NBL1 South Recap | Saturday Women's Round 7

Sara Blicavs and Lauren Scherf were among the players to star after Australian Opals duties on Saturday night while Marena Whittle, Cassidy Mihalko, Tess Heal, Tayla Gillam and Cassandra Brown were among the other Round 7 NBL1 South match winners.

There were Saturday night NBL1 South Women's victories for the Geelong Supercats, Ringwood Hawks, Nunawading Spectres, Kilsyth Cobras, Melbourne Tigers, Casey Cavaliers and Mount Gambier Pioneers.

Round 7 in the NBL1 South Women's competition got underway on Friday night with the Casey Cavaliers winning impressively on the road to the Hobart Chargers 73-55.

The Saturday night action then began at The Arena with the Geelong Supercats defeating the Ballarat Miners 77-72.

Sara Blicavs was back from Australian Opals duties for the Supercats and was superb with 33 points and 17 rebounds while hitting all five of her three-point attempts. Jade Melbourne top-scored for Ballarat with 16 points and seven boards.

The thriller of the night took place at Bendigo Stadium with the Ringwood Hawks beating the Bendigo Braves 78-77 on the back of three late buckets from Marena Whittle.

Whittle finished with 27 points and eight rebounds for Ringwood on 4/5 shooting from deep with Tess Madgen and Kelly Wilson combining for 47 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists for Bendigo.

It was a tight contest all evening at the State Basketball Centre before the Nunawading Spectres defeated the Knox Raiders 69-64.

Cassidy Mihalko was impressive in the win for Nunawading with 23 points, six rebounds, five steals and four assists with Rachel Antoniadou adding 22 points. Alicia Froling produced 19 points and 13 rebounds for the Raiders.

The Kilsyth Cobras resisted a late charge from the Diamond Valley Eagles to win 87-75.

Lauren Scherf was back from Opals duties and was superb for Kilsyth with 22 points and seven rebounds while Sophie Burrows put up 24 points for Diamond Valley.

The Melbourne Tigers finished strongly to defeat the Keilor Thunder away from home on Saturday night 78-72.

Tess Heal was superb for the Tigers with 31 points, 12 rebounds and five assists while Monique Andriuolo impressed for Keilor with 31 points and six boards.

The Casey Cavaliers made it two wins in 24 hours in Tasmania for the weekend with an 85-71 victory against the Launceston Tornadoes.

Tayla Gillam delivered 29 points for the Cavs in the win with Rachel Bell adding 22 points and 10 rebounds. Keely Froling did all she could for Launceston with 29 points, 10 rebounds and five steals.

The Mount Gambier Pioneers maintained their hold on top spot in the NBL1 South competition with an 81-65 victory against the Frankston Blues.

Cassandra Brown was superb for Mount Gambier with 31 points, 11 rebounds and three assists on 13/21 shooting. Tess Lavey top-scored for Frankston with 20 points.

The Round 7 NBL1 South Women's action will now wrap up on Sunday with the Kilsyth Cobras taking on the Sandringham Sabres from 12pm along with the Ringwood Hawks playing the Eltham Wildcats.

Then at 12.30pm, the Nunawading Spectres are at home to the Mount Gambier Pioneers and the Waverley Falcons will be hosting the Knox Raiders.

The Dandenong Rangers will then be playing host to the Frankston Blues at 2pm.

NBL1 SOUTH – 2022 WOMEN'S SEASON
ROUND 7 – SATURDAY NIGHT

GEELONG SUPERCATS 77 defeated BALLARAT MINERS 72

The Geelong Supercats welcomed back Sara Blicavs and had to work hard to end up overcoming the Ballarat Miners on their home floor on Saturday night.

The Supercats were back home at The Arena in Round 7 NBL1 South action to host the Miners with the home team starting well to lead 24-20 by quarter-time.

Geelong really put their foot down in the second quarter holding Ballarat to just the nine points and scoring 26 themselves including going on a stunning 19-0 run to open up a lead as big as 21 points.

That saw the Supercats lead 50-29 at the main break.

The Geelong lead had grown to 22 by three quarter-time and got to 27 during the fourth term before the Miners delivered a remarkable finish to the contest scoring 21 consecutive points.

They got within three points when Isabella Brancatisano drained a three in the dying stages, but the Supercats steadied with two free-throws from Jessica Scannell to secure the 77-72 win.

The result sees the Supercats improve to 7-2 on the season while the Miners are now 5-5 with the defeat.

Sara Blicavs was fresh off playing with the Australian Opals against Japan and delivered a standout performance to spark the Supercats with 33 points and 17 rebounds on shooting 10/12 from the field, 5/5 from three-point land and 8/9 at the foul line.

