Sport
19 November, 2024
Men’s Blazers take eight-point win to finish home-and-away season, Lady Blazers fall short
The men’s Maryborough Blazers have all-but ensured a fifth-place finish, while a short-handed Lady Blazers were left to rue the cost of a slow start against the Melton Thoroughbreds.
With just seven players available on Saturday night, the Lady Blazers looked to bring home a win to finish their season on a positive note.
The Lady Blazers were competitive in the opening stages, scoring six of the first 10 points of the game, but Melton then bolted together a 14-2 run to shift the momentum of the game their way.
It allowed Melton to lead 31-15 at the end of the first change, desperate to ensure they could get off the bottom of the ladder.
A quick 9-2 run to start the second term was exactly what Maryborough needed, with Zali Linton providing four points in that run.
While Maryborough did get as close as seven points on a couple of occasions, it appeared Melton had all the answers throughout the term, and maintained a 14-point lead at the long break, 45-31.
An 8-0 run to start the third term broke the game open for Melton, and they were able to control the pace of play from there.
Try as they might, the Lady Blazers just couldn’t close the gap, and it was Melton who doubled their half time lead to end the third term, leading 72-44.
Melton’s overall depth was just too much for the Lady Blazers, who battled on in the last term, but it wasn’t enough to prevent a 37-point win to the Thoroughbreds, 95-58.
Demi Thompson led the way with 17 points for the Lady Blazers, while competition leading-scorer Faith McKenzie added 14 and Linton 10.
Maryborough’s men were determined to take home a victory to finish off their season, but came up against a Melton team who were likewise determined to protect home court.
Melton shot away to an early 15-8 lead, but the Blazers responded with a 10-0 run of their own to hit the front, with Brady Neill in particular busy around the paint.
At the end of a topsy-turvy opening term, the Thoroughbreds led 21-20.
The second quarter was an extremely tight affair, with neither team able to establish a break throughout the first half of the term.
In the middle stages of the quarter, Lachlan Drummond started to get busy, and was putting together his best offensive performance of the year, scoring six points in a quick burst.
But Melton, through Tyson Hamilton, were able to get away on a run late in the term to score the last five points to lead 43-37 at the main break.
Melton soon scored the first bucket of the third term to extend their lead to a game-high nine points.
At that stage, the Blazers looked in trouble, but it was Neill and Drummond who were getting them back into the game.
They would hit the front late in the term, but a late bucket from Melton meant that scores were tied up going into the last term.
The final quarter belonged to Drummond, determined to bring home a good win for his team, and he was particularly busy in the opening stages, scoring five quick points to break the game open for the Blazers.
Three more buckets meant Drummond would have 11 for the term, while he brought others such as Bailey Jacobs into the game, who was able to put together a crucial stretch of buckets to further enhance the Blazers’ chances of winning.
In the end, they would do so, taking an eight-point win away in what is a positive finish to their season.
Drummond’s 28 points was his best return for the season, while Neill scored 24.
Jacobs’ 14 points was enough to see him pass 200 for the season, a terrific return.