ESPN

Paula Hagopian's talent on the soccer field is so obvious she was named Connecticut's Gatorade Player of the Year even though her Kingswood Oxford team finished with a record below .500 last season.

Hagopian, a senior forward, collected 13 goals and 10 assists as a senior, when Kingswood Oxford went 5-7-2. She was also the 2011 Connecticut Soccer Coaches' Association Player of the Year, and has twice been selected as an All-American by the National Soccer Coaches' Association of America.

“Paula is so strong that defenders bounce off her,” said Matt Micros, a club coach with Connecticut FC. “She can hold the ball up well and also spin defenders with ease. What she lacks in technique she more than makes up for with power and pace.”

Hagopian led Kingswood Oxford to the 2010 New England Prep School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) Class B championship and completed her career with 56 goals and 35 assists. She will continue her soccer career at Yale next fall.

Past winners of the award include Riley Houle (2010–11, Windham), Kate McCarthy, (2009-10, Loomis Chaffee), Jessica Schloth (2008–09, St. Joseph), Alex Uscilla (2007-08, St. Joseph), and Bianca D’Agostino (2006-07, Loomis Chaffee).

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The 24-player roster for the boys' McDonald's All-American game were announced on Thursday, with two New Englanders in the mix.

Kris Dunn of New London (Conn.) and T.J. Warren of Brewster Academy were selected to the East Team rosters.

For the complete roster, click here.

With 21 of its 24 players in the top 30 of the ESPNU 100, this year's game is sure to be must-see TV when East and West clash on March 28 (9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN) at the United Center in Chicago.

ESPNHS' Ronnie Flores ranks the top 35 McDonald's All-Americans of all-time today, and one local is reflected on the list. Former Cambridge star Patrick Ewing, who led the Falcons to three straight MIAA Division 1 state championships (1979-81) before embarking on a legendary career at Georgetown and the New York Knicks, comes in at No. 8.

You can view the entire list here. Here's what Flores had to say about Ewing:

8. Patrick Ewing, Rindge & Latin (Cambridge, Mass.), 1981
The Jamaican-born Ewing was a dominant prep force, averaging 22.7 points and 15 rebounds while shooting 72 percent from the field as a senior. In his final three seasons, Rindge & Latin was 77-1, including a 25-0 mark as a senior. Many know Ewing for leading Georgetown to three NCAA Final Fours and playing on two U.S. Olympic teams, including the famed Dream Team. What few know was he was so good he actually got an Olympic tryout in 1980 as a high school junior, the youngest player ever to tryout for a U.S. senior national team.

Nominees for the McDonald's All-American Game were announced this morning. The Final Teams announcement for the prestigious high school basketball all-star game will be announced on Feb. 9 at 5 p.m., on ESPNU.

The boys and girls games will take place on March 28 at the United Center in Chicago, with the girls game at 7 p.m. and broadcast on ESPNU. The boys game will take place immediately after, at 9:30, and will be on ESPN.

One interesting omission to note is Andover senior guard Nicole Boudreau, a Boston College signee who is the state's defending Gatorade Player of the Year and ESPN Boston Miss Basketball. Boudreau has also been ranked in the ESPNU 100 for the Class of 2012.

Below are the nominees from the New England states:

MASSACHUSETTS
Lexi Sells, Bishop Feehan
Jake Layman, King Philip
Ricardo Ledo, Notre Dame Prep
Kaleb Tarczewski, St. Mark's
Nik Stauskas, St. Mark's

CONNECTICUT
Kris Dunn, New London
Ben Freeland, Suffied Academy
Timajh Parker-Rivera, St. Joseph
Erik Sanders, Suffield Academy
Mike Tobey, Hotchkiss
Bria Holmes, Hillhouse

NEW HAMPSHIRE
Zach Auguste, New Hampton
Mitch McGary, Brewster Academy
T.J. Warren, Brewster Academy
Georges Niang, Tilton

RHODE ISLAND
Amber Holgate, St. Andrew's
Thomas Garrick, St. Andrew's
Cedric Kuakumensah, St. Andrew's
Kalusha Ndoubme Ngollo, St. Andrew's
Tyler Sabino, St. Andrew's
Austin Van Bemmelin, North Providence
Rob Hazard, North Providence

MAINE
Darrick Wood, Bridgton Academy

VERMONT
Chad Copeland, Twinfield Union
Jaskin Melendez, Mount St. Joseph
Avery Whitcomb, Twinfield Union
Sara Illingworth, Hartford
Alexandra Jones, Poultney

The news of his selection to the prestigious McDonald's All-American Game just two hours old, Notre Dame Prep's Khem Birch couldn't help but look at the texts and Facebook messages pouring in, and grin.

