myself are all gone (These are the only seniors our entire team lost), but we retain Bohan who was our best player after me. She is a strong lit player and the other two girls were both lit players so she had some points taken away from her by that. She's also gotten alot better at science and some history. We also have this one girl that's going to be a sophomore and put up around 70ppg on our C team. She could very likely be the fourth member on the A team. We return all of our B team members, notably Ravi who will take over for me with the hard core sciences and history and knows a damn lot for it. I personally think the rankings would go Gov, Charter, then CR (sorry Andrew). Also I have never even heard of this Blair until now so this might be all a load of crap.

Yeah, now that I know (sort of) who is coming back to Charter and Blair, I'll add them to my rankings. I didn't know where to put them, because I had no idea who they returned, just that they had the potential to make some noise if they returned the right people.

Throughout the year, St. Anselm's will put up better stats (most of the time?) than TJ, but that team will continue to have our number, like they did for most of Spring 2011. They will find a way to win at key junctures.

This will probably be the case for much of the fall of next year, but as Raynor continues to get better, at a somewhat scary pace, they may soon overtake you statswise.

Also, except for James, everyone on that team will be insane. Not insanely good, just regular old insane. At points, they will invoke the spirit of Daniel Hothem to bring even greater insanity to their games.

This will always be true.

[Angry Babies in Love]

Also, except for James, everyone on that team will be insane. Not insanely good, just regular old insane. At points, they will invoke the spirit of Daniel Hothem to bring even greater insanity to their games.

This will always be true.

I really hope whoever is captain next year yells "Atta boy!!" after every power.

EDIT: Never mind, I hope Leidenheimer does it.

[STPickrell]

Would you see anyone emerging from the sub-TJ strata in Northern VA this year? I don't know who George Mason is returning, for example, Langley has had a few good years here and there, as have other schools in the area.

[Smuttynose Island]

Would you see anyone emerging from the sub-TJ strata in Northern VA this year? I don't know who George Mason is returning, for example, Langley has had a few good years here and there, as have other schools in the area.

At the moment, no. I know for a fact that Langley loses Will Mannon (or is it Manning), who was their best player. Marhall, I believe, loses Brian Potter; however, if they don't, then they can be quite good. It be interesting to see what a little more outreach in the area might produce. TJ sends emails to a fair amount of schools inviting them to their tournaments, but many don't come, unfortunately.