KALANGADOO claimed the minor premiership in Mid South East netball, completing the home and away season undefeated.
The Magpies had a challenge against second-placed Hatherleigh in Round 18 on Saturday, but showed their composure to claim a solid 31-goal victory.
Despite the loss to the Eagles, they will still play their highly-fancied opponents in the second semi-final next Saturday at Robe.
With nothing to lose on the weekend, both sides came out firing from the first whistle.
Keston Green was a focal point in Hatherleigh’s goal circle, but Abbey Duncan was a quick reply for Kalangadoo down the opposing end.
The game went goal-for-goal for much of the quarter, but a late surge by the Magpies allowed them to claim a number of turnovers and hold a four-goal lead at the first break.
Marnie Smith replaced Pippin Ellis at goal shooter, as the Eagles looked for some more height in the goal circle, but Narelle Ryan and Jasmine Croser continued to make scoring difficult for their opponents.
Kalangadoo was quick in their transition through some slick passing from Jayde Peacock and Shauni Cunningham and played with high intensity in the second quarter extending its lead 18 by the main break.
Hatherleigh again made a change to the goal shooter position with Abby Wight entering the game.
However, the Eagles could not curb the impressive work of Melissa Russell and Duncan in goals.
Annabelle Brooks worked overtime in attempt to stop Russell’s influence, but she had a hard task shutting down the in-form goaler.
Green continued to be the focal point in Hatherleigh’s attack line, while Kelsey Wight made some nice drives at wing attack, but the Magpies’ defensive pressure was relentless.
Hatherleigh will be disappointed with the result and will look for some answers coming into finals, with the eventual margin extending to 31 goals.
Best players for Kalangadoo were Ryan and Cunningham, while Green and Wight were named best for the Eagles.
Final score: Kalangadoo 69 d Hatherleigh 38
KONGORONG claimed the win over Port MacDonnell, but the deficit was not large enough for the Hawks to make it into the top four.
The match was played in good spirit, with both sides leaving everything out on court.
In the opening minutes the game went goal-for-goal, but some unforced errors made by the Demons allowed the Hawks to pounce and hold a three-goal lead at the first break.
The second quarter showed two well-matched teams, both going in hard to create turnovers.
Port MacDonnell was pushing to regain from its mistakes, while all four goalies were making the most of their opportunities.
It was a great battle all over court, with the score reflecting, as the deficit stayed the same.
Port MacDonnell had chances to peg back at the difference, but another unforced error allowed Kongorong to claim the upperhand and extend its lead out to four by the final break.
The final stanza was set to be a thriller with the Hawks needing to extend their lead to have any chance of robbing the Demons from taking their finals spot.
On the other hand, Port MacDonnell was desperate for win after a horror month of defeats.
Both sides put everything into the game and as a result it went goal-for-goal, with the determined Kongorong side taking the win by four.
Final score: Kongorong 58 d Port MacDonnell 54
IT was both Mount Burr and Nangwarry’s last game of 2017 with players leaving everything on court.
The Saints had a strong start and held the upper-hand in the early moments of the game.
Their defenders were forcing the Mount Burr goalies to work hard around the ring and limited their opportunities.
The Mozzies’ Laura Schultz and Nangwarry’s Chloe Vanderhorst were running hard through the middle of the court for their respective sides.
And while Malinda Markiewicz was a focal point for the Saints in the goal circle, her shooting accuracy was not enough the get Nangwarry over the line.
In the end, Mount Burr proved their end-of-season form with a nine-goal victory to finish in the sixth, just one game behind fourth-placed Port MacDonnell.
Final score: Mount Burr 60 d Nangwarry 51
AFTER a disappointing loss to Mount Burr the week before, Glencoe came out strong in its final minor round clash of the season to defeat Tantanoola by 35 goals.
The Murphies started strong due to the work rate of both Alyce Finnis in centre and Jessie Gosden at wing attack.
Their strong drives onto the circle allowed Glencoe goalies Chantelle Weir and Ebony McDiarmid to concentrate on their rotation in the circle and as a result the two finished with confidence, missing just one goal from 21 attempts.
Down the other end for Tantanoola, goal attack Jami Walker also started the game with some impressive long range shooting to keep her side in the game.
However, the Murphies were clear front-runners with a seven goal lead.
Glencoe’s confidence continued to build in the second quarter through some accurate shooting from both McDairmid and Weir who shot at 100pc for the term.
The Tigers centre Victoria Lucas did not give up and drove strongly down the court to create opportunities, which made for an impressive dual with Finnis for the Murphies.
Through relentless pressure down the court from Glencoe and wayward passing, Tantanoola struggled to stay with Glencoe with a 42-25 score line at the main break.
The Tigers made changes at half time moving Casey Walker to wing defence and Casey Arney to wing attack, but this did little to stop Glencoe, amassing another 19 goals for the quarter.
Weir at goal attack dominated in the goal circle and created plenty of headaches for the Tantanoola defence to extend the lead further, 61-35.
The last quarter saw Casey Walker moved into centre and Victoria Lucas to wing defence, with the Glencoe line up remaining unchanged.
The Murphies defenders Jenna Paproth and Caitlin Leibich created plenty of turnovers and rebounded strongly with Jordy Jones at wing defence driving hard, while also taking some timely interceptions.
The final score resulted in a 35-goal win to the Murphies and a confidence building win for them going into the first semi-final against Port MacDonnell.
Final score: Glencoe 80 d Tantanoola 45
