The Salem High girls’ basketball team got off to a great start with a 54-37 win over William Fleming in Roanoke Tuesday. It was the first game for the Spartans under new coach Berlyn Seitz.
“It was an exciting win for our team and I was proud of the growth and maturity they displayed,” said Seitz. “After shaking some nerves in the first quarter we shot the ball pretty well and worked really hard on the boards. We had a game plan and the girls executed it well.”
Salem trailed early but took the lead in the second half. The Spartans hit three three-pointers to close the half, two by Kennedy Scales and one by Zoe Robtison, to go into the half with a 28-23 lead.
The Spartans increased the lead to 32-23 on buckets by Scales and Moriah Hill to open the second half. Fleming cut the lead to six before Salem took control and led 40-30 at the end of the third quarter. Robtison hit some big free throws down the stretch and Scales put the nail in the coffin with a three pointer with just under four minutes to go to open a 19 point lead at 51-32.
Scales finished with a game high 26 points and Robtison had 11. Hill had six points and Abbie Baker also had half a dozen and dominated the boards with 14 rebounds against a tall and athletic Fleming team.
“Thanks to COVID we’ve had a lot of time to build relationships and in that time we’ve had lots of conversations about changing the culture of Salem basketball,” said Seitz. “What I loved about Monday night was that the girls were proud to wear Salem across their chest, and seeing that was a huge win for our coaching staff.”
Salem’s home opener is Friday night against Patrick Henry, followed by a noon “varsity only” game at Pulaski County on Saturday.
“We know that each game could be our last with the current COVID protocols, so we are taking full advantage of our time together with a new attitude of gratefulness to even be competing on the court,” said Seitz.
