THE 2018 Mid South East Netball Association Round 1 clash between Hatherleigh and Glencoe was a tight tussle from start to finish, as players went head-to-head in Saturday’s warm conditions.
Hatherleigh’s Maddie Pulmer made a strong comeback in the first quarter with good movement in the circle and plenty of rebounds.
Hatherleigh 49 d Glencoe 46
At the other end of the court youngster Lara MacGregor applied tight defensive pressure in the circle.
It was a close match up in the centre area with the Eagles’ Sarah Faulkner working hard against Jessie Gosden.
Strong hands from Maddie Redman in the defence circle in the second quarter and her drive out of the back court saw the ball transition well.
Glencoe had some solid feeding into the circle later in the second, but were met with consistent pressure from Hatherleigh defence.
Keston Green was on target with some good positioning and rarely missed a shot, which saw the Eagles extend their lead going into half time.
The third quarter was again a tight tussle with Redman and MacGregor supporting each other well in the Eagles’ defensive end.
Any stray passes by Hatherleigh were quickly capitalised on by the powerful duo of Cocks and Jenna Paproth in goals for the Murphies.
Sarah Edwards in her first game back after a season at North combined well with Caitlin Liebich in defence, which saw the Eagles have to work hard for each opportunity.
Glencoe fought hard in the final term, but Kelsey Wight kept her head and slowed the Hatherleigh attack line to deny the Murphies the win.
Port MacDonnell 39 l/t Kalangadoo 90
REIGNING premiers Kalangadoo started the season strong with a 51-point win against home side Port MacDonnell.
The opening quarter saw dynamic pair Melissa Russell and Abbey Duncan shoot a combined score of 21 against Belinda O’Dine and junior Isabelle Sneath.
Port MacDonnell’s Sophie Roach and Megan Hein were able to bag 11 goals between them against the strength of the Magpies’ Chloe Pratt and Jasmine Croser in defence.
In the second term, the Demons brought Darcie Kuhl on to rest O’Dine.
The fresh legs in defence for Port MacDonnell was handy, but the speed and accuracy of Kalangadoo down the court saw its score increase by 22 for the quarter.
Port MacDonnell’s increase of 10 took their score to 21, which saw them trailing by 22 points at half time.
Kalangadoo had its highest score increase in the third quarter, which took it to a total of 70, while the Demons had their lowest score, with an increase of just seven.
The unusually warm weather at the Bay meant both teams had to push into the fourth quarter.
After a consistently fast game from Kalangdoo mid-court players Jayde Peacock and Shauni Cunningham, the Magpies were able to finalise their score at 90.
Port MacDonnell’s Jess Trench and Libby Howe-Morgan played strong into the final quarter helping the side to finish with 39 goals.
Best players for Kalagadoo were awarded to Pratt and Croser, while Trench and Hein were awarded best-on-court for the “Bay”.
Mount Burr 46 l/t Kongorong 56
KONGORONG proved too strong for its Mount Burr hosts in Round 1 of Mid South East netball on Saturday.
The opening quarter saw both teams take time to settle, with passes not hitting their intended targets.
It was the Mozzies who were the first to gain control, with Laura Schultz at centre, Ebony Clark at goal-shooter and Hayley Agnew at goal-attack creating some smooth passages of play to take the early lead.
Kongorong goal-attack Brittany McEvoy was strong in the circle, with centre Ashleigh Sturges feeding her well.
However, Mount Burr goal-defence Ann Guyett in her 250th game and goal-keeper Sophie Wallis took defensive rebounds to hold back the Hawks and further increase the Mozzies’ lead.
Clark was strong under the post helping Mount Burr to a 16-7 lead at the first break.
The Burr continued its dominance at the start of the second term with Guyett and Wallis creating pressure to turn the ball over.
But the side was not as patient with the ball at times, which allowed Kongorong to force its way back into the game.
Schultz and Sturges worked hard for their respective teams driving the ball into attack.
Sturges, wing-attack Samantha Loughhead and McEvoy then started to pass with greater precision which brought goal-shooter Kaylah Earl into the game.
Earl was the focal point in the circle and combined well with McEvoy to see both goalies shooting at 100pc for the quarter.
Clark was the focal point at the other end of the court, also shooting accurately.
Kongorong worked hard to turn the tables and win the quarter by four, reducing the margin to five in the Mozzies’ favour.
After the long break the scoring was even to begin the third quarter.
Both teams created defensive pressure to force errors and turnovers without the ball making it to their goalies.
Mount Burr had to work hard to penetrate the Kongorong defence, as goal-keeper Roxy Gibson provided a brick wall for the Mozzies.
Schultz and Sturges continued to create drive and stability for each side, while both of Kongorong’s goalies shot with accuracy to peg the score back to 39-all going into the final term.
The Hawks maintained their form in the fourth quarter, with both Earl and McEvoy taking on the shooting role.
Mount Burr’s goal-shooter was the focal point for the side, but there were not as many opportunities for her and Agnew to convert.
In the end it was Kongorong’s defensive pressure which allowed it to hold back its opponent.
Mount Burr’s Wallis and Guyett maintained pressure in the circle getting touches on many balls, but the deflections fell into Kongorong’s hands.
In this quarter, it was the passing transition and patience with the ball that was the difference, giving Kongorong the upper hand.
In the last five minutes of the game, the Mozzies gained momentum and started to peg back towards the lead.
However, they ran out of time and Kongorong took home a 10-goal win.
Robe 67 d Nangwarry 38
ROBE played well from the start as it claimed a 29-point win over Nangwarry on its home court.
With little error from goalies Sarah Laurie and Halle Carter, Robe was off to a solid first quarter.
Nangwarry’s defence, in particular Carly Ploenges, tried hard to contain Laurie, but found the task difficult due to her height.
At the first quarter change, Robe was up by 12 goals.
During the second quarter, Nangwarry found it difficult to score with Robe goal-defence Kimberley Austin dominating the attack circle.
Both of Robe’s goalies were 100pc accurate during this quarter, which saw the Roosters increase their lead to 24 at the half-time break.
The third quarter started off even and Nangwarry goalies Tahila Wilson and Malinda Markiewicz started off strongly.
Robe’s wing-attack Kim Ross was tough through the mid-court and delivered the ball to goal-shooter Laurie in the latter part of the quarter, making it difficult for Nangwarry to gain momentum.
At the third quarter change the score was 55-24.
In the final term both teams made a few changes, with these provinf beneficial for Nangwary, as it won the quarter by two goals.
Laurie dominated much of the quarter for Robe, but many of the Rooster’s errors through the mid-court gave Nangwarry a chance to score.
However, it was too little too late and Robe secure a comfortable win.
The victors were best served by Ross and Austin on the day, while for the Saints it was Markiewicz and Ploenges who were named as best.
