THE Mildura Demons held strong when it mattered most to further sink reigning premiers Ouyen United, winning 53-50 in a back-and-forth tussle.
Mildura had the slightly better start to lead by three at quarter time, before Ouyen produced one of their better quarters for the season to lead by two at half-time.
As the game went down the stretch, Ouyen made a few costly errors that Mildura were able to capitalise on to secure the win.
Mildura’s shooters in Ashleigh Morrello and Jessica McNamara shared the load beautifully in attack and their composure late was crucial. Katelyn Challis and Sharon Watson also came up with some key plays in defence.
Despite the loss, Ouyen coach Kyra Nathan was happier with their performance in comparison to recent weeks.
“We were able to get back to our style of netball,” said Nathan.
“Ellen Morrish was back to her best and it felt like Cat Brown was getting every second pass in attack. Our defenders as a unit were better and created some turnovers that we were able to score off. We were up most of the game, but at the end we missed some goals, and Mildura were more accurate than us.”
The win steadies Mildura’s season and leaves Ouyen needing to go on an almighty run in the last two thirds of the season if they are to defend their flag in September.
Best – Mildura – Katelyn Challis and Sharon Watson, Ouyen Kate Lockett and Ellen Morrish