Taylah Simmons added 10 points and five rebounds for Geelong, Aimie Rocci 10 points and four boards, and Eva Brasils seven points and three rebounds.

Jade Melbourne ended up top-scoring for the Miners with 16 points and seven rebounds with Zitina Aokuso contributing 15 points and nine boards, Stephanie Gorman 14 points and six rebounds, and Isabella Brancatisano 12 points and five boards.

 

BENDIGO BRAVES 77 lost to RINGWOOD HAWKS 78

The Ringwood Hawks started strongly in Bendigo on Saturday night and then Marena Whittle came up huge late for them to hold on in a thriller against the Braves.

The Hawks opened up the game impressively with 26 points to 15 in the opening quarter at Bendigo Stadium before extending their lead to 49-36 by half-time.

Ringwood would lead by as much as 15 points during the third quarter but the Braves weren’t done with yet and built some momentum and energy on their home floor.

Bendigo even hit the front on the back of a Tess Madgen bucket with just under three minutes left in the contest.

The onus was back on the Hawks to respond after seeing that 15-point lead dissipate and it was Marna Whittle who delivered the two biggest shots of the night.

That put the Hawks back on top by three points and despite a late two from Kelly Wilson for Bendigo, it was enough for Ringwood to secure the 78-77 victory away from home.

Marena Whittle not only hit those two clutch shots late for Ringwood, but the Adelaide Lightning WNBL star put up 27 points, eight rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks for the night while hitting 4/5 from three-point territory.

Digna Strautmane added 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Hawks, Marta Hermida 16 points, six boards and six assists, Toni Farnworth 10 points and four assists, and Jacqueline Trotto five points, six boards and four assists.

Tess Madgen was back from Australian Opals duties and was impressive for Bendigo with 24 points, seven rebounds and six assists while hitting 6/11 from downtown.

Kelly Wilson added 23 points, six rebounds and six assists for the Braves, Megan McKay 13 points and 11 boards, and Abbey Wehrung seven points, four assists and three rebounds.

 

KNOX RAIDERS 64 lost to NUNAWADING SPECTRES 69

The Nunawading Spectres finished strongly to defeat the Knox Raiders away from home on Saturday night in Round 7 of the NBL1 South competition.

The Raiders hosted the Spectres at the State Basketball Centre but it was Nunawading who took a 17-14 advantage into quarter-time.

It remained a tight contest the rest of the way with never more than eight points separating the two teams the entire night.

The biggest margin was five points the way of Nunawading in the first half and it was the visitors leading still 34-32 at half-time.

The Spectres did manage to score seven straight points during the fourth quarter on the way to leading by a game-high eight points before ending up holding out the Raiders for the 69-64 victory.

The result improves the Spectres to a 7-2 record on the season while the Raiders are now 6-4.

Cassidy Mihalko ended up with 23 points, six rebounds, five steals and four assists on the night for Nunawading while hitting 3/5 from three-point territory and a perfect 10/10 at the foul line.

Rachel Antoniadou also produced 22 points and five rebounds for the Spectres, Megan Mullings eight points and eight rebounds, and Rachel Brewster seven points and seven boards.

Alicia Froling did all she could to try and lift the Raiders to the win with 19 points and 13 rebounds. Klara Wischer added 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Eliza West 12 points and three assists.

 

DIAMOND VALLEY EAGLES 75 lost to KILSYTH COBRAS 87

The Kilsyth Cobras proved too strong on Saturday night away from home beating the Diamond Valley Eagles by 12 points.

The two teams did battle at Diamond Valley Sports and Fitness Centre with the Eagles actually starting well chasing their second win of the season with 24 points to 20 in the opening quarter.

It wan an impressive start from the Eagles who led by as much as 10 points during the first term but the Cobras were able to turn things around completely in the second period.

Kilsyth turned that 10-point deficit into a 10-point lead during the second quarter on the back of going on a 12-0 run at one point and that saw them lead 46-39 by the half-time interval.

It was more of the same from the Cobras in the third quarter with another 10-0 run to see their lead grow to 22 points, and they would end up winning the game 87-75.

The victory improves Kilsyth to a 4-6 record on the season while with the loss the Eagles fall to 1-8.

Lauren Scherf returned for Kilsyth on the back of playing with the Australian Opals against Japan and produced 22 points and seven rebounds while hitting both her three-point attempts and all four of her free throws.

Chloe Bibby added 17 points and four rebounds for the Cobras, Abigail Curtin 14 points and nine boards, and Isis Lopes 13 points and two steals.

Sophie Burrows put up 24 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals for Diamond Valley with Kate Oliver contributing 16 points, 12 boards, five blocks and three assists, and Emma Mahady 11 points, five rebounds, four steals and two assists.

