Calm and Collected: YorktownBasketball wins their 1st FallLeague Game over AlexandriaCity

ARLINGTON, Va. — Basketball is an intense sport played on a small court, with players jockeying for space and angles to shoot. On Saturday afternoon, the intensity at the Wakefield High School basketball court was off the charts, and the energy was palpable. Yorktown High School faced Alexandria City High School to kick off its 2026 Fall League season, in the league’s opening weekend. Yorktown has one of the best basketball teams in the region, and coming into the game against Alexandria City, they felt confident. It was a fascinating and aggressive game, with Yorktown winning the game 45-32.

In the first half of the game, it was complete domination by Yorktown. They won most of the 50-50 balls, hit their shots, and while Alexandria City looked sluggish, Yorktown flew out of the gates. At halftime, the score was 26-6, Yorktown’s way, after a 17-0 run that they went on. A couple of distinguishing factors between the two teams were the shooting and the physicality. Alexandria City struggled to make shots and also lacked second-chance opportunities, while Yorktown was all over the rebounding department. They played active defense and gave Alexandria City very little room to breathe. One of the key leaders of the team, senior James Davis, spoke about his strong physical presence in the game.

“I think a big thing I did in the off-season was really just trying to work on my body,” said Davis. “I tried to work on my body enough to a point where I really feel comfortable doing everything in the games.”

Davis scored 16 points in the game, almost all of which were in the paint. He flustered Alexandria City countless times with his defensive acumen and was a critical part of Yorktown’s success on both ends of the court.

In addition, across the entire game, the energy levels displayed by both teams were exceptional. The benches were constantly fired up, and along with the crowd visibly into the game, it made for a great atmosphere. After the win, Yorktown’s fall head coach, Luke Moritz, talked about the team’s energetic attitude in the game.

“I think the energy was 100% of the game on both sides,” said Moritz. “I think during our run we were definitely the more energetic team on the court and the bench, getting hype.”

Energy was a key theme of this game, and both teams exemplified it superbly. Yorktown used their energy in the first half to propel their colossal start, while Alexandria City battled back and gained energy from their run in the second half.

In the second half, it looked like Yorktown would keep up their stellar performance. They started the half with a steal by Walton Butler and a dunk by Davis, and Alexandria City continued to be errant with the basketball. However, Alexandria City had other plans, as they caught fire from three point range to spark a 14-2 run midway through the half to cut the deficit to single-digits. They were more aggressive than before, and Yorktown looked less cohesive than during the first half. Ultimately, Yorktown gritted out the victory, and afterwards, Sam Roosa and Coach Moritz gave their takes on the second half.

Roosa said, “We just told ourselves we’ve been in this position before because we have. I mean, we played AAU [club] with each other.” He spoke about the great chemistry of the team and how tight-knit they all are, which contributed to them pulling out the win.

“We’re not going to be able to hold teams to six points in a half all the time. The message was just take a breath.”

— Coach Luke Moritz

Moritz also talked about what he told his team in the second half, as he told them to calm down and take a breath. “We’re not going to be able to hold teams to six points in a half all the time,” said Moritz. “The message was just take a breath.” Maintaining the level of composure that Yorktown displayed in the first half was difficult to keep up, and Moritz voiced that they needed to accept Alexandria City playing better, and what they had to do was slow them down so the situation did not escalate.

Ultimately, it was a comfortable 13-point victory for Yorktown, as they improved to 1-0 in the Wakefield High School Fall League. This weekend, Yorktown comes back to action with a Saturday doubleheader, as they play South Lakes and Falls Church. After a win in their opening game, can Yorktown stay unbeaten and move to 3-0? How will they keep their energy and physicality up on a day when they play an extra game?