James Murphy
A MIXED weekend for Mount Gambier’s Lakers women resulted in a win and a loss on the road.
The Round 11 Country Basketball League double-header had the Lakers heavily understaffed against ladder-leader Millicent on Saturday night.
The end result was a 28-point loss, as Millicent’s Emily Winter went on a 32-point spree to set her team up for victory.
Despite the loss, Mount Gambier coach Bryan Green was pleased with team’s performance.
“Even though the scoreline favoured them pretty well, I thought it was a pretty good game,” he said.
“I was really happy with our girls, especially the younger ones.
“It was a good learning experience.”
He said effort levels were high throughout the game and had things unfolded a little differently, the margin could have been much closer.
The Lakers relied heavily on their youth, with Cara Nulty top scoring for her side with 11 points.
“Through the whole season she has stepped up and is getting better and more confident every game she plays,” Green said.
Ambah Beveridge and Nikeisha Facey (nine points) also had their moments under the hoop, while defensively Green was quite impressed with one youngster.
“Tenielle Human’s defence was fantastic,” he said.
“I gave her the hardest assignment of guarding Emily Winter.
“She still scored 32, but I thought Tenielle’s job on her was exceptional for a kid who is 16 years old.”
Emily Dawe came down to play her first game of the season and Green was also pleased with her output.
“I was pretty happy with the effort and we tried as hard as we could for the entire game, which was the most pleasing thing,” he said.
On Sunday a road trip to Warrnambool loomed and the Lakers welcomed the inclusion of Mikaela Horrigan and Keryl Ousey for the match.
After a tough tussle Mount Gambier emerged 12-point victors over the Mermaids.
Warrnambool led by one point at the first change, but a 10-6 second term handed the Lakers a lead they would maintain until the final buzzer.
The third term was won by just a single point, before a 15-7 final quarter left no answers for the Mermaids.
Another even performance saw Sophie Miles top score for the Lakers with 11 points, while Horrigan (10) and Ava Collins (9) were the next best contributors on the scoreboard.
Green was pleased with Horrigan’s performance, which gave the side some leadership on court.
“She was fantastic – she stood up and was a bit of a leader,” Green said.
“Ava Collins was absolutely magnificent as well.
“She stepped up and she is a very strong girl now.”
Human had another strong defensive game, while Ousey also performed well.
“The whole team was excellent against Warrnambool on their home deck,” Green said.
“It was a really good win.”
The Lakers remain in second place on the ladder, but with Millicent now holding a one-win buffer.
