Relying first on a torrid pace and finally on a deep rotation, Salem defeated Staunton River 56-36 in the William Byrd Lady Terriers Christmas Classic.

"They have to keep moving to play good basketball," Spartans coach Dewayne Harrell said.

Undefeated Salem took over early and never trailed. Senior Emily Richardson gave Salem a 17-15 lead on a mid-range jumper with more than six minutes remaining in the first half and the Spartans pulled away, handing the Eagles their first loss of the season.

"We played well for a half," Staunton River coach Kim Jones said.

"We just ran out of gas -- I kind of knew it was coming."

Bre Kawa hit from 3-point range with 3:33 remaining in the second period to give Salem (8-0) its largest lead of the first half, a 23-17 advantage.

"It didn't feel like it was close," Kawa said. "We're used to being in tight situations where we're playing down."

Kawa led all scorers with 16 points, including four 3-point goals.

Staunton River (7-1) senior Sara Mayhew answered from behind the arc, but Mayhew scored the Eagles' only points from the field in the second quarter. In the physical contest, Staunton River went to the foul line six times in the second period and came away with six points.

"The first half, they were hanging right with us," Salem junior guard Alexius Patterson said. "The second half, we kept up the tempo and they kind of fell apart."

The Spartans outscored Staunton River 27-11 in the second half, holding the Eagles to just three points in the final quarter. Harrell said Salem's defensive adjustment from a trap to a zone improved the Spartans rebounding and eased some of the foul trouble.

And he admitted that having a bench that goes about nine deep also allows his team to continue playing aggressive, fast-paced defense.

"I want to keep playing pressure defense," he said, "to keep changing it up and let our talent do what they can do." Senior center Laquaksha Robinson led Staunton River with 10 points.

"I just think we just didn't have the legs," Jones said. "We were just too beaten down tonight."

SALEM (8-0)

Patterson 9, Payne 4, Kawa 16, Richardson 4, Garst 7, Belcher 10, Poindexter 6, Taylor 0, Sheppard 0, Johnson 0.

STAUNTON RIVER (7-1)

J. Salyer 8, L. Robinson 10, Mayhew 3, Merrill 2, A. Salyer 5, B. Robinson 4, Linkous 4, Holdren 0.

Salem 13 16 16 11 --56

Staunton River 13 11 9 3 -- 36

3-point goals -- Kawa 4, Patterson, Garst; L. Robinson, Mayhew.

Byrd defeats Botetourt in third-place game

William Byrd defeated Lord Botetourt 51-48 in overtime in the Lady Terriers' Christmas Classic third place game.

Brittany Mattox scored the go ahead basket for Byrd from the foul line with 22 seconds remaining in overtime. Mattox lead all scorers with 19 points. Sammi Webster had 11 for the Terriers. Macey Tyree scored 14 points for the Cavaliers.

LORD BOTETOURT

VanRavenstein 2, Wamplyer 0, Sandoval 0, Caldwell 6, Farmer 3, Tyree 14, Ward 4, Price 0, Cary 4, Chrisman 0, Lewis 7, Clark 4, Lyle 4.

WILLIAM BYRD

Anderson 0, Hanna 5, Hayden 0, James 1, H. Overstreet 0, A. Smith 0, Carver 0, Mattox 19, J. Overstreet 0, Rhodes 9, Webster 11, Hagins 6.

Lord Botetourt 8 16 9 12 3 -- 48

William Byrd 17 4 14 10 6 -- 51

3-point goals -- Mattox 2, Farmer, Tyree.

Bees top Vikings in seventh place game

Brookville used its size to pull away after halftime and coast to the easy win.

Katie Deacon led the Bees with 16 points, while Emilee Dunton added 13.

Northside made the contest appear closer, finding the mark on three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter.

Morgan Allen scored 15 points to lead the Vikings (3-5).

NORTHSIDE (3-5)

Wiley 6, Thomas 6, Morgan Allen 15, Kurtz 3, Candice Smith 11, Martin 1, Hueston 1.

BROOKVILLE

Graves 1, Emilee Dunton 13, Katie Deacon 16, Middaugh 2, Talisha Watts 18, Thompson 2, Franklin 2, Sharman 6.

Northside 15 9 7 12--43

Brookville 16 12 18 14--60

3-point-goals -- NS (Wiley 1, Allen 3, Kurtz 1, Smith 3) B (Dunton 1).