Victorian Schools Netball Championships – Year 8 Junior Girls Champions 2024!

VICTORIAN SCHOOLS NETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS

FINALS DAY

On Tuesday 27 August, the Catherine McAuley College Bendigo (CMCB) Year 7 and Year 8 Netball Teams travelled to Melbourne to compete in the Victorian Schools Netball Championships Finals. The competition began with ten preliminary rounds held across Victoria, involving over 200 schools and 500 teams. The schools that topped their pools during the preliminary rounds advanced to the finals, where they competed to be crowned the best Junior Girls Team (Years 7 and 8) in Victoria.

YEAR 7

The Year 7 girls were scheduled to play a total of eight pool games and finals if they were good enough.  The first game turned out to be the most challenging, playing against Rowville. The girls had a slow start; however, they began to settle and find their form in the second half of the match. S,adly they couldn’t close the lead that Rowville established early in the game going down 10 goals to 7. The next game was against Trinity Grammar School and the girls made a good start, although they were still making a few mistakes. These small errors prevented the girls from establishing a comfortable lead, but with grit and determination they still managed to come away with an 11 goal to 9 win. Game 3 was against Caulfield Grammar School and another gutsy win resulted, 10 to 8. Game 4 was against Genazzano FCJ College; the girls were getting used to the short game style as they went on to win 12-7. Game 5 was against Frankston High School and the winning formula of settled game play was definitely on show as the girls secured a 15 to 6 win. The next game was against Salesian College and another win resulted, 14 goals to 8, setting up a thrilling final two rounds. Two wins would secure the girls a place in the Finals! Game 7 against Marist-Sion College was expected to be a close game, but the girls were in a winning groove and produced another good win, 15 to 8. The last pool game was against Loreto College, but with results from other games going the girls’ way, they had already cemented their place in the finals, which took the pressure off them in the last round. This enabled all players to get some valuable court time and the match finished with a 10-all draw. The team’s performances over the eight pool games were sensational and they had qualified for the Semi-finals where they came up against the Year 8 CMCB team.

The girls went into the game determined to try and win the match, despite coming up against their older schoolmates.  Right from the first whistle, it was evident that the girls had come to play and had saved their best performance for last, challenging the Year 8s all the way. The scores were even at half time, but a couple of turnovers late in the second half couldn’t be reversed and a close 13 to 10 loss resulted. The girls played an amazing game and should be very proud of their overall achievement of making finals in a combined Years 7 and 8 competition.

Congratulations girls on a fantastic result.

Year 7 Girls Netball Team: Ruby Kelly, Mila Childs, Evie Gretgrix, Harper Gordon, Forest Jackson-Leahy, Ava Hope, Julie Fennell (Coach), Marlie Skinner, Ellie Macumber, Elle Gilchrist, Milla Dalton, Sienna Raco

YEAR 8

Year 8 Netball Team Crowned Junior Girls Champions 2024!

Our Year 8 Netball Team has achieved an outstanding victory, claiming the title of Junior Girls Champions at the Netball Victoria School Championships 2024. The team delivered an incredible performance throughout the competition, going undefeated and showcasing their skill and determination.

Throughout the day, they secured decisive wins against Christian College Geelong (17 – 7), who they would later face in the grand final, Methodist Ladies’ College (14 – 8), Ballarat Clarendon College (16 – 4), Maribyrnong College (17 – 10), Padua College (15 – 7), St Joseph’s College Echuca (13 – 7) and Diamond Valley College (19 – 5). The Semi-final was an intense match against our own Year 7 CMCB team, where both teams displayed amazing skill and determination. The Year 8 girls managed a narrow win by just 3 goals.

The Grand Final was drama-filled. The team faced Christian College Geelong, who they had beaten convincingly in the first round. With the scores tied at the end of regular time, the match went into overtime. Our girls displayed immense composure under pressure, clinching the victory by just one goal!

This victory showcases their dedication, teamwork and relentless determination. We are immensely proud of the Year 8 Netball Team and their outstanding accomplishment – congratulations!

Year 8 Girls Netball Team: Hannah Gretgrix (Coach), Lilly Teuma, Eva Grant, Mia Cox, Sophie McDermott, Elodie Sharman, Belinda Pinner (Coach), Amelia Kelly (Scorer), Macey Pinner, Tarli Nihill, Molly Beasley, Imogen Brown, Alexis Arundell