THE SANDRINGHAM Sabres have remained the team to beat in the VJBL Under-18 Girls VC Ashe division, maintaining their undefeated record with a 24-point win over the Keilor Thunder on Friday night.

The Sabres came into the clash with a perfect 5-0 record, with Sally Burke‘s team absolutely humming to start the 2025 season, overcoming every side they played and storming into title favouritism as a result. On the other hand, the Thunder were solid without being outstanding in the first month of play, winning three of their first five games, but faced their toughest challenge yet.

The class of the two teams was evident from the get-go, with the Sabres winning all four quarters and storming out to a big win and move to a record of six wins from six games in the process.

Madison Ryan got things underway for the Sabres with an early triple after the two sides traded misses in the opening minutes of the contest. However, the Thunder showed they were up for the fight for much of the first term, matching Sandringham’s output for much of the term. A 16-4 run changed it all, with the Sabres storming out to a 12-point buffer at the first break, despite being in enemy territory.

The Thunder did a good job to stem Sandringham’s flow a bit in the second quarter, and although the lead did get out to as much as 18 points, it was nowhere near as one-sided as the first term. However, the Sabres found plenty of success scoring the ball inside and outside, and still led by 16 points at the main break.

In a low-scoring third quarter, both sides struggled to find consistency shooting the ball, and it proved to be quite a tight contest coming out of half time. A flurry of late triples saw the Sabres lead by as many as 24 points late in the frame, but a 5-0 run to the Thunder late got the deficit under 20 points at the final change.

Although Lucy George tried valiantly late in the piece to try and generate some offence for the Thunder, it was to no avail as the Sabres continued to push the tempo and find the bottom of the net with ease, eventually claiming a 67-43 triumph to stay undefeated and remain the toughest and most intimidating matchup in the competition.

One of Sandringham’s biggest positives this season has been how balanced its contributions are on a weekly basis, and that trend continued against the Thunder, with four players pouring in 10+ points. Melinna Kapetanas led the way with 12 points, while Lily Newman-Morris (11 points), Ryan (11 points) and Ella Wickstrom (10 points) were also impressive.

George was the star of the show for the Thunder in their clash at Keilor Stadium on Friday night, consistently looking to create good looks and looking the most likely to find the bottom of the net. She finished with a game-high 16 points and can certainly hold her head high despite the result.

ACROSS THE COURTS

The Melbourne Tigers were simply too good against Sandringham Sabres 2, building a 17-point lead in the first half and never looking back en route to a 19-point win, as Laura Seiz and Chloe Marais combined for 38 of the team’s 74 points.

In a thrilling contest, the Eltham Wildcats emerged three-point winners over the Casey Cavaliers at Montmorency Secondary College, as the duel between Eltham’s Sophie Richardson (22 points) and Casey’s Vanessa Tavete (20 points) proved a crucial battle within the game.

The Surfcoast Chargers proved 12 points too good for the Westgate Imperials when the two sides locked horns at Wurdi Baierr Stadium on Friday night, with the Chargers owning the second half and they stormed home to claim the victory.

Finally, McKinnon delivered a dominant performance in its 31-point win over the Frankston Blues at Glen Eira Sports and Aquatic Centre, as star Daisy Nousis produced another outstanding performance with 24 points.