VHSL football and baseball championship games have been played on Sundays.

It might happen this week in Richmond at boys and girls state basketball tournament.

A late-winter snowstorm is forecast to hit western and central Virginia at midweek, which could alter the 30-game schedule of semifinals and finals that are scheduled Monday through Saturday at VCU's Siegel Center.

VHSL spokesman Mike McCall said snow is forecast for the Richmond area on Thursday and that if the weather causes a postponement the league is considering finishing the event on Sunday.

"Wednesday during the day is supposed to be OK, but it's supposed to snow in Richmond on Wednesday night and maybe Thursday morning," McCall said. "They're saying that it shouldn't accumulate much in Richmond, but that might not be the case for places like Southwest Virginia.

"What if it prevents a team from getting there? In the event Thursday games are wiped out we would considering moving the tournament back a day. It's not set yet, but that seems to be 'Plan B.' "

VHSL rules require the superintendent of schools of each affected school district to sign a waiver allowing a particular team to play on a Sunday.

A handful of VHSL football championship games have been played on Sundays because of snow.

Spring sports championships in Group AA and Group A tournaments in Radford have been rained out and moved to a Sunday twice in recent years with 100 percent administrative approval.

"The superintendents would have to sign off on it," McCall said. "VCU could handle Sunday. Going to Monday might lead to problems with VCU and also for the schools in terms of missing class."

Six Timesland teams have qualified for the basketball semifinals.

Bassett's girls play Courtland in a Group AA Division 4 game at 7 p.m. Tuesday, followed by Salem's boys vs. Potomac Falls in a Division 4 boys semifinal at 9 p.m.

Salem's girls face Loudoun County in a Division 4 girls semifinal at 11 a.m. Wednesday. Parry McCluer's boys play West Point in a Group A Division 1 game at 5 p.m. Thursday, followed by Radford's boys against Essex in a Division 2 semifinal at 7 p.m.

Floyd County's girls are scheduled to play reigning Division 2 champion George Mason in a semifinal at 10:30 a.m. Friday.

The Division 1 boys final is scheduled for Friday. Both Division 2 championship games and both Division 4 finals are scheduled for Saturday.

Salem among 4 schools with 2 teams in final 4

Salem is one of four schools this week that will have its boys and girls teams competing in Richmond.

Altavista (Division 1) and both Spotswood and Brunswick (Division 3) also have both teams in the hunt for state titles.

Salem's girls defeated Lord Botetourt 46-34 at Salem Civic Center on Saturday to qualify for their third straight semifinal berth. The girls game was immediately followed by the boys quarterfinal between Salem and Heritage.

As the Spartans boys team took the court, Salem's girls team lined up with the school's cheerleaders to form an aisle for the boys players as they entered the court.

Matt Hill, a senior starter on the boys team, appreciated the gesture.

Yes, Brunswick's boys really did win 24-22

Two-time defending Group AA Division 3 boys champion Brunswick advanced Saturday with a 24-22 victory over Loudoun Valley.

That's right, 24-22.

Brunswick coach Bryant Stith elected to hold the ball against a Loudoun Valley zone for much of the game. The move nearly backfired as Loudoun Valley missed a 3-pointer in the final seconds.

The game was the topic of conversation during a VHSL media session Sunday in Richmond that Stith - a former All-American at Virginia - attended.

"I asked him if he was Dean Smith or Norm Sloan," McCall said, referring to a pair of former ACC coaches, one known for holding the ball and the other for refusing to come out of a zone defense. "He said he was Dean Smith.

"It took 57 minutes of actual time to play the whole game."

Tournament notes

Floyd County and George Mason have played in three previous state tournaments with the team from Falls Church holding a 2-1 edge. Mason won 64-60 in a 1995 semifinal in Salem. Floyd won 66-62 in a 2008 semifinal in Richmond. Mason stopped Floyd 53-46 in the 2009 championship game. Each program has won three state titles.

• Parry McCluer's 53-34 boys quarterfinal win over Castlewood on Saturday was part of a weekend that saw three regional runners-up defeat a regional champion in Division 1 games between Region C and Region D schools. Castlewood's girls and J.I. Burton's boys also won as a regional runner-up.
• Radford needed 60 years to win a second boys state title, adding a 2009 championship to the Group II title the school won in 1949. Now the Bobcats are two wins away from a third championship in five years. Radford's opponent, Essex (9-12), is the lone remaining team of 40 in Richmond this week with a losing record.
• The tournament begins tonight with Group AAA semifinals, which were moved from their normal Wednesday slot to accommodate the VCU vs. Richmond men's game Wednesday night at Siegel Center.
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