"I'm so excited for me and all the people that have helped me along the way -- my city too," said the Montreal native tonight by cell phone. "I'm the first one from there to get picked. Everyone up there's real happy for me. They've all watched me grow up, and now look at where I am."

Spokesmen from the McDonald's All-American game confirmed tonight that Birch is indeed the first Quebec native to be selected to the game, which will take place March 30 at the United Center in Chicago. Birch first came to the United States two summers ago when he enrolled at Winchendon School for the 2009-10 academic year, then transferred down the road to the Fitchburg, Mass.-based Notre Dame Prep last May. Birch, the No. 1 center in the Class of 2011 in ESPNU's latest rankings, signed a letter of intent with Pitt this past November.

Meanwhile, St. Andrew's Michael Carter-Williams, the other New Englander selected to the game, is the first player in the history of the event from a Rhode Island high school (Carter-Williams hails from Hamilton, Mass.).

"It feels like such a great honor, I'm real happy about it," Carter-Williams said this evening. "But I have to give credit to my teammates and my coaches. Without them, I wouldn’t be in this game at all. Just to represent St. Andrew's school, the state of Rhode Island as well as Massachusetts, I'm so happy about it."

The 6-foot-7 Carter-Williams, who signed with Syracuse last November and is the No. 5 shooting guard in 2011, will play on the East squad. The 6-foot-9 Birch will play on the West squad.

Here is what our colleagues at Scouts Inc. had to say about the picks:

Michael Carter-Williams
Stats: 20.0 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 6.3 apg
Paul Biancardi's breakdown: Carter-Williams is a long, thin athletic scoring guard who is always in attack mode. He is also excellent at creating space for his jumper or creative with the dribble to get to the rim, especially with the clock winding down.
Dave Telep's take: In his final summer on the AAU circuit, Carter-Williams captained a youthful group of BABC All-Stars. His first game at the Peach Jam was a 44-point eruption and was the catalyst for his candidacy as an All-American. ESPN's Mike LaPlante noted that he made 30 of 35 free throws on his first day at the Peach Jam.

Khem Birch
Stats: 18.0 ppg, 13.0 rpg, 6.0 bpg
Biancardi's breakdown: He is a terrific, young athlete and tremendous shot-blocker. Defensively, Birch can cover a lot of ground and is one of the few prospects who can influence the game without leaving the paint.
Telep's take: The 2010 LeBron James Academy was the setting, and Derrick Favors comparisons were ringing out from the crowd. Months later, Birch would switch from the class of 2012 back into the 2011 class. He played beat the buzzer, then inked with Pittsburgh giving Jamie Dixon his highest-rated recruit ever as Panthers head coach.

Thirty-eight athletes playing at Massachusetts high schools have been nominated for this year's McDonald's All-American basketball games, and it is quite the interesting list. On the boys side, Notre Dame Prep has a whopping six players nominated; also of note, Newton North's Tevin Falzon gets a nomination despite not playing a minute all season due to a wrist injury.

Below is the complete list of nominees for the boys and girls games:

BOYS

Pat Ackerman, Worcester Academy
Khem Birch, Notre Dame Prep
Joe Bramanti, Andover
Ryan Canty, Brimmer & May
Sam Cassell Jr., Notre Dame Prep
Dennis Clifford, Milton Academy
Pat Connaughton, St. John's Prep
Aaron Cosby, Northfield-Mt. Hermon
Myles Davis, Notre Dame Prep
Tevin Falzon, Newton North
Grandy Glaze, Notre Dame Prep
Jon Henault, St. Bernard's
Kyle Kager, Deerfield Academy
James Kennedy, Cushing Academy
Samir McDaniels, New Mission
Joe Mussachia, Manchester-Essex
Angel Nunez, Notre Dame Prep
Kachi Nzerem, New Mission
Andrej Pajovic, Wilbraham & Monson
Joe Sharkey, Northfield-Mt. Hermon
Chris Sherwood, Brimmer & May
Tyler Strange, Notre Dame Prep
Vincent Van Nes, Northfield-Mt. Hermon
Jimmy Zenevitch, Central Catholic

GIRLS

Nicole Beresford, Marshfield
Sophie Bikofsky, Newton South
Kendall Burton, Newton South
Blake Dietrick, Wellesley
Amber Dillon, Brookline
Tori Faieta, St. Mary's
Julie Frankian, Millbury
Natalie Gomez-Martinez, Andover
Brenna Goncalves, Coyle-Cassidy
Briana Hunt, Newton North
Mariah Lesure, Tabor Academy
Samantha Mangano, Winchester
Gabie Polce, Central Catholic
Clare Sullivan, Rivers