KYLIE FORBY
ROUND nine of the Gawler and District
Netball Association season saw
the big A-grade showdown between
Sandy Creek Green and Sandy Creek
Blue, with the top-ranked Green side
coming away with a 43-39 win.
Both were pumped to start the match
and take home bragging rights, and
Green came out strongly, as its experience
as a team proved difficult to shake.
Amber Rogers in defence provided
good vision, picking off rebounds
with control and assisting to transition
the ball into goals to help Green to a
five-goal lead at quarter time.
The second quarter saw some changes
to the line-up with Green defence stalwart
Jenny Dyson moving into the goal
ring to score goals instead of stopping
them, while teammate Alyssa Wilson
continued her stellar play in goals until
injury forced her from the court.
Blue’s goalies Hayley Brooks and
Kirsty Hillier settled and had some
highly accurate passages, with drive
from Natasha Collins in the wing not
giving Green’s defenders time to reset
as the lead swung from Green to Blue
in the back-and-forth battle.
Blue went into the fourth quarter
with a one-goal lead, and Green had
no easy route to goal, but the intensity
of Catalano and strong leads of Barnes
carried Sandy Creek Green to a 43-39
win. In the second A-grade match,
Lutheran showed it is making progress
by coming out of its clash against
Xavier Saints with a 38-38 draw.
Lutheran has been building energy
over the past few weeks, and its improvement
could be seen all over the court with
immense pressure and workrate.
Xavier started well with Jessica
Dunkeld proving impressive for her
side in goals, using clever holding
techniques to ensure her team led by
one at the first break.
There was no panic from Lutheran,
and simple pressure on the opposition
was effective in muddying the Xavier
game plan.
Lutheran’s game continued to build
in the second and third quarters, taking
a three-goal lead into the final
term, where Hannah Rimmell capitalised
on minor Xavier errors to keep
the scoreboard ticking.
Xavier’s Lizzie Rex worked tirelessly
for her team in defence down
the stretch as time ran out with the
scores tied, with neither team deserving
to lose.
In B-grade, Virginia met the unbeaten
Xavier Saints, which proved to be
too strong across all areas of the court.
Tina McIntosh continued her ownership
of the goal ring with accuracy
and assists to goalie Jessica King,
helping Xavier to a healthy 10-goal
quarter time lead.
Virginia lifted in the second quarter
with accurate shooting from Chloe
Mickel, but the third quarter was all
Xavier, with focused play and cool
heads opening up a winning break on
the way to a 52-16 final score.
In C-grade, Gumnuts Jade met
Xavier Saints and came away with a
three-goal win after a close struggle.
Gumnuts came out firing and combined
well, committing to each pass
and leading by one at the first break.
Gumnuts continued its momentum
into the second quarter, with fresh
legs from Jo Glazbrook in centre finding
space and creating opportunities
for her team, extending the lead to six
at half-time.
Phenomenal play by Xavier in the
third quarter saw the Saints rally and
halt Gumnuts’ run, clawing back the
lead to three goals heading into the
last period.
Xavier’s Caelyn Pate was a standout
for her team in defence, showing
commitment to the ball and skilful rebounds.
But it was Rhiannon Hipkiss
in wing attack for Gumnuts feeding
into her side’s goalies that proved the
difference late, driving the offence
down the stretch to win 26-23.
The under-13 representative team
was also named, with the squad of
Hayley Cornwall, Alice Costigan, Sienna
Gaspari, Alinta Grose, Chantelle
McMahon, Samantha Penna, Logan
Schunke, Ava Wilkin, Matilda Wilkin
and Katie Worden set to head to the g
Country Championships.