Jnr Tall Ferns fire for NC Premiers

North Canterbury Premier women’s two Junior Tall Ferns stepped up to lead the side to a 59-38 win over Halswell in a catchup game in Ohoka on Wednesday.

Both teams struggled to get into an offensive rhythm early as each squad defended strongly.

National representatives Char- lotte Whittaker (18 points) and Esra McGoldrick (10) anchored North Canterbury’s scoring and both had monster games on the defensive end with block shots and excellent rebounding.

Wildcat guard Ashlee Fane (10) showed leadership on both sides of the ball, organising her young team’s offence and playing her usual stellar defense.

After leading 26-19 at half time, North Canterbury pulled ahead in the third quarter with 10 unanswered points which gave the home team a 17 point buffer by the third break at 43-26.

They then closed out the game in the fourth quarter to win by 21 points.

Coach Wade Parata was impressed with the contributions off the bench from veteran Emily Baker and U17 guard Riley Harrison, both playing excellent defense that helped spark North Canterbury’s run.

The win leaves North Canterbury sharing top of the Patron’s Trophy with defending champion Lincoln University with four wins each and the two sides clash on Saturday.