UP struggle to win against Chhattisgarh in handball

LUCKNOW: It wasn’t easy for hosts and last year’s bronze medalists Uttar Pradesh against spirited Chhattisgarh on the second day of the 44th National Junior Girls Handball Championship here on Thursday as they made it to the pre-quarterfinals with a thrilling 16-11 win.

Despite enjoying 11-3 lead at the half-time, Uttar Pradesh found the going tough as Chhattisgarh girls came up with a stunning show after a change in the ends.

They were more calculative and attacking in goal scoring, whereas their defense too showed up well, denying Uttar Pradesh many open net opportunities.

Radhana remained the star performer for the hosts, scoring six goals, whereas Sheetal and Moni scored four and two goals, respectively.

For Chhattisgarh, Priyanka struck four goals, while Sandhya and Kanak share six goals between them. Besides UP, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, defending champions Aryavart Sports Academy and runners-up Haryana too made it to the pre-quarterfinals by winning all the matches in their respective groups, at the KD Singh ‘Babu’ Stadium. In Pool A, Aryavart Sports Academy won both their matches in a onesided fashion.

First they defeated Assam by 17-6 goals and then Telangana by 24-8. The winners led by 16-3 at the half time. Haryana beat Odisha by 18-6 goals. Priya, Priyanka and Monika scored three goals each.

RESULTS

Aryavart Sports Academy beat Assam 17-6, Odisha beat J&K 12-7, Rajasthan beat Chandigarh 14-9, Chhattisgarh beat Uttarakhand 14-0, Karnataka beat Damandiv 10-4, Gujarat beat Pondicherry 16-9, Bihar beat Tamil Nadu 14-3, Haryana beat Odisha 18-6, Aryavart Sports Academy beat Telangana 24-8, Chandigarh beat Manipur by 18-6, UP beat Chhattisgarh 16-11, APradesh beat Karnataka 13-5, Kerala beat Pondicherry 17-8, Rajasthan beat Manipur 14-5.