Sports Dogs Podcast: State Championship recap and Bracket Bustin’

3/18/26- The Dogs take a bite out of their Tournament brackets, and look back at a great weekend at VCU for our area basketball teams including:

  • Clarke County’s girls claiming their second title in four years and record-breaker Alainah McKavish
  • Handley’s boys first program title in over 100 years
  • Luray’s boys fending off a record-setting performance to win in double-overtime
  • The valiant efforts by the Central boys, Skyline girls, and Luray girls

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Listen to the Sports Dogs on The River online, Spotify, Amazon, or iTunes HERE.

The Duke’s Championship Preview: Skyline vs Abingdon

3/14/26 Richmond, VA- For the first time in school history, the Skyline Hawks will play in the VHSL Girls Basketball State Championship game against Abingdon High School with coverage starting at 4:10 pm/4:30 pm tip on The River 95.3, Fox Sports Radio 1450, TheRiver953.com, and The River 95.3 app brought to you by The Hike Kidz Foundation c/o Brickhouse Bar and Grill.

Skyline girls basketball has undergone a complete culture transformation under Head Coach Charles Hudnall, now in year 3.

Before his arrival, the Hawks had never even won a playoff game and now he has them in position to win a state title.

The Hawks enter Richmond at 23-5 and proved last years 17-6 season was not a fluke (Skyline had not won more than 14 games in 15+ years), but a sign of what is to come.

Skyline is led by the Fab Five including Camilla Diamond, Taliyah Degroot, Karsyn Bunch, Lyzie Scriva, and Camryn Logan.

Hudnall earned Region Coach of the Year while Diamond claimed Region Player of the Year and four of the five were all region.

While the Hawks have the Fab Five, Abingdon has a hulk Annsley Trivette.

The 6’3″ senior forward does it all for Abingdon and has committed to play basketball at NC State.

Trivette leads the Falcons in nearly every statistical category with 22.5 ppg, 9.6 rpg, 2.3 bpg and 2.9 spg.

The future ACC athlete has single handedly changed the culture for Abingdon to help them to an opportunity for the first state championship in program history.

Abingdon appeared to play a similar to schedule to Class 2 Runner-Up Union Bears and their southwestern locale makes it difficult to find opportunities to play higher classifications and tougher opponents.

Skyline brings to Richmond a battle-tested team that plays a brand of basketball that travels to any arena.

The full team approach for the Hawks and Coach Hudnall will be enough to pull away late for the first basketball State Championship banner at Andrew Keller Court, Skyline 65- Abingdon 55.

For color commentator Josh Kirby’s interviews with Abingdon’s Head Coach, the Skyline coaching staff, and the Fab Five, click HERE.

For the Sports Dogs preview of the VHSL Championship weekend and Commanders Free Agency talk, click HERE.

Community rallies to send off State Championship contenders

The VHSL Basketball State Championships tip off in Richmond on Friday with six of our local teams making the finals and now it’s time to send off our hopeful champions and wish them good luck.

Luray High School is holding a send-off for their boys and girls teams at 2pm on Friday and are inviting fans to line main street to show their support.

Clarke County High School is sending off the Eagles at 2:30 pm with a police escort on Thursday down Mosby Boulevard to Martins before turning right and then making a left onto Fairfax Street to 1st Street and continuing to Main Street.

The Central Falcons boys team will hit the road Friday at 8:30 am and the school has invited fans to join them at the gym’s front entrance for the send off.

The Skyline Lady Hawks hit the road Friday at 10 am and will pass the football stadium before following Criser Rd. to S. Royal Avenue and then Rt 55 until reaching 66 and are encouraging fans to bring signs and noisemakers to showcase the team motto of “Small Town, Big Pride”.

John Handley High School will be the final team to leave for VCU as they depart at 3 pm on Friday from Winchester and are welcoming supporters to line Handley Boulevard to cheer the Judges on to their 5th State Championship appearance.

The River 95.3, Fox Sports Radio 1450, TheRiver953.com and The River 95.3’s coverage schedule:

For more high school basketball coverage, check out the latest Sports Dogs Podcast with previews of all the teams going to VCU here.

For more news from across the Shenandoah Valley, click here.

The Duke’s Hoops Preview: Warren County vs Skyline

1/23/26, Front Royal VA- Warren County hosts Skyline in girls basketball for tonight’s Hike Kidz Foundation Game of the Week c/o Brickhouse Bar and Grill with coverage starting around 7:15 pm for the anticipated 7:30 pm tip-off on Fox Sports Radio 1450, TheRiver953.com, and The River 95.3 app.

