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Photo by Kyle Green | The Roanoke Times

Lord Botetourt's reserves watch the final minutes of the Cavaliers' loss to Robert E. Lee in the VHSL Group AA Division 3 girls semifinals Tuesday.

Photos by Kyle Green | The Roanoke Times

Lord Botetourt's MacKenzie Tyree (right) gets slammed to the floor by Robert E. Lee's Kendra Scott while chasing after a loose ball during Tuesday's VHSL Group AA Division 3 girls semifinal.

Photos by Kyle Green | The Roanoke Times

Lord Botetourt's Alisha Lyle (right) gets her shot blocked by Robert E. Lee's Kemani Crawford (23) and Kendra Scott.

RICHMOND -- Near the heart of the city's financial district, there was a serious case of insider trading.

Robert E. Lee High's girls basketball players traded back and forth inside trips to the basket and glass, as the Staunton school stopped Lord Botetourt 55-49 in the VHSL Group AA Division 3 semifinals Tuesday afternoon at the Siegel Center.

Lee will take on Freedom, a 50-43 victor over Millbrook, for the state championship at 11 a.m. Saturday on the same floor.

The Cavaliers came in winners of eight of their last nine, the only setback during that streak a 58-56 loss to Lee in the Region III final Feb. 28. Lord Botetourt goes out with a 20-9 record, but not without a mighty effort from senior sharpshooter Grace Blaylock.

The UNC Asheville-bound Blaylock was folded almost totally backwards when she went down painfully in the second quarter. But she played on.

She scored 18 of her 30 points prior to the break and sank four of eight 3-point shots.

She had a more difficult time of it later when Lee dispatched its best player, freshman Angela Mickens, to handle most of the defense of the veteran player.

That second-half clash was a huge part of the game for both teams.

"You could tell she was tired," Mickens said. "She got hurt the second quarter. But being who she is, a great player, she wasn't going to stop. She played through it. But we got her a little frustrated."

Afterwards, Blaylock had the look of a player who know's she did her best.

"I think Mickens definitely applied more pressure to me denying me the ball," Blaylock said. "I wasn't getting the penetration. They had people helping, stepping into the lane when I tried to score. That was the main difference."

The 5-7 guard was unable to get her first shot of the second half until near the 4 minute mark of the third quarter. She finished 4-of-13 for the half, 12 -of-27 for the game. The Cavs shot 19.4 percent (6-for-31) the last 16 minutes.

Blaylock had a three-point play with 3:15 left in the game to cut Lee's lead to 49-48. That was her last field goal. She added the second of two foul shots at 2:01 to cut the deficit to 51-49, but that was it. She misfired on a couple of long triples in the last minute.

"She was a true senior, loading us on her back and saying, 'Come on, let's get this thing done,'" Lord Botetourt coach Chuck Pound said. "We just about got there. I know they slowed her down a little bit in the second half, but she still had a heck of a game."

The Cavs, winners of back-to-back Group AA titles in the 1990s, were making their fifth trip to the state final four.

As for Lee, its girls were too big and strong inside for the Lord Botetourt zone defenders, particularly cousins Kendra and Daquaa Scott. Kendra Scott, a junior, missed 22 games when she twisted a knee in the second game of the season. She was back for the regional semifinal victory over Rustburg. Against the Cavs, her contributions were six points, four rebounds and four blocked shots in 18 minutes.

Sophomore Daquaa Scott was even more trouble: 12 points and 20 rebounds -- 12 of those boards at the offensive end. Lee held a 52-33 advantage on the backboards. All Daquaa Scott's points came in the fourth quarter. She went 8-for-10 from the foul line in the last 7:06.

"We had to move the ball fast and get them moving so we could get open looks down at the bottom because they were doubling down each time we were feeding me the ball," she said.

Alisha Lyle, one of LB's posts, knew what to expect from the previous time the teams played.

"She's a tough girl to guard, so we had to double down on her and box her out and keep her from scoring as much as we did last game," said Lyle, who had seven rebounds and six points. "We did a pretty good job but toward the end, we started getting tired."

Lee was rugged enough inside, but double trouble offensively with a perimeter attack based on the sensational ninth grader Mickens, who stands 5-foot-6, can go to the bucket with either hand, and has plain old basketball sense. Mickens had 18 points and eight of her team's 10 assists. She never left the floor.

"She's very, very good," Blaylock said.

"She's a freshman who plays likes she's been playing since she was 2. She plays more like a senior than a freshman. Definitely she stepped up big-time on the big stage. She'll be back here the next several years."

Blaylock, who also never sat, put on a huge show on the big stage herself.

"Before the game before I came out, I was extremely nervous," she said.

"When I got out on the floor, it all went away. I said this will be --could be --my last game. I hope it won't be, so I'm going to go out and play and not think about it. I play better when I don't think about it."

ROBERT E. LEE (23-5)

Thompson 3-10 0-0 7, Thomas 1-4 0-0 3, K. Crawford 2-3 0-2 4, Mickens 8-19 1-3 18, D. Scott 2-13 8-10 12, Crawford 0-1 0-0 0, K. Scott 3-7 0-2 6, McDonough 2-3 1-2 5. Totals: 21-60 10-19 55

LORD BOTETOURT (20-9)

M. Tyree 1-3 1-2 3, Blaylock 12-27 2-3 30, Farmer 2-11 1-1 5, M. Tyree 0-4 0-0 0, Lyle 2-6 2-4 6, Ward 0-0 0-0 0, Lewis 1-5 3-3 5, Alford 0-2 0-0 0. Totals: 18-58 9-13 49

Robert E. Lee 20 10 10 15--55

Lord Botetourt 12 17 15 5--49

3-point goals -- R.E. Lee 3-10 (Thompson 1-2, Thomas 1-3, Mickens 1-5), Lord Botetourt 4-16 (M. Tyree 0-2, Blaylock 4-9, Farmer 0-5). Total fouls -- R.E. Lee 12, Lord Botetourt 15. Rebounds -- R.E. Lee 52 (D. Scott 20), Lord Botetourt 33 (Lyle, Lewis 7. Assists -- R.E. Lee 10 (Mickens 8), Lord Botetourt 8 (M. Tyree 3). Turnovers -- R.E. Lee 16 (Thompson 4, Lord Botetourt 10 (Farmer 4). Blocks -- R.E. Lee 6 (K.Scott 4), Lord Botetourt 1 (Lyle). Steals -- R.E. Lee 6, Lord Botetourt 10 (Lewis 5).

Body type here.