ROUND 10 saw some big blowouts with the Geelong Cougars and City West Falcons dominating their opponents. The Falcons remain undefeated while Boroondara Express claimed victory in a tight contest against the Southern Saints.

City West Falcons (63) defeated Hawks Netball (36)

The City West Falcons continued their winning streak sitting undefeated at the top of the ladder thanks to their solid connections down court, clever ball movement and accuracy to post. The Falcons skipped out to an early lead up by 12 at quarter time after nailing 19 goals to seven in the opening term thanks to the hot hand of Tharjini Sivalingam who slotted 13 straight. Both Falcons goalers shot at 100 per cent in the first term with Tahnysha Salanoa also capitalising on her scoring opportunities. Salanoa’s influence dropped off as the game went on but Sivalingam proved to be a dominant threat under the post credit to her strong holds and accuracy, slotting 52 goals from 60 attempts. On the other hand, the Hawk shooters struggled to convert with both shooters going at 68 per cent compared to the Falcons’ 86. Shae Gee only managed to convert 19 goals from her 28 attempts while Tayla Shannon missed eight of her 25 attempts. The delivery into the goal circle for the Falcons was impressive with Molly Jovic and Maggie Lind finding good space to feed the ball into the shooters.

North East Blaze (62) defeated Southern Saints (48)

It was neck and neck for the first three quarters with the Southern Saints taking it up to the North-East Blaze until they turned it on in the final term to pile on a whopping 20 goals to eight. The Blaze were well held for majority of the game with the Saints covering their drives and confusing the space but could not maintain that intensity for a full four quarters. Blaze goal shooter Elizabeth Nicol was prolific under the post and posed an ominous threat only missing three goals for the game with 54 from 57 at 95 per cent. Nicol and Sarah Hogan did not miss a shot in the opening term making the most of their opportunities to post. The defensive unit of Tayissa Coppinger, Kaitlyn Black and Chloe Lambert was strong helping to slow up the Saints and reduce their opposition’s impact in attack. The Southern Saints struggled to find fluidity in the goal circle making multiple changes throughout the game with Samantha Silvester top scoring with 16 goals from 19 attempts at 85 per cent while the next best for the Saints was Ella Quinlan with 13 from 15. Ashleigh Gill showcased her attacking ability switching between wing attack and centre for the Saints.

Boroondara Express (52) defeated Peninsula Waves (47)

The game ebbed and flowed with the lead changing hands multiple times throughout, highlighting the closeness of the contest. But with ties scored at half time at 24 goals apiece Express put their foot down in the second half to establish a lead and hold onto it. They edged out to an 11 goal lead before the Waves fought back to get within five goals thanks to a 14 goal last term. Goaler Clare Vearing proved to be a game changer for the Express with her accuracy to post a real feature of her game, nailing 40 from 43 at 93 per cent. Ruby Barkmeyer was also handy in attack doing a wealth of work out the front while also putting up her fair share of shots with 10 from 15. The connection between Jade Forbes-Wattley, Caitlyn Degaris and Casey Adamson helped to clog up the Waves’ attack end. Waves shooters Madeline Morrison and Gabrielle Dwyer worked well together to rotate through the circle and score. Morrison was relatively inaccurate under the post at 67 per cent while Stacie Gardiner showcased her versatility to move between wing attack and the shooting circle.

Melbourne University Lightning (59) defeated Casey Demons (41)

The Melbourne University put on a dominant display against the Casey Demons building on their lead at each break, but it was not until the last quarter that the Lightning streamed ahead adding 15 goals to their tally while keeping the Demons to seven goals. Their ball movement down the court and intensity lifted throughout the game making it hard for the Demons to keep up. The shooting load was relatively evenly spread across the Lightning shooters with Taylin Gourley leading the way with 26 from 28 at 93 per cent, while Mikaela Vaughan and Rebecca Winch closely followed. Winch was more accurate to post converting 15 of her 16 shots at 94 per cent. Lightning wing defence Madeline Carter did a good job in slowing down Kassidy Withers, reducing her ability to feed into Casey’s shooters. Erin Bell and Emma Ryde were both accurate to post with Ryde nailing 20 from 23 at 87 per cent while Bell managed 18 from 26 with her high release on full display.

Geelong Cougars (63) defeated Ariels (39)

In the final game of the round the Geelong Cougars demolished the Ariels with a 24 goal drubbing, credit to their clever game play and tactics. Their ability to exploit the Ariels’ weakness and capitalise on turnovers allowed them to extend their lead as the game went on. They put up a whopping 79 attempts on goal, 29 more than the Ariels with only 50. The combination between Cougars shooters’ Julia Woolley, Ruby Horton and Bridgette Furphy continues to strengthen with all three highlighting their ability to find the net. Woolley finished with 28 goals from 35 attempts while Horton was the most accurate of the bunch at 92 per cent. Georgette Paastch and Jessica Standfield applied good defensive pressure to create turnovers and limit opportunities under the post for Ariels shooters Beth Wilson and Alex Maher. Stacey Gannon showcased her versatility rotating between wing attack and goal attack with most of her damage done in the goal circle with 20 goals from 27 attempts but it was not enough as the Cougars flexed their muscles across the court.