ROUND 3 of the Big V Women’s saw Sunbury and Bulleen remain undefeated notching up convincing wins in their respective outings. McKinnon registered their first win of the season with a thrilling narrow victory over Casey.

Sunbury (74) defeated Hume (47)

Sunbury made light work of Hume Broncos disposing of them by 27 points. It was a fast start by the Jets and that ultimately set the tone as Hume were forced to play catch-up and they simply could not match the output of Sunbury. The Jets played with a sense of urgency and most importantly attacking prowess to keep the scoreboard constantly ticking over and keep the game well and truly out of reach from Hume.

The Jets had no shortage of players bob up and ply their trade in the win with Orla O’Reilly leading the pack with her 15 points, three rebounds, four assists and three steals. Courtenay Wragg and Emily Conn both came up big with 14 points apiece. It did not stop there for Wragg who racked up seven rebounds, four rebounds and two blocks as Conn dished off seven dimes. Tahnee Cannan was the only other player to reach double figures for the Jets finishing the match with 13 points to her name. Points were hard to come by for the Broncos but Leilani Siamoa was the main contributor producing 11 points albeit at a lowly 50 per cent from the field. Hayley Wynd worked relentlessly for her eight points and four rebounds as did Tashia Overby who managed five rebounds on top of her eight points.

McKinnon (52) defeated Casey (51)

It was a tight tussle between McKinnon and Casey with the game decided by a mere point showcasing the intensity of the match. In the end it was McKinnon that got the last laugh, doing enough to just limp over the line and secure their first win for season 2021. Casey burst out of the blocks limiting McKinnon to a lowly 15 points in the first half before they came out a whole new side in the second half to take out the win.

Claire Ioannidis did the damage for McKinnon recording a team-high 19 points while also dragging in five rebounds, all of which were defensive. The scoring fell off after that with the next closest Amelia Todhunter with nine points. Todhunter also managed six rebounds and four assists in the win while Morgan Ili just fell short of a double-double with nine points and nine assists. For Casey, the ever-reliable Shereesha Richards made her presence felt finishing with a double-double, reeling in 14 rebounds and 14 points in an all-round strong performance. Georgia Koopmans plied her trade with 10 points while Stephanie Leclerc managed eight points in her 16 minutes.

Keilor (78) defeated Wyndham (66)

The Thunder kept their undefeated record intact, proving they are a real threat to be reckoned with this season. Both sides were neck and neck for majority of the game as Keilor tried to break away but Wyndham lingered to keep fans guessing which way the game was going to go. But Keilor’s ability to withstand the barrage of attacking forays was evident, riding out the wave from Wyndham and then counterpunching to hit the scoreboard themselves and deliver.

There were a trio of stars that did the heavy lifting for Keilor as Emily Suckling produced a game-high 22 points at 50 per cent from the field. Ally Keating also chimed in with a handy 16 points, five rebounds, three assists and four steals in a strong showing while Zoe Zwerling also impacted the play thanks to her 10 points. Olivia Tsantarlis impressed in her 18 minutes on court recording eight points and 10 rebounds. For Wyndham, Courtney Middap continued her hot start to the season with 18 points, four rebounds and five assists. Teammate Jessica Scannell was the next closest finishing with 11 points as Nicola Handreck proved to be a menace off the boards credit to her 10 rebounds and seven points.

Bulleen (95) defeated Whittlesea (57)

A scintillating first quarter from Bulleen all but set up the win against a struggling Whittlesea side. The Boomers inflicted a wealth of scoreboard pain thanks to their 24-6 first term margin and from there they never looked like losing. In the opening half alone they managed 54 points and although the scoring died off in the second half as the Pacers upped the ante the damage was already done. It was all one-way traffic with the Pacers never really finding their groove despite winning the final term – albeit by two points – as Bulleen ran out with a convincing 38-point win.

The Boomers were missing key cog Rebecca Cole but that did not seem to faze the side as Louella Tomlinson spearheaded the attack thanks to her 23 points, 14 rebounds, four assists, three steals and five blocks. Kate Gaze was up to her usual tricks posting 14 points, six rebounds and two steals in another strong performance. Kaylah Pangbourne and Kayla Vitale were the other two players to reach double figures with 13 and 10 points respectively. But it did not stop there, with every single player on the Boomers list managing to register on the scoreboard, highlighting just how much of a team effort the win was. For the Pacers, it was Indiana Bodley that proved to be the go-to girl knocking back 21 points, four rebounds and two assists while teammate Saule Kontautaite plied her trade thanks to her 16 points, seven rebounds and three steals. Although Lyndsey Hoogenhout only managed two points in her 35 minutes on court, her strength off the boards was unmatched reeling in 12 rebounds.

Hawthorn (56) defeated Southern Peninsula (63)

It was a close contest between Hawthorn and Southern Peninsula with the latter just sneaking over the line with a seven point win. After an even start to the game Southern Peninsula put the foot down in the second term to really claim the ascendancy and create some much needed separation with a 21-12 term.

There were two main contributors for the Magic with Bella Niven-Brown topscoring with 15 points and a whopping 14 rebounds, with nine of them defensive. Emily Kurkowski was another main port of call for Hawthorn racking up 14 points, five rebounds and a block. Teammate Ella Crump also had an influence despite being in a losing side posting nine points and six rebounds. For Southern Peninsula, Tanarly Hood did the most damage with 16 points while reeling in eight rebounds all of which were defensive as she continued her hot start to the season. Shanara Notman was dynamic for her 12 points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals as teammate Fiona Darnell also made a splash thanks to her eight points and eight rebounds.