VISAA Division Three Semifinals: Five Takeaways

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">I am in Petersburg, VA for the day for my annual trip to the<strong> VISAA semifinals</strong>. The action kicked off with the division three semifinals and those scores are posted below followed by five takeaways from the two games.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Fairfax Christian 92 Roanoke Catholic 60</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Eastern Mennonite 49 Christ Chapel Academy 38</span></p> <h3><b>Fairfax Christian Advances Easily</b></h3> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The number one seed is on a mission to win the state tournament and they easily look like the team to beat in the championship game tomorrow. As always, Fairfax Christian was led by available senior [player_tooltip player_id="1107844" first="Ryan" last="Blakey"], who finished with 20 points and a handful of steals which he is known for. Fairfax Christian also got good contribution from 2023 [player_tooltip player_id="1356615" first="Joseph" last="Baldwin"] who finished with 25 points.</span></p> <h3><b>Get Familiar Hearing About Fairfax Christian</b></h3> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Get used to hearing about Fairfax Christian. They have a lot of returning talent coming back next year in 2023 [player_tooltip player_id="1356615" first="Joseph" last="Baldwin"], [player_tooltip player_id="962805" first="Darrel" last="Johnson"], [player_tooltip player_id="1241905" first="Corey" last="Caulker"] and freshman Aiden Caulker who is already in the rotation for James Parker and his bunch.</span></p> <h3><b>Roanoke Catholic Returns Contributors</b></h3> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Expect Roanoke Catholic to make some noise again next year as they have both 2023 [player_tooltip player_id="962817" first="Josiah" last="Banks"] returning and 2024 David Beck. As a sophomore Beck is already at 6’5 and should be a prospect to watch in the coming years.</span></p> <h3><b>Eastern Mennonite Returns To The Championship</b></h3> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">No stranger to Virginia State University and the state tournament, Eastern Mennonite find themselves in the state finals again. 2022 [player_tooltip player_id="815622" first="Trey" last="Gillenwater"] scored at ease like he usually does finishing with 19 points. If Eastern Mennonite wants to capture another state title, they will need Gillenwater’s scoring ability and then some.</span></p> <h3><b>Championship Game Set</b></h3> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Fairfax Christian definitely comes in as favorites in this division three championship game between Eastern Mennonite but you can’t count Mennonite out so easily because of the history and experience they have in this tournament. Expect it to be a good one tomorrow to start off championship Saturday. </span></p>