DCE will have trouble remaining competitive long because their main feeder, BLC, is not what it use to be. NL in particular and ML to a lesser degree have penetrated their player pool. Also, one of the main (I'd argue "the" main feeder) elementary schools for BLC players is Mater Dei in Bethesda. The 28s started migrating to ML a while ago. 27s started a little after. Below the 28 year, almost all the best players play for ML down to 31s. NL also has a good grasp on Mater Dei and Landon (at the younger ages), which has mistakenly been labeled an ML school. There are more NL players their now below the 24 grad year.

No dog in the fight, just my observation as a DMV parent with friends across all the teams.