 

KEILOR THUNDER 72 lost to MELBOURNE TIGERS 78

Some massive plays late from Tess Heal helped the Melbourne Tigers score their second win of the NBL1 South Women's season at the expense of the Keilor Thunder on Saturday night.

The Thunder hosted the Tigers at Keilor Stadium with Keilor starting impressively at home scoring 11 straight points in the opening quarter to lead by as much as 10 points.

However, the Tigers did well to battle back into the contest and Keilor was only clinging to a narrow 34-32 lead by half-time.

Melbourne turned that around in the third quarter scoring 10 consecutive points to be on top 58-56 by three quarter-time.

Scores were then all tied up with four minutes to play before Tess Heal and Monique Andriuolo traded buckets to keep things that way a minute later.

The Tigers then pulled away with scores to Nikki Metcalfe and Bianca Babic. When Babic converted a three-point play Melbourne was up by five and Heal was able to seal the deal at the foul line to secure the Tigers the 78-72 victory.

The win improves Melbourne to a 2-7 record on the season while Keilor are now 4-6.

Tess Heal came up huge for the Tigers in the victory finishing with 31 points, 12 rebounds and five assists on 11/21 from the field and 8/8 at the foul line.

Nikki Metcalfe added 14 points, four rebounds and three assists, and Hannah Giddey nine points, seven boards, three blocks, three steals and two assists.

Monique Andriuolo had a terrific night despite the loss for Keilor with 31 points and six rebounds.

Aneta Bandilovska also had 12 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Thunder, Christa Reed 12 points and nine boards, and Chloe Hildebrand nine points, six assists and four rebounds.

 

LAUNCESTON TORNADOES 71 lost to CASEY CAVALIERS 85

The Casey Cavaliers completed a perfect Tasmanian road trip in Round 7 of the NBL1 South Women's competition beating the Launceston Tornadoes on Saturday night.

The Cavs also beat the Hobart Chargers 73-55 on Friday night and then completed the double-header road trip with an impressive performance against the Tornadoes at Ulverstone Sports and Leisure Centre.

Coming off the Friday night win against Hobart, it took a while for Casey to work their way on top of Launceston with the Tornadoes leading by as much as five points during the second quarter on their home court.

That saw Launceston head into the half-time break leading 41-38 but the Cavaliers were able to work their way on top the longer the second half went.

They went on a 9-0 run during the third period to open up a 14-pont lead, would go on to be on top by as much as 15 points and then end up winning 85-71.

The victory improves the Cavs to a 6-4 record on the season with the two road wins this weekend while the Tornadoes are now 5-3 following the defeat.

Taylah Gillam produced a standout display in the win for the Cavaliers with 29 points, three rebounds and three assists on shooting 5/11 from three-point territory.

Rachel Bell added 22 points and 10 rebounds for Casey, Abby Bishop 12 points, five assists, four rebounds and three steals, Sarah Boothe nine points, and Louise Brown eight points and seven rebounds.

Keely Froling tried her best to lift Launceston to the win with 29 points, 10 rebounds and five steals with Kelsey Griffin contributing 17 points, seven boards and five assists, Mariah Payne 15 points and three rebounds, and Makala Bingley six points and five boards.

 

FRANKSTON BLUES 65 lost to MOUNT GAMBIER PIONEERS 81

The Mount Gambier Pioneers held their hold on top spot in the NBL1 South competition with an impressive road win over the Frankston Blues on Saturday night.

The Blues did hold an early four-point lead at Frankston Basketball Stadium but by quarter-time the league leading Pioneers held a slim 27-23 advantage.

Mount Gambier was able to extend their advantage during the second term to lead at one point by double-figures and to still lead 48-39 by half-time.

The Pioneers extend their lead to 14 points during the third period and then 16 in the fourth before ending up winning 81-65.

The win improved Mount Gambier to an 8-1 record on the season to maintain top spot on the standings while the loss means Frankston sits at 4-4.

The Pioneers racked up 47 rebounds to 33 from the Blues while shooting a superb 50.0 per cent from the field opposed to 37.8 from Frankston. Mount Gambier also got to the foul line 16 times opposed to just seven from the Blues.

Cassandra Brown was outstanding for Mount Gambier finishing with 31 points, 11 rebounds and three assists while knocking down 4/7 from three-point territory.

Sherrie Calleia added 14 points, seven assists and five rebounds for the Pioneers, Hannah Young 12 points, 10 boards and three assists, Haliegh Reinoehl 11 points and eight rebounds, and Shakera Reilly nine points and five boards.

The Belinda Snell coached Blues got 20 points from Tess Lavey while Chelsea D'Angelo put up 18 points and seven rebounds, Kate Gaze 16 points, six boards and three assists, and Ella Batish 10 points.