Premier netballers have an eye on semifinals

With just two rounds remaining until the Marlborough premier netball semi-finals, the competition is heating up.

Tonight’s third round draw at Stadium 2000 produced two tight encounters and one runaway victory.

The big winners were Pelorus who continued to flex their muscle, accounting for Awatere 58-29, putting the match out of the Tussocks’ reach by halftime.

The evening’s two later games were much tighter affairs, both being settled by six-goal margins with the losers narrowly missing securing a valuable bonus point.

Harlequins and Tokomaru Crafar Crouch, both coming off narrow losses last week, were evenly-matched and went goal-for-goal through the first three quarters. Defending champions Toko eventually took the honours 41-35, raising their defensive intensity in the final quarter and nailing the shots that mattered.

Marlborough Girls’ College and Tokomaru Picton Motordrome met in the other match, with the students pushing the mixed side all the way. Toko made it a club double celebration for the evening with a 46-40 victory but MGC, who play an interschool exchange tomorrow, gave them a run for their money and will have benefitted from coming up against such tall, speedy opposition.

Pelorus, who appear early favourites to take out the title this season, did not take long to hit their straps against Awatere, racing to a 29-11 lead after 30 minutes. Jalen King and Portia Barcello were hard to beat in the defensive circle, forcing the Tussocks into long shots and risky entry passes. In the second quarter, the Tussocks managed only five goal attempts as Pelorus upped the ante throughout court. Meanwhile, Paige Lovell and Karli Murphy were handed a wealth of possession at the other end and made the most of it despite the defensive attentions of the Ryan sisters, Harriet and Georgia.

Awatere, as they often do, finished strongly as Pelorus emptied their bench but it was too little, too late.

Harlequins were left rueing a sloppy final quarter after going into the last 15 minutes trailing by just a single goal. Toko were buoyed by the return of midcourter Hana Wilson at centre, her partnership with sisters Dana and Kayla providing the attacking rhythm that had been absent for much of the previous half.

Michaela Boaz was influential under the defensive hoop, while Wiri Bristowe stood out at goal keeper in the final two quarters.

For Quins, Simone Pederson’s circle movement and ability to create space made her the standout attacker while Olivia Robinson and Cerys James-Sitters were equally impressive in their defensive roles.

Although there were no points at stake in the MGC v Toko mixed match, both sides showed intensity and skill.

Toko had tall timber at both ends of the court, Emilio Dell-Yaxley producing a high percentage in the GA bib while Jono Ettema at GK made life uncomfortable for the MGC shooters. Tash Ford, at WA, also had a good night, creating pace and presence in midcourt.

Mele Moli, Lesieli Taufa and Stormy Tupara had their moments in midcourt for MGC, who face a testing schedule of club and interschool fixtures over the next few weeks.

Scores:

Pelorus Edridge Contracting 58 (Paige Lovell 43/58, Karli Murphy 8/13, Meg Hocquard 7/10) Awatere Clarence River Rafting 29 (Kimberly McCabe 18/34, Ashley Childs 6/11, Emma Pilcher 5/10). Quarter scores (winning team first): 13-7, 16-4, 16-7, 13-11.

Tokomaru Crafar Crouch Picton 41 (Gemma Hika 28/40, Kayla Wilson 13/19) Harlequins New World 35 (Hayley Marfell 8/17, Simone Pedersen 24/38, Liv Hodson 3/4). Quarter scores (winning team first): 13-9, 8-13, 8-8, 12-5.

Tokomaru Picton Motordrome 46 (Ricci Higgins 9/19, Luke Richardson 9/13, Emilio Dell-Yaxley 28/37) Marlborough Girls’ College NZ King Salmon 40 (Fiaalii Solomona 25/37, Zoe Scaife 15/23) Quarter scores (winning team first): 11-11, 14-11 11-9, 10-9.

Third round standings: Pelorus 9, MGC 6, Tokomaru 4, Harlequins 1, Awatere 0.