DCU Mercy 72
Glanmire 55
Women’s Premier League
November 8th, 2015.
DCU’s continued winning streak means they now stand top of the table, three points clear of Meteors.
For the first time in over two years, Glanmire have suffered back to back losses, having being previously beaten 82-73 by Killester.
Glanmire got an early foothold by scoring the first three baskets, but DCU quickly caught up and the first quarter finished with DCU leading 19 points to 18.
There was an air of panic on both teams as the second quarter began, DCU leading by a solitary point. The score line was tight until Glanmire pushed ahead, draining the last four baskets of the first half, leaving DCU trailing at 25-32.
However the third quarter was a turning point for DCU as they concentrated more on their defence and performed better than the previous quarters. Captain Sarah Woods, Fionnuala Turner and Chelissa Painter were key factors in the turnaround. Mercy succeeded in finishing the third quarter with a 47-39 advantage.
The Corkonian team kept battling and sisters Niamh and Gráinne Dwyer, third and sixth top scorers in the league respectively, had a very strong third quarter. But despite Glanmire’s perseverance, they couldn’t recapture their momentum from the first half.
Mercy Captain Sarah Woods scored two three pointers back to back in the final minutes. DCU’s Aoife McDermott scored the final basket, bringing the final score to 72-55.
“Glanmire are a team that never give up, we pushed ourselves for the full forty minutes and stepped up the defence in the second half,” said Aoife McDermott post-match.
Sarah Woods scored an impressive 24 points, making this her second highest scoring match of the season. Team mates Chelissa Painter, Aoife McDermott and Maleeka Kynard also gave powerful performances. It was clear throughout how much the game meant to both teams.
“I think we were a little too excited for that game because it’s a big rivalry between DCU Mercy and Glanmire. But I’m delighted today because we are top of the league now. It’s a good boost for the girls and good for DCU as well,” said DCU Coach, Mark Ingle.
“It’s always been feisty for the last few years. They probably had the upper hand the last two years, and two years before that we had the upper hand,” said Ingle, after the game.
However, it looks as if DCU have regained the upper hand having beaten Glanmire by 17 points – the greatest score difference in past fixtures against each other.
After defeating old rivals, DCU Mercy now turn to face Killester on November 21st in the Irish Wheelchair Association in Clontarf at 6pm. Killester currently rank third in the league, after crushing the University of Limerick Huskies in a 91-51 home win.
“Every game is different but we have a good squad and we are getting better every game so hopefully we’ll get in a good position to have a good run at the cup and good run at getting the team into the playoffs,” said Ingle.
Róisín Nestor
Image credit: Sportsfile
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