Sport
20 November, 2023
Blazers fight hard in top end of state
It might not result in two finals appearances this year, but both Maryborough Blazers teams gave it everything in their final weekend of the season. It appears the Lady Blazers will miss out regardless of what happens to the Melton Thoroughbreds in...
It might not result in two finals appearances this year, but both Maryborough Blazers teams gave it everything in their final weekend of the season.
It appears the Lady Blazers will miss out regardless of what happens to the Melton Thoroughbreds in their final two games due to head-to-head, while the men’s team bowed out with two tough losses to the Mildura Heat and Swan Hill Flyers respectively.
The Lady Blazers finished off the season with two strong perfor-mances, hinting at what might have been throughout the season if not for their slow start, where player unavailability hampered them.
Against finals-bound Mildura, the Lady Blazers showed just how much they are capable of with their best lineup.
A tight first quarter saw the Lady Blazers take a three-point lead, having scored 16 points to 13.
Mildura hit back in the second quarter to tie things up at the main break, having scored 17 points to 14.
But Maryborough’s scoring power was able to help them re-take the lead going into the third term, and in particular, it was Faith McKenzie and Keisha Tonzing who were doing all the damage, shining in what was a low-scoring game.
Add in Maddy Egan’s dominance at the post, and it was a dangerous trio for Mildura which they just couldn’t contain.
The Lady Blazers scored 17 points to 12 in the third term to take a five-point lead in the last.
The scoring picked up in the final term as Mildura looked to get back into the game to maintain their chances of a top-two finish, but Maryborough just had every answer.
The Lady Blazers eventually scored 24 points to 19 in the last term and finishing up 71-61 winners. McKenzie scored 21 points, as did Tonzing, while Egan finished with 15 points.
The Lady Blazers maintained the rage the next day against Swan Hill as they virtually led the whole way, winning all four quarters.
A hot start from the Lady Blazers saw them take a 22-8 lead after the first change, and they kept on going throughout the first half, scoring 26 points to eight in the second term to establish a 48-16 lead at the main break.
With the damage done, the Lady Blazers cruised through the second half, yet did enough to keep building the gap, scoring 22 points to 17 in the third term, and 16 points to 12 to finish off the game strongly in recording an 86-45 victory.
McKenzie’s 23 points saw her vault to the top of the scoring standings, with 198 for the season at the strong average of 19.8 per game.
Alongside her, Tonzing had another strong outing, scoring 16 points, while Egan scored 14.
Maryborough’s younger players also had the opportunity to show out in their big win, with Zali Linton scoring eight points.
While it was a successful weekend for the Lady Blazers, the same could not be said for the men’s team, despite their best efforts.
The Blazers gave it everything in what was a tough clash against the ladder-leading Heat on Saturday night, before eventually falling to an eight-point loss.
Mildura got off to the better start, scoring 28 points to 21 in the first term to take a seven-point lead into the first change.
But Maryborough had a very strong second quarter, putting the Heat under immense pressure and allowing themselves to hit the front, courtesy of a 29-point second quarter.
In particular, it was the work of Bailey Jacobs and Ky Swards, with the young scorers getting things moving for the Blazers.
The third quarter saw the momentum shift once again, this time in favour of the Heat, as they were able to regroup after the long break.
They scored 22 points to Maryborough’s 13 to retake the lead, sitting six points up at the final change.
Maryborough gave it everything as they tried to claw back the margin, but it wasn’t enough, as the Heat had every answer, scoring 19 points to 17 in the final term to eventually score an 88-80 win.
Jacobs and Swards were impressive, scoring 18 points apiece, while Lachlan Drummond also added 12 points and Tyson Iglesias 11 points.
With the Blazers’ season virtually over, a short-handed team took to the floor on Sunday against Swan Hill.
A tight start saw the Blazers lead by the narrowest of margins at the first change, having scored 22 points to 21.
But the Blazers started making their move in the second term, scoring 18 points to 11 to increase their lead to eight points at the main break.
It was the work of Jacobs and Lochlan Oellering who was powering the Blazers, as both players were scoring at will.
But Swan Hill were determined to finish off their season with a big victory in front of their supporters, and they bounced back in the third term, scoring 24 points to 16 to level the scores at the final change.
With Lachlan Gardner scoring at will for the Flyers, finishing with 35 points, the Flyers proved too strong for the Blazers in the end, scoring 24 points to 18 in the last term to eventually finish 80-74 winners.
Jacobs and Oellering were the two main scoring avenues throughout the afternoon, with Jacobs finishing with an impressive 29 points, including four three-pointers, finishing as the leading scorer for the Blazers this season with 161 points.
Oellering finished with 22 points as he also established himself as a good scoring option for the Blazers.