The Eastern Mavericks Women held out to win by a point over the North Adelaide Rockets last night, advancing them to second place on the premiership table.

At the special time of 8:15pm the clash was set to be tight and the girls didn’t disappoint.

The Mavericks had a strong start, leading by 13 points at the first break but North would not give up without a fight, continually threatening to take the lead away.

However the Mavericks stepped up when needed, finding inspiration from Amanda MacDermot who celebrated her 250th game with the win, 14 points and 8 assists.

Tess Madgen also impressed, leading the Maverick’s attack yet again and finishing with and double double, 34 points, 11 assists and added 9 rebounds.

A 10-point barrier was held by the victors for most of the game and it was not until the final quarter that the Rockets became hungry for the win, seeing the possibility of top three slipping slowly from their fingers.

Jo Hill stepped up to lead creating scoring opportunities for both herself and her teammates, including Shannon McKay who scored a 3-pointer with seconds to go, which saw North fall only a point short.

In the end it was a combination of Madgen and Shannon Tarran, who also scored 30 points, which proved deadly, in a game, which was a rough battle until the final siren.

Mavericks look set to be a real contender for the premiership this year if they continue to play with the ‘gusto’ displayed last night.

It will be interesting to see how they fare against favourites Norwood when they meet again in Round 11, perhaps this win will give them the confidence they need to beat the undefeated Flames.

North Adelaide Rockets 90 (Jo Hill 25, Genna Anderson 19, Shannon McKay 18)
Eastern Mavericks 91 (Tess Madgen 34, Shannon Tarran 30, Amanda MacDermot 14)

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By Georgina Hore