IN a highly anticipated matchup, Wyndham has claimed top spot on the Big V women’s ladder by taking down the Bulleen Boomers. The two sides went head to head at East Doncaster Secondary College on Saturday night, in what was an important game for the whole competition, given these were the top two sides to start the year.

After 10 rounds of play, the Boomers sat at the top of the table, but Wyndham was not far behind, so there was a bit to play for here. The game lived up to the hype, with momentum changing hands on a number of occasions, treating fans to some see-sawing action. While it looked as if the Boomers were going to run away with the game with a pretty handy lead at the main break, Wyndham produced a dominant second half as the visitors stormed home to claim a 16-point victory and jump to the head of the table.

Bulleen Boomers (68) def. by Wyndham (86)

Wyndham got out to a pretty strong start in the opening minutes of the game, jumping out to an early seven-point lead and getting the upper hand in the first half of the first term. Both sides spent a fair amount of time at the free throw line, and the Boomers did as expected and fought back. When the buzzer sounded to end the first quarter, Wyndham held a three-point lead and it looked like it was going to be an arm-wrestle of a contest. However, the second period belonged completely to Bulleen, as the home side burst out to a double-digit lead. It was a charge that mostly took place in the second half of the term, as they managed to outperform the opposition and when Kayla Vitale hit a three with six seconds to go, the Boomers’ lead was extended out to 10 points heading into the second half, with Wyndham suddenly tasked with producing a big second half.

Quarter number three was all Wyndham, with the visiting side producing a terrific two-way performance as they got right back into the game in pretty commanding fashion. Scoring machine Dyani Ananiev was a main factor in this run, helping her side erase the deficit in no time and when Amanda Paschal nailed all three of her free throws with just over a minute to play, suddenly Wyndham had the lead, and headed into the final 10 minutes with a four-point advantage. The momentum remained with the visitors, who continued to outperform the opposition on both ends of the court, and break away from the Boomers, particularly in the final six minutes of the game, where they outscored the opposition 19-6 to cruise home to their best win of the season.

For the victors, it was the duo of Ananiev and Paschal that ended up doing the most damage in the win. As she has done so many times in the 2022 season, Ananiev ended up topping the scorers with a game-high 27 points, including making five of her nine attempts from behind the arc. Paschal was also excellent, stuffing the stat sheet with 22 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists and four steals, doing it all in one of her best outings this year. Bulleen’s Olivia Bontempelli was the standout for her side, recording a double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds.

Across the courts:

Pakenham (60) def. by McKinnon (68)
Chelsea (73) def. by Hume (82)
Southern Peninsula (58) def. by Wyndham (79)
McKinnon (54) def. by Sunbury (81)