The boys got Rivalry Week started last night with a thrilling JV game that went to overtime before a Hawks win and a varsity game that was tied entering the final minute of play before Skyline sealed the deal.

In the first girls matchup this season, Skyline ran away with a 72-24 win to continue their 5 year reign without a loss against Warren County.

The Hawks have high aspirations this season and should be playing with a lot of confidence after knocking off Meridian, one of the Region 3B favorites and a Top 10 team in Virginia, last week and working their way to the top of the Northwestern District standings.

Skyline is led by Head Coach Charles Hudnall who values team basketball with an emphasis on team defense.

The Hawks claim four of the top five spots in the area for steals led by Camilla Diamond with 6 per game followed by Karsyn Bunch in 2nd with 3.4 per game.

Defense spurs the offense also led by Diamond with 15.2 points per game and 4.6 assists.

Camryn Logan, Taliyah Degroot, and Lyzie Scriva join Diamond with double-digit scoring averages on the year.

The upset minded Wildcats will need to find a way to contain a deep Skyline roster that knows how to find the open look or hot hand.

Warren County is led by team captains Kamryn Shipe and Sadie Rosner.

Rosner has provided strong senior leadership while the sophomore Shipe provides a glimpse at the exciting future for a young Wildcats team that features four varsity underclassmen.

Coach Abigail Gallagher praises the duo’s ability to bring the team together and set the tone.

The Wildcats feel they have had competitive practices and are continuing to improve throughout the season.

Coach Gallagher did a great job to keep the team focused during a tough seven game losing streak to rally and win three of their next four.

Warren County’s girls will need to slow down the game and avoid allowing big Skyline runs to hang in their against the Hawks.

I don’t think they will be able to do that and Camilla Diamond could have a triple double including steals, Hawks run away in the second half 67-37.

For Josh Kirby’s interviews with both coaches Hudnall and Gallagher, click here.

For more local sports coverage on The Sports Dogs Podcast, click here. 

Sports Dogs Podcast: JMU-Bloomington wins the CFP, Championship Sunday and more…

The Dogs have a lot to bark about this week, as we take a look back at the CFP Championship Game and the JMU tie-ins to the game.

Plus an NFL Divisional round recap and a look ahead to Sunday’s AFC and NFC Championship games.

And once again, Duke steps back behind the arc for another “Three Pointer” with some high school basketball storylines.

Available now on The River 95.3 website, Spotify, Amazon, or iTunes here.

 

The Duke’s Girls Hoops Preview: Skyline vs Warren County

Skyline (10-3) hosts Warren County (5-6) in the girls basketball edition of the Van Metre Homes Game of the Week on Fox Sports Radio 1450, theriver953.com, and The River 95.3 app with coverage beginning around 7:15.

Both teams enter the evening on an upward trajectory compared to previous seasons and are on pace to match some of their best records in the last 10-15 years.

Skyline’s 10 wins are already an improvement on last year’s 9-15 mark, thanks to some great returning players and another year under the reigning Northwestern District Coach of the Year Charles Hudnall.

The Sherando alum has helped players like Lyzie Scriva (14.1 ppg), Karsyn Bunch (8.1 ppg), Laney Breeden(area’s leading rebounder with 8.5 rpg), Camilla Diamond (11.2 ppg) and other key returners reach another level this season.

While freshman Camryn Logan has provided a boost in all phases with 11.2 ppg, 6.7 rebounds, 2.3 steals, and 2.3 asts

Skyline may be without a few of those stars including guards Scriva, Bunch, and reserve guard Taliyah Vanruck Degroot as they have missed the last three games with injury.

The Hawks are 1-2 in that stretch with the only other loss came early in the season to perennial Class 2 State Title contender Clarke County.

If Skyline is without three guards for the fourth straight game, Warren County will have a much better chance to pull off the upset, but the Hawks haven’t played in over a week so they may have had a chance to heal-up with the time off.

Warren County ended last season on a seven game losing streak to finish 6-16, but would match that win total with a win tonight.

First year head coach Abby Gallagher has helped steady the Cats, especially on the defensive end where they have kept opponents under 50 points per game.

Sophomore Melissa Dingess is already making a big impact at the varsity level leading Warren County in points (5.3), assists (2.0), steals (2.0), and three point percentage (22%).

I am making my prediction under the wishful thinking that both sides are fully healthy for this game as I have no information on their status until the players take the court for warmups.

The fully healthy Hawks will continue their run towards one of the best seasons in recent history and defeat Warren County, 55-38.