Saints hit top spot in victory
SAINTS have regained top spot in the Townsville City Netball premier league standings after toppling Marian- Vixens 45- 34 in their top of the table clash.
The two top sides have traded wins in their pair of previous encounters this season and it was Saints who took out the season series after grinding out the win over their fierce rivals on Monday night.
Saints coach Angela Cooper was chuffed with her team’s performance as they appeared to be hitting top form at the right time of the season.
“It was a great effort from the girls; they are really sticking to the game plan and our court structures and they never allowed the pressure get to them,” she said.
“It’s always a really tough game against Marian- Vixens and they closed out the lead to three goals in the third quarter but no one dropped their head and we just kept going right until the end.”
Their Round 18 win helped Saints improve to an impressive 14- 1 record for the 2015 season and Cooper was thrilled with the performance of her two shooters, Alex Preston and Eleanor Horsburgh.
“I am really lucky to have some great shooters in our team and when you have Alex shooting at 94 per cent and Eleanor at 84 that really helps the team,” she said.
“There is a really great feeling in the team at the moment. All 10 girls are getting adequate court time and I’d love to see them make the grand final.”
In other premier league action this week, Neptunes retained third spot on the ladder with a 49- 42 win over Neptunes and Runaways beat Highland- Tigers 36- 29.
Townsville City Netball - Round 18 Saints 45 def Marian- Vixens 34; Neptunes 49 def Phoenix 42; Runaways 36 def Highland- Tigers 29