Gloucester High School freshman Autumn Cookson ended her first season with the GHS girls’ varsity basketball team on an impressive note by being named to the Peninsula District All-District second team and the Region 4A All-Region second team. She was the only basketball player from GHS to receive these honors for the 2023-2024 season.

Cookson’s favorite part of playing basketball is “all the energy that our team gives off.” She also enjoys the excitement of the crowd gathered in the stands for each game.

The biggest challenges the girls’ varsity basketball team faced this season were being “younger and undersized.” Cookson and head coach Christina Deyoung said the team consisted of mostly freshman and sophomore players who faced many teams with players that reached six feet in height.In her first season of coaching, Deyoung said it was about “trying to rebuild the program.”

At the coaches’ meeting to vote for All-District and All-Region teams, Deyoung said there were very fe...