Basketball Students and Coach Garner State Honors

This article, by Cody Eliott, appeared in the Daily News-Record, March 23, 2022.

A historic season came to a fitting end on Tuesday for Eastern Mennonite.

Trey Gillenwater, a 6-foot-2 senior guard for the Flames, was named the Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association Division III boys basketball co-player of the year after guiding the program to its first-ever state championship in school history.

EMS battled through an up-and-down regular season that included injuries, illness and other forms of adversity to win three straight games in the state tournament and capture the VISAA Division III title with a 64-56 upset win over Fairfax Christian.

Gillenwater was electric in his final year with the Flames, averaging 21.1 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game as an off-the-ball guard with a smooth game.

While Gillenwater and fellow co-player of the year Ryan Blakey of Fairfax Christian both headlined the all-state first team, EMS senior point guard Adam Hatter also earned a spot on the second team after a strong cap to his impressive prep career.

More importantly than his ability to be a strong all-around point guard for Eastern Mennonite was the leadership and guidance he brought to his younger teammates.

Coach of the Year: Eli Crawford

EMS first-year coach Eli Crawford, a former standout player at R.E. Lee High School and Eastern Mennonite University, also earned recognition for the historic season.

Crawford, a former EMS assistant, was named the VISAA Division III coach of the year after guiding the Flames to a 16-10 overall record and championship this year.