VHSL: State Final Preview

Manchester vs James Madison       Manchester scored more points in the second half than Thomas Dale did in the entire game! From down 14 to winning by 14 points in a dominant second half performance! [player_tooltip player_id='304787' first='Rayne' last='Wright'] and [player_tooltip player_id='254975' first='Mia' last='Woolfolk'] had 16 points apiece to lead the way! Lots of credit has to go to coach Rasheed Wright with a masterful second half adjustment to shut down a high powered Dale team! They will take on James Madison who will make their 4th title game in a row. This might be the most impressive of the runs, losing eight seniors from last year's team!  This will be a tall task this go around, but the Warhawks have only given up a total of 42 points in two games! Defense wins championships and if the Warhawks want the state title they will have shut down a Manchester team that can put up points in a hurry!       Princess Anne vs L.C Bird       How could we not see this coming? [player_tooltip player_id='393397' first='Zakiya' last='Stephenson'] leaves Princess Anne to go to a prep school and then she comes back to finish her senior year! [player_tooltip player_id='149861' first='Kyah' last='Smith'] leaves L.C Bird to go to a prep school and then she comes back to finish her senior year! Exactly the same scenario for both of these seniors but only one will be standing with a state title in hand! Stephenson is the only power five commit left in the playoffs and will be a handful to stop! Smith, the Navy commit has been playing at a high level her whole career!  Princess Anne's only loss this season was a 13 point loss to Glen Allen and L.C Bird is a far cry from that team that lost 29-28 to Cosby HS earlier in the season. No doubt expect a back and forth game but I will not be surprised if the outcome is decided by one of these two high level players!       Hampton HS vs Pulaski County        In the beginning of the year I noted don't be surprised if this team makes a deep run for the state title, now here we are! This trip to the state finals was well earned after getting outscored 20-5 in the fourth quarter and down ten points it was an uphill battle but with the loud home crowd behind them and 20 points from [player_tooltip player_id='448487' first='Keslyn' last='Secrist'] the Indiana State Commit they were able to pull out the 54-53 win to punch their ticket to Richmond! They will play a red hot Hampton team that has not lost in a month! Kenndey Harris, the George Mason commit, is the senior leader that makes this team go and they are on a rolling heading into the championship game. But if Pulaski has any chance of bringing the title home crown will have to stop [player_tooltip player_id='304784' first='Kaliyah' last='Perry'] who has been unstoppable and has taken her game to the next level during this run!       Brentsville District vs Carroll County       First year coach Keyla Delaney has her team on the brink of bringing home a state title after a big 46-41 win over Meridian! Down three points at halftime they were able to overcome a back and forth game and [player_tooltip player_id='293237' first='Alden' last='Yergey'] had 24 points and Iced the game with some late free throws, this was Yergey first career win versus Meridian as a player! They will match up with Carroll County and [player_tooltip player_id='304812' first='Alyssa' last='Ervin'] who is putting everyone in the state of Virginia on notice because she's a flat out star! Putting up scoring 27 of her 37 in the first half to get a sizable lead in a game that was no contest from start to finish!       Clarke County vs Central Wise        Clarke County got revenge on John Marshall who eliminated them last year this week! John Marshall was a favorite to get to the state championship game this season but was stopped in their tracks with an overtime loss! The Warriors were led by Alanah Mcavish with 26 points and 12 rebounds. Clarke County will face defending champs Central Wise who knocked off Gate City 51-50. This will be theri 8 championship game in 11 years for Central. [player_tooltip player_id='445345' first='Emmah' last='McAmis'] hit the go ahead jumper and got the key steal to seal the victory playing hurt in a gutsy performance!       Rappahannock County vs Eastside       Both teams are coming off semi finals wins where they both won by one point. This game should be a defensive battle. If Rappahannock County wants to bring home the title they are going to have to stop arguably the best player in Class 1 [player_tooltip player_id='449763' first='Azzy' last='Hammons']. Hammons has put up some big numbers this season including 23 points and the go ahead jumper to send her team to the championship game!