The Salem girls basketball team is headed to the Class 4 State Title game after a 42-34 win over Hampton on Tuesday night.
After building a 10-0 lead to start the game, the Spartans lost offensive momentum but still held Hampton at an arm’s length throughout the first half.
That narrative would change in the third quarter though, as Hampton eventually cut into the deficit with Salem only leading by two. However, a pair of And-1’s from Emme Custer had the Spartans rolling, and some clutch defense at the end of the game sealed their win.
“I never once thought we were going to lose this game and I don’t think anybody on my team has ever once thought that either because if you have a negative mindset it’ll have a negative character effect on you and we all never thought we’re going to lose this game,” said Custer, a senior. “We want to win. We want this more. We never thought we’re going to lose and we got to go in thinking we’re going to win and playing our best so that’s kind of how we deal with it out there.”
Salem now heads back to the title game for the second year in a row and will battle Manor on Saturday at 11:00 a.m.