BIG V WRAP 13th & 14th July 2024
CHAMPIONSHIP MEN
BELLARINE 104 lost to KEYSBOROUGH 122
(Kavione Green 34 & 12, Nick Velasquez 24)
Another loss for our Championship Men has all but put an end to their finals hopes, going down to a red hot Keysborough on Saturday night.
Still battling injury, going in with just seven players available, it was always going to be a tough ask for the Storm, given the Cougars had knocked off Wyndham in convincing fashion last week.
To the credit of the Storm, we stuck with the home side in the first half, going in level at half time and then jumped to an early advantage at the beginning of the third term before the Cougars began to flex their muscle, regaining the lead and setting up a 10 point break at the last change.
From there, Keysborough retained control and ran out 18 point winners, the Storm dropping to eight place on the table.
KG had another good night individually, to finish with 34 points and 12 boards for the game, whilst Nick Velasquez was also prominent again with 24 for the night.
YOUTH LEAGUE MEN
BELLARINE 58 lost to MACCABI 65
(Bailey Goodgame 17)
For the majority of this game, it looked like the Storm might have been in a position to grab another win before the season ends this weekend.
However, in the end, Maccabi had enough at their disposal to hold out the Storm and seal the win by seven points.
Like our Championship Men, scores were tied at the half in a very even contest to that point. Unfortunately, the home side skipped away in the third term, outscoring the Storm by 14 points and lead by that margin with one to come.
When Bailey Goodgame dropped a trey with just over a minute to go, the Storm were within sniffing distance of a win, as they reduced the lead to just five points, with enough time to press for the win.
However, with time running out, Bellarine were forced into having to foul to slow the clock and unfortunately, Maccabi made the most of their trips to the stripe to leave the Storm with the equation of trying to make eight points in under 30 seconds to steal the game, however, it wasn’t to be.
Bailey Goodgame led the way for the Storm with 17 points for the game.
YOUTH LEAGUE WOMEN
BELLARINE 81 d SOUTHERN PENINSULA 60
(Sienna Quinlan 22 & 10, Lucy Howard 17 & 10)
It was a timely return to the winners list for our Youth League Women on Sunday as they scored a comfortable 21 point win over Southern Peninsula yesterday.
The Storm win was set up in the opening term as we put on a 25 to 14 opener to lead by 11 points at quarter time and even though things did even up in the second quarter, Bellarine were still holding a comfortable 13 point lead at the half.
It’s fair to say that the third term won’t be left in a time capsule, as both teams went cold with their shooting, the Storm going at 4 of 14 for the quarter, compared to the Sharks 4 of 23 for the term, Bellarine retaining the lead by 15 points with one to come.
It was enough of a buffer for the Storm to keep the lead and run out 21 point victors and improve their chances for a home final in the playoffs starting in two weeks.
Sienna Quinlan had another good outing with a 22 point, 10 rebound return, whilst Lucy Howard was also n amongst the points and rebounds with 17 and 10.
CHAMPIONSHIP WOMEN
BELLARINE 83 d WARRNAMBOOL 69
(Bridgette Rettstatt 24 & 18, Ally Knights 17)
Not only did our Championship Women shore up second place on the ladder and the chance of a home final in week one of the playoffs, they may have also put a severe dent in Warrnambool’s finals chances with a 14 point win at The Arc on Sunday.
It was a pretty solid opening by both sides, before, in the blink of an eye, the Storm had set up a handy advantage over their opponents by 10 points at quarter time.
From there on, Bellarine controlled the contest against their rivals, as the Mermaids had no real answer to the strengths of the Storm in Bridgette Rettstatt, Courtney Strait and Ally Knights as our Women dictated the pace and tempo of the contest.
It was a very good team performance across the day, with everybody stepping up to play their role against an opponent that never really threatened at any stage to make a run. The final margin probably flattered the Mermaids as the Storm consistently held a 20 point plus buffer for most of the game.
Bridgette Rettstatt returned 24 points and 18 boards for the game, whilst Ally Knights chipped in with 17 including three of three from downtown.
THIS WEEK
SATURDAY 20th JULY
Youth League Women v Surfcoast at Wurdi Baierr Stadium 5:00pm
Championship Women v McKinnon at Glen Eira Sports & Aquatic Centre 5:00pm
Championship Men v McKinnon at Glen Eira Sports & Aquatic Centre 7:00pm
SUNDAY 21st JULY
Youth League Men v Surfcoast at Bellarine Sports Centre 12:00pm
Youth League Women v Southern Peninsula at Rosebud Stadium 12:00pm
Championship Women v Pakenham at Bellarine Sports Centre 2:00pm