Round 11 of our Women's Championship has wrapped up. Sherbrooke pulled off an upset against the Boomers on their home turf, while Hume secured their first win of the month. McKinnon and Camberwell have both extended their losing streaks. Meanwhile, Wyndham and Bellarine continue to look unstoppable. Let's unpack.
Bellarine (70) def Camberwell (28)
Camberwell are still not able to get a win on the board this season. They faced Bellarine at home on Saturday night who took home the win by a 42-point margin. The first quarter was close for the teams, both went on a 5-point scoring run and started strong, however, Bellarine is proving to be great contenders this season and were just too strong of a side for Camberwell to beat. Bellarine consistently showed great offensive and defensive pressure across the court, moving the ball quickly and efficiently to put up for points. Shoutout to Strait who got 18 points for the match and Knights with 3 assists. Despite the loss, Camberwell showed great resilience and effort.
Wyndham (97) def Warrnambool (66)
The only word to describe the first quarter of this game is intense. The ball movement was fast, and both teams were adamant to get a strong start. Two minutes on the clock with the Mermaids 11 points down, they swooped in to go on a 14-point scoring run to put them behind by only 1-point. Wyndham have lost one game this season, which was against the Mermaids back in Round 2! It seems they were not going to let that happen again, coming out even stronger in the second quarter to lead by 13 at half time. Stars like Jones and Paschal are hard to control on the court and Warrnambool couldn’t contain them, 24 points going to both stars. Warrnambool are sitting fourth on the ladder and this week will face third place Bulleen.
Pakenham (105) def Hume City (57)
Pakenham travelled to Broadmeadows on Saturday night to take on Hume where they took home the win by a huge 48 points. Pakenham have won 3 of their last 5, taking them to 7 wins for the season and looks like they may just make it to finals. Pakenham started off strong with a 9-point scoring run to put them ahead by 9 in the first quarter. Bronco’s Ridlen had 12 rebounds for the game, followed by Orimiston with 8. The team were able to apply pressure, resulting in 15 turnovers for the game. Yet, it was ultimately their scoring accuracy that let them down. Warrior’s Nickerson had 23 points for the match, shortly behind was Gallagher who had 20 points, both shooting above 75% for the match.
Bulleen (74) def Mckinnon (47)
Head-to-head the entire first quarter and no significant lead until half time, what a game to watch. At half time, Bulleen led by 8 points to Mckinnon before later taking home the win by 27 points. The first quarter, the game could have gone either way, both teams ending on 18pts after giving it their all. Despite their best efforts, the Cougars were not able to get a win this weekend. They had 24 turnovers for the game (Davis with 10 defensive rebounds, Patton with 8) whereas Bulleen only had 17. They were able to apply decent pressure to get the ball, but their scoring accuracy let them down, their FG% sat at 27%, as opposed to Boomer’s stronger 46%. Bulleen had better efficiency with the ball, allowing them to score and give them a 28-point win. Shoutout to Romas who had 28 points for the match and 2 assists, Bulleen have now won 3 of their last 5 games.
Wyndham (96) def Sunbury (70)
Wyndham, on Sunday, hosted Sunbury at home and took home yet another win. The Jets flew in and what looked promising for the first few minutes of the game thanks to Mirkovic, Wyndham came in on a roll to finish the quarter with a 12-point margin off an 8-point scoring run to ultimately put them ahead for the remainder of the game. At this point in the season, Wyndham are known for their game intensity and other teams still can’t find a way to shake them. Scoring lines at third quarter was 15-18, and 17-18 for the fourth, which are strong statistics for any team playing against them this season. However, it was too late for the Jets to come back to try get the lead. Wyndham had a huge 59 rebounds for the game, Jets had just 37. Mirkovic had a huge game for the Sunbury side with 21 points, 5 assists, 11 rebounds and 2 steals, an amazing effort, their persistence and strength as a team was evident until the final buzzer. That was the first game in the last five that Sunbury lost. They next face Mckinnon.
Hume City (86) def Camberwell (77)
Hang on, because Camberwell just almost got the win they have been longing for. The Dragons started hot to give them a 9-point lead at quarter time. The next quarter scoring margin was 23-22 to keep Camberwell ahead by 8. The Broncos were just not done yet, Overby with 20 points and Hindle with 19 made up for the fact that both teams drew at three quarter time. At this point, the game could’ve gone either way but ultimately, it was the Bronco’s defensive pressure and rebound effiency to give them a lead by 9 and win the game. Dragon’s Fagan (19), Burrows (18) and Valos (16) were all in the top 5 scorers for the game, their first win must be so close now. They look to face Sherbrooke next week where they might just come out on top.
Sherbrooke (66) def Bulleen (59)
Was this the biggest upset of the weekend? Sherbrooke suited up to take on Bulleen at home on Sunday afternoon, winning the game by just 7 points. Sherbrooke started slow for the game and were not able to control the ball, only sitting at 20% for their scoring accuracy. Bulleen looked promising to win the game, leading by 8 at quarter time but then just 2 at half time. Sherbrooke’s stars Pal, Carline and Sooalo shot 41 points between them and went on a scoring run of 7. From here on out, they were able to lead for the remainder of the game and take home the victory. Bulleen’s win by 27 points the night prior could have been a factor in this equation, but nevertheless Sherbrooke is pushing to make finals, now winning 3 of their last 5.
