Faith Christian eliminated in semifinals

Trailing 45-26 at halftime to Ridgeview Christian in the semifinals of the Virginia Association of Christian Schools state tournament, Faith Christian looked like a team out of gas.

It had just been outscored 22-9 in the second quarter, and repeatedly gave up easy buckets in transition to the team from Stuarts Draft. In the third quarter, though, the Lions climbed back, carried by Cody Speck, who scored 12 of his 27 points in the quarter.

Trailing 57-53 heading into the final frame, the Lions briefly took the lead but sputtered down the stretch, missing a number of free throws in the closing minutes and losing 75-72.

The Crusaders (15-7), who looked a step quicker than the Lions in the first half, were unable to keep up with Speck after the break, allowing him to leak out in transition for a number of easy layups that led to the Lions outscoring Ridgeview 27-12 in the quarter.

The Lions (14-10) also got a huge third frame from Michael Dillard, a towering senior who was too much for Ridgeview inside. Dilliard scored seven in the third, part of a 17-point, 14-rebound night.

Lions coach Tim Leahy said the first-half effort was uncharacteristic of his young squad, which has only two seniors.

“That was the worst first half we played all year, we average 20 points a quarter,” Leahy said. “That’s our game, transition. … The second half, that’s our team.”

For Crusaders coach Bobby Martin, his team’s two halves were a study in contrast.

“I thought we played really well in the first half and I thought we went soft in the second half. The momentum switched when we decided to be passive instead of aggressive, and you can’t be passive in the playoffs,” he said.

Still, the Crusaders held a slim 57-53 lead heading into the fourth. With momentum squarely in favor of the Lions, the Crusaders received another blow when point guard Evan Berry was ejected from the game for arguing a call just a few plays after teammate McKenneth Pearison fouled out.

Berry, whom Martin said any team in the VACA playoffs would love to have, still managed to finish with 16 points and five assists. From that point on, Cody Corbin would take over for Ridgeview, scoring 13 points in the closing quarter including a pair of free throws with three seconds left to give the Crusaders a 3-point lead. A Speck heave from mid-court clanged off the back of the rim as the horn sound, nearly sending the game into an extra session.

“I thought it was going in and I didn’t want overtime, so I was just praying it (wouldn’t) go in,” Corbin said.

Both teams had huge performances from a number of players. Besides Corbin’s 29, the Crusaders’ Ethan Morris had 16 points and 13 rebounds and Faith Christian’s Adam Hopkins scored 20 along with seven steals. The Crusaders advance to today VACA championship game against Pathway Christian, a 71-42 win over Shenandoah Valley Christian in Friday’s other semifinal.

The championship is at 5:30 p.m. at Timberlake Christian School.