West Gambier 58 d Millicent 56
IT was a tough, physical contest played in less-than-ideal conditions when West Gambier claimed a two-goal win over Millicent in the top-of-the-table clash.
The Roos and the Saints now sit at one apiece for their 2022 meetings as the former adapted to the wet and windy conditions at Malseed Park on Saturday.
Millicent had the better of the opening quarter.
Lisa Duldig returned to the court from her knee injury and combined with Paige Nitschke through the mid court to deliver plenty of ball to goalies Tabatha Sanderson and Demi Verbena.
The star shooting duo shared the responsibilities which made things hard for the West defence.
Sanderson netted 11 from 12 and Verbena eight from 11 as Millicent worked its way to a three-goal advantage.
As expected pre-match, Sarah Ritter was the focal point of the Roos attack.
In the end she shot 42 of West’s 58 goals and stayed on the court despite a tweaking knee, which now looks to sideline her for at least two or three rounds.
Ritter’s connection with Mikaela Horrigan proved irresistible as Horrigan hit the circle hard and used her height advantage to good effect.
The Saints had an equally strong connection in attack as their trademark speed of ball and precise feeding gave Verbena and Sanderson plenty of scoring opportunities and the lead was six by the half.
West clearly went to work in the long break to tweak its defensive effort and it worked, restricting Millicent to 14 attempts for the quarter.
A raise in pressure from the Roos paid off and they were able to level the game at 46 apiece at the final change.
The final quarter brought the worst of the conditions and it was a tense arm wrestle.
Both sides had trouble transitioning with any conviction and in the end Ritter’s accuracy proved the difference with her 10 from 11 seeing West over the line by two.
Ritter earned herself the best player honour for the game, while Horrigan was also commended for her efforts.
