By Lachlan Onions
THE Mount Gambier Pioneers men’s team missed out on the chance to host a home qualifying final after it split the final double-header with one win and one loss.
With back-to-back wins needed to seal a top-two spot, the Pioneers started their final road trip of the regular season in style with a solid five-point win over the Waverley Falcons on Saturday night.
However, it was not all smooth sailing for Mount Gambier as the Falcons made the Pioneers work for the win.
After an 8-0 start to the game, the Pioneers looked like they were going to assert their authority on the contest but Waverley had other ideas.
The Falcons out-scored the Pioneers 25-12 for the rest of the first quarter to head into the break with a five-point lead.
However, Mount Gambier showed its class and stepped up in the second term to swing momentum back in its favour.
The Pioneers stretched out to take a 42-33 lead late in the half before the Falcons reduced the deficit to four points at the break.
The third quarter was a back and forth arm-wrestle with neither side able to take a foothold in the contest.
After the lead traded hands throughout the term, a late layup from Austin Shelley ensured the Pioneers went into the final quarter with a one-point lead.
When the pressure was at its highest, the strength of the Pioneers’ roster showed as it took control of the game in the last quarter.
The Falcons had no answer for the Pioneers’ pick-and-roll game as Titus Robinson and Jacob Lampkin dictated play in and around the hoop.
With less than two minutes on the clock, Robinson put the game to bed with a dunk to give Mount Gambier an 11-point lead.
In a chaotic final minute, Waverley managed to reduce the deficit to five points but was never within touching distance of the Pioneers.
Robinson led the scoring for Mount Gambier in the first game with 19 points off the bench.
He was supported by Nick Marshall (16), Shelley (12), Lampkin (12) and Tom Kubank (12), who all made solid contributions on the offensive end.
The Pioneers returned to the floor on Sunday afternoon to take on a determined Eltham outfit.
It was the perfect start for Mount Gambier once again as it hit the ground running to take a 24-12 lead.
However, the hosts soon hit back and reduced the margin to just three points at quarter time.
In an end-to-end encounter, the Wildcats won the second term 24-21 to level scores at 48 apiece at the long break.
Eltham came out of the half time break firing and took an eight-point lead after four minutes of play.
The Pioneers had no answer for Angus Glover and Callum Dalton as the pair punished the visitors at every given opportunity.
However, Dylan Marshall kept the Pioneers in the contest as he took over in the third quarter to score 11 points and made three of his four attempts from beyond the arc.
Dylan Marshall’s long-range efforts were enough for the Pioneers to reduce the deficit to just two points before a late three meant Eltham held a 75-70 lead at the final break.
Dalton and Glover were again on fire to start the fourth quarter and took the game away from Mount Gambier in the opening five minutes of the term.
The duo were ultimately the difference in the contest as they combined for 52 points and made eight three-pointers between them.
With four and a half minutes to play, the Wildcats held a 14-point lead and the odds were against the Pioneers from then on.
Some late baskets from Nick Marshall gave the Pioneers the faintest glimmer of hope but it was all in vain as Eltham claimed a 95-88 win to end the home-and-away season.
Nick Marshall was once again the leading scorer for Mount Gambier with 19 points, while Will Mayfield and Dylan Marshall both put in impressive shifts from the bench as they notched up 16 points each.
After finishing the regular season third, the Pioneers will now make the trip to Frankston on Saturday to take on the Blues in a qualifying final.
