Over the coming months we have some excellent content coming from former Junior Seahawk and current Journalism student Kye Kuncoro. Kye will be covering a wide range of aspects of our Seahawks community and tips off his content with reports on two of the U21 Seahawks women's games from Coomera Indoor on Saturday.
North Gold Coast Seahawks vs South West Metro Pirates
By Kye Kuncoro
In a game full of scoring runs the 5th placed South West Metro Pirates would just edge the 6th placed North GC Seahawks 63-57 in a matchup which could determine whether each team makes the semi-finals come seasons end.
A big 11-point first quarter by Indiah Bowyer that included both inside and outside of the paint, helped the Seahawks jump out to a 21-15 lead over the Pirates.
The Seahawks would come out in the 2nd quarter even stronger forcing 5 consecutive turnovers which were caused by effective trapping and high intensity on defence. The lead would extend to 10 points halfway through the second quarter. The remainder of the 2nd quarter would be all the Pirates though as a game-defining 13-3 run would lock the scores at 32 each at halftime.
The 3rd quarter would almost mirror the 2nd quarter as the Seahawks again gained an advantage through quick ball movement and by running in transition. Hayley Cotter controlling of the defensive boards was also key to this lead throughout most of the 3rd quarter. Unfortunately for the Seahawks, a lapse of concentration would allow the Pirates to score 10 unanswered points in the final 2 minutes of the 3rd quarter tying up the game at 46 each.
The Seahawks and Pirates would go back and forth for most of the final quarter until a quick flurry of Pirates points gave them a 7-point lead with 2 minutes left. The Seahawks seemed to lose control of the defensive boards during the final quarter as the Pirates were gaining offensive rebounds with ease. The Seahawks offense also seemed to stagnate as the ball movement which had got them the lead in the earlier quarters was less prevalent especially down the stretch.
The Seahawks showed flashes of brilliance with excellent execution of plays on offense and good defensive intensity but just couldn’t put the game beyond down when they had big leads in the 2nd and 3rd quarter.
Ultimately the Seahawks would fall to the Pirates 63-57.
North Gold Coast Seahawks vs RedCity Roar
By Kye Kuncoro
Three great offensive displays by Anahera Tuhega (13 pts), Ella Brow (16 pts), and Indiah Bowyer (20 pts) meant that the North Gold Coast Seahawks would just pull out a 58-61 win over the Red City Roar.
The Seahawks would have a slight scare midway through the 2nd quarter as the Roar climbed in front, but this lasted only for a minute and 13 seconds as the Seahawks regained the lead. The Seahawks' interior defence struggled frequently which gave the Roar easy opportunities around the rim. Fortunately for the Seahawks, the Roar struggled to convert around the rim as they held onto a slim 27-31 lead.
The 2nd half emulated the 1st as the Seahawks continued to hold onto a slim lead. The key period in this half came with 7 minutes left in the final quarter. The Roar had cut the deficit to just one point and had the momentum until a defiant Seahawks side forced four consecutive Roar turnovers resulting in a 5-point swing in favour of the Seahawks.
This six-point deficit would prove too much for Roar to come back from as two Anahera Tuhega free throws in the final seconds sealed the 58-61 win for the North Gold Coast Seahawks.