ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, March 9, 1997 TAG: 9703110046
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: BRISTOL
SOURCE: RAY COX THE ROANOKE TIMES
Two late Salem shots for the victory fail and Gate City advances to its first Group AA boys' basketball semifinal.
If the Salem High School boys' basketball team had made up a wish list of accomplishments against Gate City in their Group AA quarterfinal, it might have gone something like this:
First, the short-of-height-but-long-of-courage Spartans would find a way to negate the Blue Devils' intimidating inside game. Then, frightened underclassmen would be forced to carry the scoring load for Gate City by firing away from the perimeter. Lastly, in the unlikely event of a close game (assuming the other wishes were granted), one of the Spartans' hot-shot guards would have a shot to win the game at the buzzer.
All those wishes would come true Saturday on the neutral court at Virginia High School. Yet the most fervent Spartan wish of all would not be granted. Gate City somehow won the game 49-48 and advanced to its first state final four.
The Region IV champions had to survive a run in the closing seconds that included a scary bank shot by Salem guard Herschel Thomas that caromed away, a missed front end of a one-and-one and Marshall Wooldridge's running heave from just inside the half-court line that fell away at the horn.
The Blue Devils had to overcome all that and a measly four points from their top offensive threat, 6-foot-9 Josh Shoemaker, who averages 19 points per game.
``You would have told me that `Shoe' would score four points and we win, and I'd say there's no way,'' Gate City coach Greg Ervin said in a tournament-induced rasp.
Shoemaker went 1-for-7 in the first half and 2-for-11 for the game, but his stick-back with less than a minute left produced the second half's 11th and final lead change. It also produced the winning margin.
But not until Salem had caused every Gate City fingernail in the joint to be gnawed to the bone.
``All you ask for is a chance,'' said Salem coach Charlie Morgan, ``and we had one.''
The best of them was Thomas' sweep to the hoop with less than 10 seconds left. The junior guard either hesitated or was bumped, but officials called nothing.
``I don't call timeouts in situations like that,'' Morgan said. ``I'd rather let the players play. You take them out of the flow of the game and then they start to think about things.''
Salem, the Region III runner-up, finished the season 18-10.
As much as anything, a pair of young Blue Devils sharpshooters stuck a fork in the Spartans.
Chris Peters, a sophomore, had 16 of his 23 points in the first half. When he cooled after intermission, freshman Ton McDonald came in to score 15 of his 17 after the break.
They were the Gate City offense.
``In the first half, they were doing a pretty good job of packing up the inside around the basket,'' Peters said. ``I tried to slide to the open spot.''
The next open spot on Gate City's dance card will be 1996 Group AA champion Liberty, which awaits at about 2:30 p.m. at the Vines Center in Lynchburg as the state tournament continues Friday. NOTE: please see microfilm for scores.
LENGTH: Medium: 68 linesby CNB