On the final Monday night of February 2022, the Menchville Monarchs made some history in girls basketball. Their squad captured the Region 5B Championship, beating the Norview Pilots 43-29 at the Norfolk Scope.

It followed up a decisive 77-25 rout of Peninsula District foe Bethel from three days prior to secure their first State Tournament appearance since the 1996-97 campaign. But getting their first regional title in 25 years made it even sweeter.

"It feels really good. We've been waiting for this moment for a long time. We wanted this really bad. We've been working towards this for so long," said Menchville junior Amari Smith, who showcased her versatility throughout in finishing with a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds. On the season, she's averaged right around 22 points per contest.

A 7-1 run to end the first half for the Monarchs , after Norview's 6-0 spurt pulled them within five at 15-10, gave Menchville a 22-11 cushion at intermission. As expected though, Norview would make a push in the second half on a couple of occasions.

Jada Bryant, whose older brother Joe starred at Lake Taylor and is now a MEAC Player of the Year candidate at Norfolk State, had 10 points seven rebounds. Both Diamond Wiggins and Aniyah Burham drained three-pointers, and suddenly with 6:30 to play in regulation, the Pilots turned a 13-point deficit into a two-possession game.

However, Menchville responded behind their defense, keeping Norview without a free-throw make in the final quarter as they converted all four of theirs. That led to a 14-5 flurry to close out the contest as Norview finished shooting just 18.9% for the game (10-of-53)

Menchville will get ready to take on the Region 5A runner-up, either Princess Anne or Kempsville, in the State Tournament quarterfinals as they continue to seek history in the form of their first ever state title.

"I can't even put it into words. We've been in this situation a couple times, right here on the brink of trying to quality for the State Tournament. Our last time on this floor was a couple years ago against Princess Anne. I told a lot of these girls [who] where seventh or eighth graders at the time that this is what we're getting ready for and preparing you for," Webb remarked.

"I'm excited for them that they got an opportunity to come out here, perform and show what they can do."