Seymour’s Rhylee Leighton heads to the rim against Wallan. Photos: Wayne Herring.
Seymour’s unbeaten start to the Country Basketball League North East Men competition has come to an end, while the women’s side put win number two on the board this season, with both Blasters outfits taking one win and one loss out of a double-header in round four at the weekend.
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The women’s side was up first on Saturday evening against Wodonga Wolves at Seymour Sports and Aquatic Centre, looking to put together a more competitive showing than they did in round three, when the Wolves claimed a 43-point victory.
A tightly contested opening term saw the Blasters trail, but only by four, as Wodonga claimed a 25-21 lead at the first break, although it ballooned out to 19 points by half-time as Seymour struggled to keep pace.
The third term also saw Wodonga extend its lead by a further six points, outscoring Seymour 20-14, however the Blasters responded in the fourth quarter to salvage something from the contest.
Winning the final term 23-13, Seymour went down 73-88 at the buzzer, however managed to reduce the gap by 28 points compared to the round three defeat, a huge effort in only a week.
Matilda Skora fires off a pass.
Chloe Dimkopolous again led the way in terms of scoring for Seymour with 18 points, well supported by Kasey Lennox (14) and Alex Martorella (12).
The men’s side then took to the floor against Wodonga Wolves and were brutally effective in claiming a 40-point victory.
Extending the margin at every break, the Blasters turned an 18-point lead at half-time into a 34-point lead at three-quarter time courtesy of a 25-9 third term, putting to bed any doubt about the result and allowing them to cruise comfortably to the eventual 106-66 victory and Seymour’s highest total of the season.
Cooper York was instrumental in the win, dropping a game-high 28 points, while William Stewart (17), Robbie Sartori (16), Jesse Brock (12) and Jordan Hockley (12) all put up double-digits in the huge victory, Seymour’s fourth straight to start the season.
Both Blasters sides were back in action on Sunday afternoon, hitting the road to Wallan to take on the Panthers at RB Robson Wallan Indoor Sports Stadium.
The women’s side was out to redeem the loss from the previous night and set about doing that with a hot start in the first term, racing out to a 23-17 lead, although the margin was cut back to four points by half-time after Wallan responded in the second.
Caitlyn Kennedy sets herself at the free throw line.
The Blasters weren’t deterred, though, and blew the margin out to 16 in the third term, a lead they held at the final break, before pushing it beyond 20 in the final quarter to record a 78-57 win, their second of the season.
Lennox, Dimkopolous and Martorella again topped the scoresheet, contributing 15, 13 and 11, respectively, in the win, which ensures the Blasters remain in fourth spot on the ladder at the conclusion of round four.
The men followed in a clash between the only remaining undefeated sides in the competition, however it was Seymour that came off second best, with the fast-starting Panthers proving too good to run down.
A 20-27 opening term the way of Wallan left the Blasters with plenty of catch-up work to do, however they were unable to make any in-roads in the second term with both sides scoring 17 points, leaving Seymour to trail 37-44 at the main interval.
The start of the third quarter saw the Blasters fly out of the blocks, scoring 10 of the first 14 points to close to within one at 47-48.
Jesse Brock lines up a free throw.
But it wasn’t to be, as Wallan replied immediately to push the margin out to 13 points, which Seymour closed back to eight at the final change. That margin was mirrored at the final buzzer, with the Blasters suffering a 76-84 defeat, the first of their campaign.
York top-scored once more with 23 points, well supported by Harry Stones, who dropped 18 in the loss.
The defeat means Seymour now has a 4-1 record and occupies second spot on the ladder, one win behind Wallan and level with Shepparton in third, although with a vastly superior percentage.
Both the men’s and women’s sides have a bye this weekend, before returning to action in round six with a road trip to Albury to take on the Cougars.
