South Lakes' Picarelli Breaks Receiving Records, Throws TD In Win Over Madison

By BRIAN McNICOLL

It was a play so typical of the high school football career of Nick Picarelli.

A snap. A quick look down the line by Christian Wyatt, who has been the quarterback on Picarelli’s teams almost nonstop since fifth grade. Then a pass to Picarelli, who had found a soft spot on the edge to make a catch, after which he would turn upfield, dodge some defenders and make some yards.

That particular catch last Friday resulted in a 7-yard gain for the Seahawks, gave them a third-and-1 and kept alive a drive that resulted in the second touchdown of South Lakes’ 40-28 victory over Madison last Friday in Reston. More importantly, it made PIcarelli the South Lakes career leader in not only receptions – a record he broke earlier this season – but in passing yards as well.

Picarelli now has 150 career catches for 1,812 yards, surpassing Spencer Alston, who had 106 catches for 1,707 yards and went on to play collegiately at Yale. He has five touchdowns this season and 15 for his career, including the longest scoring play in school history – a 99-yard catch from Mo Schaub against Chantilly in 2024. And he’s been an elite kick return man throughout his career.

Picarelli Adds Passing Touchdown To Record-Setting Night

But he also wants you to know something else – his receiving records are great, but his high school passer rating is perfect. He’s 3-for-3 with a completion to Wyatt when both were on the freshman team and two to Joshua Dagbe – one last season and one also last Friday hight.

Madison went for a fourth down in its own territory on its first possession after halftime and failed, giving South Lakes first down on the Madison 31. The Seahawks were on the verge of squandering the opportunity – it was third-and-10 after two incompletions. But then Wyatt threw another pass down the line to Picarelli – this one backwards – and Picarelli cranked up a perfect tight spiral that hit Dagbe in stride for a touchdown and a 33-14 lead.

Picarelli has never been a quarterback – “Too short,” he said. “And … we always had Christian.” But the 5-foot-8 senior made the most of his moment on the passing end of a completion.

“We’ve been practicing that since Week 3,” said South Lakes Coach Jason Hescock. “He has a great arm and good feet, but there’s more to that play than that. It has to look like another play to fool the other team, and to do that it has to look a certain way. You have to run a certain distance to set it up. And Nick is great at that.”

South Lakes Looks To Clinch Playoff Spot Against Centreville

The Seahawks will try to be in perfect position again on Friday night when the Centreville Wildcats come to Reston. It will be Senior Night, and Picarelli, Wyatt and others will be honored before the game.

The situations of the two teams are almost reversed from a year ago when they met in Centreville on the Wildcats' senior night. Centreville won that game, 49-35, and went on to finish 9-2 with a second-round one-point overtime loss to Madison. Centreville quarterback Will Shields had 379 yards passing against South Lakes – 278 of it and two touchdowns to Jourdan Simpson.

This year, the Wildcats have a running back who can break tackles and a quarterback who can extend plays, but it's not the same.

This year, it is South Lakes that brings in the dynamic passing game - led by Wyatt, Picarelli and Dagbe.

South Lakes, 7-1, 2-1 in the Concorde District, comes in off perhaps its biggest victory since the 10-0 regular season of 2023 and is now one victory away from clinching a playoff spot. The Wildcats, 5-3, 1-2, have lost to Madison and Westfield and need a victory to get back into the playoff picture.

“We’re the ones who hold our future in our hands this year,” Hescock said.

Revamped Offensive Line Powers Seahawks' Success

That future depends on the South Lakes offensive line keeping up its good work. Aaron Deglel, Teddy Gill, Mason Turner (6-6, 340), Will Barton and Ender Alper-Pierce Hescock said this game would put demands on the line. “We’re looking to run the ball. To protect it – no turnovers. We need to manage the moments and move the ball between the tackles.”

At the start of the season, that might have been a questionable proposition. The Seahawks returned exactly zero starting offensive linemen. But they got to work early – throughout the winter, the linemen met in the auxiliary gym and worked on the technical details of the task ahead. “Coaches [Craig] Wise, [Glenn] Dearing and [Matt] Jojokian went over every little detail – footwork, hand placement, stance. So they showed up ready.”

The line has progressed at a rate that has surprised both the coaches and the players. “Sooo good. So much improvement. So effective,” Wyatt said after last Friday’s games. “Every week we just get better and better.”