Sport
11 October, 2024
Blazers looking to tame Lions in Bacchus Marsh
Maryborough Blazers will venture into another trip into the unknown this week when they travel to Bacchus Marsh to face the Lions.
This will be Bacchus Marsh’s first game of the season, and the Lions will be keen to make a winning start to the year after narrowly missing out on finals in both men’s and women’s grades last season.
That being said, the men’s Blazers can be pleased they were able to start off on an even ledger after two difficult away trips to start the season, while the Lady Blazers will be looking to record their first win, while having some cavalry potentially coming back into the team while they’re at it.
The men’s team had a good start to the season when they were able to defeat Macedon Ranges Rockies after making the trip to Gisborne.
At times, the Blazers looked very strong, and in particular, it was the three-point shooting of Matt Johnston and the three-level scoring of Bailey Jacobs which helped them skip out to an 11-point lead early in the third quarter.
However, with the home fans behind them, it was Macedon who started to come on strong, and did hit the front in the last quarter.
But Kynan Carter proved to be the hero, scoring a last second layup to give the Blazers a one-point victory.
The long trip back and forth clearly took its toll the next day when they took on Castlemaine away from home, with the Blazers unable to get into the game.
The Cannons proved too strong in a 25-point victory, with Jack Hexter leading the way for the Blazers with 13 points.
The Lady Blazers will have the chance to even up the ledger on Sunday, and will be hoping to regain the services of Maddy Egan and Keisha Tonzing to bolster their frontcourt.
Their presence would no doubt be of greater support to the likes of Faith McKenzie, who fought hard to try crash the boards, as well as Aislinn McCarthy, who went on a scoring spree to open the season, scoring 36 points.
The underhanded Lady Blazers gave a great account of themselves for three quarters against the Macedon Ranges Rockies, but it was ultimately the third quarter, where the Rockies went on a 27-9 run, which ultimately brought undone the young Blazers lineup.
Alongside McCarthy, Zali Linton had an encouraging run, which included a good finish to the second quarter, while McKenzie scored seven points to be their next best scorer.