SMAC male winter athletes of the year

Swimming — Gavin Abelende, La Plata High, junior

After winning a pair of individual events at the Southern Maryland Athletic Conference swim championships and two more at the 2A/1A regional meet, Gavin Abelende capped a stellar season by earning 3A/2A/1A state titles in both the 50-yard freestyle (20.79 seconds), and the 100 free (46.04) and he also anchored the Warriors’ triumphant 200 free relay (1:27.84) that included teammates Clinton Cupples, Jackson Donnick and Mario Curtis. Calvert senior Drew Lynch also won a pair of SMAC titles and placed second in the 3A/2A/1A state final in the 200 free (1:44.44) and third in the 100 breast (59.85) where teammate Jacob Strain placed fourth.

Indoor track — Jordan Tuck, Northern High, senior

During a winter season that had numerous superb performance for SMAC male indoor track athletes, Jordan Tuck perhaps had more than his fair share. He won both the 300 and 500 and was second in the 800, then at the state championship meet he won the 500, took second in the 300 and was part of two Patriots’ relays that took second. Huntingtown’s Xavier Dailey was the state champion in the 55 hurdles, Westlake’s Ebube Emichebe won the 300 and Chopticon’s Weston Carr was the state champion in the 800 and part of the Braves’ 3200 relay that garnered the SMAC, region and state titles.

Wrestling — Drew Montgomery, Northern High, junior

Not only did Drew Montgomery capture a second consecutive Maryland 4A/3A State wrestling title he did so while moving up from 113 pounds to 138 pounds in one season. Montgomery also won the SMAC title at 138 pounds and later earned a 2-0 victory in the 4A/3A state final in that weight class. Fittingly, Calvert senior Brian Davis was the runner-up to Montgomery in the 138-pound title match at the SMAC tournament but he would later earn the 2A/1A crown in that class in his final high school match. North Point senior Dominic Queen was the SMAC champion at 190 pounds and would later reach the 4A/3A state title match in that weight class before suffering a 3-1 decision defeat in overtime.

Boys basketball — Ty Woodland, Thomas Stone High, senior

A dominant inside presence for the Cougars throughout the season, Ty Woodland led the squad to the 2A South Region title as part of a team that had a bevy of new players. Stone teammates Jonas Agyeman and Kaden Jackson also played key roles for the Cougars throughout the season and during their playoff run.

St. Charles seniors Xavier Buchanan and Shamir Taylor were also very instrumental in leading the Spartans to their first 3A state final appearance, a heartbreaking 69-66 setback to Northeast. Buchanan led all scorers in that contest with 31 points in a losing cause while Taylor added 22. Two days earlier in the 3A state semifinals, Taylor had 25 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter, as the Spartans edged Stephen Decatur 63-60.