WA Sting Sit Third in ANL
Western Australia has kept its 2011 Australian Netball League finals chances alive after splitting two home matches with a win over Adelaide and a loss to Victoria.
The Western Sting wowed their home crowd in a decisive 77 – 50 win first up over South Australia, in a strong display of National netball talent.
The first quarter definitely belonged to the home side, with the Sting making the most of every opportunity and working strongly especially in mid court. South Australia, whilst convincing when in possession, were lacking chances – with the first quarter ending 18 – 8 to the hosts.
SA found their rhythm early in the second, only to be denied by a tenacious Sting defence, WAIS athlete Josie Janz leading by example. Few errors by the home side allowed them to win the second quarter – 35 to 23.
Changes in the second half did little to disrupt the flow of either team, SA working well around the circle edge, but the pressure on and off the ball proving too much when it mattered. Q3 ended 57 – 33.
The Sting ran away with a 77-50 win, with WAIS athlete Sarah East hitting 44 goals from 47 attempts, at 94% accuracy. East was ably assisted by fellow WAIS scholarship holders Ashleigh Neal (11) and Stacey Northey (14).
The last game of the Western Australian leg of the ANL saw the home side pushed to their limits by a dominant Victoria Fury team who took the win, 57 – 49.
A rapid first quarter, which saw Sting in front for the majority, ended with the sides level at 15-15. Fury took their time in settling, but proved the more accurate side all the way down the court for the last few minutes to bring them even.
Continuing their momentum from the first, Fury earned a four goal lead in the early stages of the second quarter – Peta Fay proving difficult for the Sting attack. However, a change of pace for the home side bought the quarter back level at 27 – 27.
Four unanswered goals for Victoria gave them another early lead in the third, Sting’s error rate giving them several opportunities. Unable to pull themselves back into it, WA only managed 10 goals to Fury’s 15, taking them game 42 – 37 with one quarter left to play.
The fourth quarter saw WAIS youngster Lyndall Crichton introduce some fresh legs into the Sting midcourt, but with the Fury defence limited options for the attack, holding out for a strong win, the final score 57 – 49.
Northey topped WA’s scoring charts with 21 goals, with East (12) and Neal (11) making strong contributions.
WA will be back in action in late August, with matches against the Queensland Fusion and NSW Blues, with a win likely to keep the Sting in touch with the top four standings. The Sting currently sit third in the competition, with four points, having scored 262 goals and conceding 212.
-With Netball Australia