Latest news with #LizWatson
News.com.au
2 days ago
- Sport
- News.com.au
Diamonds trio leads Lightning's blitz of the Firebirds
Diamonds trio Cara Koenen, Liz Watson and Courtney Bruce led the charge as Sunshine Coast Lightning blitzed Firebirds 72-62 to claim the Queensland Cup and Battle of the Bruce. Bruce, playing her 150th Super Netball game, was dynamic in the defensive circle and really proved a menace to Emily Moore and Mary Cholhok. The keeper had 12 deflections and seven gains. Watson controlled the midfield alongside Leesa Mi Mi - her workrate was second to none. The midcourter had 26 goal assists and 19 centre feed receives. While Cara Koenen didn't miss a shot all night. Firebirds tried to stay in the fight - but repeated turnovers led to their seventh consecutive loss. The two Queensland sides were fairly evenly matched in the first quarter with both teams having the lead at some point. It really amped up in the Super Shot period with Firebirds swapping out Mary Cholhok for long range shooter specialist Abigail Latu-Meafou. The move paid off with Latu-Meafou netting two of her three super shots. Lighting's defence, led by Bruce, worked hard to keep the super shooter away from the long range area. It produced a crucial turnover which led to Steph Fretwell sinking a super shot in the final seconds of the quarter to put Sunshine Coast ahead 18-17 at the first break. Firebirds defenders Ruby Bakewell-Doran and Isabelle Shearer forced Fretwell and Koenen to get creative in the second quarter - slowing the shooting rate but not halting it. The damage on the scoreboard could have been far greater were it not for Latu-Meafou netting another two super shots. But it just wasn't enough to catch up to the fast-moving Lightning side who took a 37-33 lead into half time. Lightning really hit the accelerator in the third quarter outshooting Firebirds 20-13 to take an 11 point lead into the final break. Firebirds staged a comeback in the final quarter, getting some quick goals on the board much to the delight of the 4666 strong crowd at Nissan Arena. But clawing back an 11 goal deficit in a single quarter was always going to be a big ask. Firebirds did hang on to win the final quarter 16-15 but Lightning took the game 72-62 Mi Mi means business Leesa Mi Mi was everywhere tonight - her darting runs created plenty of opportunities for the Lightning. Mi Mi had ticked the box in the gains, deflections and intercepts columns on the stat sheet. She created plenty of opportunities with 14 goal assists. The agile centre worked really well with Liz Watson - signalling what could become a key link up for the Diamonds in the near future. Firebirds need a spark The Firebirds are now on a seven game losing streak and it is going to take a lot to snap them out of it. We got a glimpse of what the Firebirds can do in the final quarter - where they staged a comeback. But they need to win more than one quarter if they want to get a win on the board. Cholhok has been a key addition under the post but the costly turnovers in the midcourt are hampering her shooting rate. They just seemed out of touch with the very clinical Lightning side. Firebirds have a tough game next week against Thunderbirds but a win would give them a massive confidence boost and could reignite their season. A few consecutive wins and other results going their way and Firebirds could still be playing finals netball.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Fearless era: Swifts' best start to a season since 2010
The NSW Swifts have continued their unbeaten start to the Super Netball season, making it seven wins in a row with a clinical 70-62 victory over Sunshine Coast Lightning at UniSC Arena. The ladder leaders gained separation with a strong first half on Saturday, before blowing the contest apart with a dominant 19-11 third quarter. The Swifts, who had only previously won twice from nine attempts on the Sunshine Coast and missed the finals last year, are now 7-0 and enjoying their best start to a season since 2010. She is beauty, she is GRACE 👑#WeFlyTogether — NSW Swifts (@NSWSwifts) May 24, 2025 Grace Nweke buried 50 goals from 56 attempts, while shooting partner Helen Housby had 21 assists to go with 16 goals, including four two-pointers. "Coming here, I wanted to grow my game, be more versatile, play out of the circle and change it up a bit," Nweke said. "Building on our previous wins, we want to keep consolidating and getting stronger." Nweke and Housby combined superbly in the circle from the outset, while at the other end goal defence Sharni Lambden suffocated Lightning superstar Liz Watson early. Watson had three of Sunshine Coast's seven first-quarter turnovers, with NSW taking advantage to move ahead 17-13. Watson shook off her shaky start to thrive in the second term after being released off Lambden into the centre, where she racked up several influential touches. But Housby's super-shot prowess meant the Swifts still had the upper hand, up 34-29 at halftime. Sunshine Coast captain Steph Fretwell, who had her hands full with Maddy Turner, was uncharacteristically inaccurate at goal in her 150th game as the contest got right away from the hosts in a lopsided third stanza. The Lightning struggled to contain the Swifts' Paige Hadley-led midcourt, while Nweke and Housby continued to fire on all cylinders in attack as NSW motored ahead 53-40. The margin blew out to 68-50 with less than four minutes to play, before Cara Koenen and Fretwell went on a belated 12-0 tear from long range to minimise some of the damage.
