The Salem girls will play a Class 4 semifinal basketball game, but at press time the day and opponent was yet to be determined. Salem beat Woodgrove at home Tuesday in a state quarterfinal game, 69-38, to advance to the semifinals.
The problem is a legal one. The Spartans earned the top seed from Region 4D with a win over Charlottesville last Friday in Salem, earning the right to host the Region 4C runner-up on Tuesday. That was Woodgrove, and the Spartans advanced to play the winner of a quarterfinal game between the Region 4B champ, Henrico, and the Region 4A runner-up. That’s where the problem comes in.
As of Tuesday afternoon the Region 4A championship was yet to be decided. Manor High School has a girl who the VHSL had deemed ineligible after transferring in from a private school during the season. The problem wasn’t the transfer, but that the school had not completed the required paper work. The player was eligible for the season but additional paper work was required for the playoffs and that was not provided by the school.
Then, on Monday, a Portsmouth judge ruled that the Manor High School girls’ basketball team will be allowed to continue postseason play, ruling that a previously ineligible player was, indeed, eligible. Manor was forced to forfeit a game against Gloucester High School after the VHSL said the school played an ineligible player. It was a game Manor won decisively. Then, Portsmouth Circuit Court Judge Brenda Spry ruled that the Manor girl previously deemed ineligible to play in the postseason was indeed eligible, and the team did not forfeit its’ game.
So, at press time the Spartans were waiting to see who their opponent would be. If the Henrico team wins the state quarterfinal game the Spartans will play a semifinal game at Henrico High in Richmond. However, if whoever is deemed the Region 4A runner-up beats Henrico, then Salem would get a home game for the semifinal. The state semifinal round is scheduled for Friday but that could change.
“The good thing is the state championship isn’t until next Saturday, so we would have some time to move the game if need be,” said Salem High Athletic Director Drew Barrett.
Salem is 26-1 after Tuesday’s win over Woodgrove. The Spartans are looking to take their season one step farther than last year, when they lost to Heritage High of Leesburg in the state championship game. The Spartans finished 27-3 last year and returned most of those players for this season.
So far, so good. The Spartans clinched a spot in the state tournament with a convincing 70-23 win over Mecklenburg County at Salem High last Wednesday. Bailey Rider led the team with 21 points and eight rebounds, Emme Custer had 15 points and 11 boards and Gabby Crawley went eight and seven. All three are seniors.
“Good all-around effort,” said Spartan coach Scott Jester. “We were able to wear them down and pull away in the third quarter.”
On Friday at home the Spartans played Charlottesville for the right to host a state quarterfinal game. It was the third straight year Salem played Charlottesville in the region final, with the Black Knights winning in 2024 and Salem winning last year.
This year it was close for a half, as Charlottesville led 24-22 at intermission. However, the Spartans outscored their guests, 14-3, in the third quarter and held the Knights to just 11 total points in the second half as they pulled away for a 53-35 win.
“Big win for us over a really good Charlottesville team,” said Jester. “We struggled a little bit in the first half but came out with an excellent defensive effort in the second half.”
Rider led Salem with 19 points and seven rebounds. Crawley had 14 points and Custer had 11 points and 10 rebounds.
On Tuesday Salem played Woodgrove in the playoffs for the third straight year. In 2024 Woodgrove eliminated the Spartans from the postseason but last year, at this same point, Salem won 59-47. On Tuesday Salem made it two in a row over the Wolverines with a convincing 31 point win, 69-38.
Salem never trailed in the game. The Spartans jumped out to a 14-8 lead after the first quarter and won the second period by a point, 11-10, for a 25-18 lead at the half.
The Salem girls caught fire after intermission, going on a 7-0 run to start the second half. They outscored Woodgrove 23-10 in the third quarter to open a 20 point lead and cruised to the win.
The Spartans got balanced scoring in the game, with three girls in double figures. Custer led the Spartans with 16 points, Crawley had 14 and both Rider and Lexi Hart had a bakers’ dozen each. Kourtney Goens had seven points and was a horse on the boards.
Now the Spartans will wait for Region 4A to figure things out and hope for a home semifinal game. On the other side of the bracket Region 4B runner-up Hanover is in the same boat as Henrico, waiting for Region 4A to decide a champion so they would have a quarterfinal opponent. As of Tuesday evening two of the four quarterfinal games were yet to be played.
In a game that was played Heritage of Leesburg beat Charlottesville Tuesday, 50-44, so a potential Salem-Heritage rematch for the championship is still possible. The Class 4 girls’ championship is scheduled for Saturday, March 14, at 11 am at the Siegel Center on the campus of Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond.
