Under 16 Girls Division 1

Game 1 v Yorke Valley

Bullets opened their state champs campaign with a solid win over Yorke Valley in a mid morning game. The opening few minutes of the first quarter was fast and effective with Larissa Schenscher posting 4 points within 90 seconds, well supported by Steph Lubcke in transition.  Passing errors cost the bullets scoring opportunities during the second quarter before recovering courtesy of 3 point plays by Tori Wilson and Schenscher. Half-time score 20 -9. Strong post work by Sam Lubcke both in offence and defense supported the team to a 15 point lead at the next break. Madi Salter opened the final term with a clean drive and basket and late in the game dumped a big three. Bullets won 43 -18.

Game 2 v Millicent

Bullets started well by going inside to Lubcke who was providing a good target. As the quarter went on the bullets team failed to capitalize on several scoring opportunities. Good defensive pressure and strong rebounding early in the second quarter made it hard for Millicent to score. Although bullets worked hard they struggled to finish.  Sam Lubcke and Salter attacked the basket strong. Nice shooting from Schenscher had the bullets girls pull away with a nice lead heading into the final quarter.  Bullets struggled to score in the last quarter and Millicent were aggressive offensively and closed the gap. Bullets only scored 6 points for the quarter. Final score Bullets 37 - 27.

Game 3 v Pt Augusta

Bullets held a narrow lead at quarter time in their important game against Pt Augusta to decide top spot in their group. Pt Augusta lifted their work rate and made the most of their opportunities to lead 17-13 at half time.  The lead blew out to over 10 before some great full court pressure from Stephi Lubcke and Monique Thompson brought the teams close together. Pt Augusta settled to lead 27 to 21 at ¾ time.  Transition baskets by Salter and Stephi Lubcke cut the lead to 2 half way through the last quarter. Pt Augusta pulled away at the end to win 37 – 32.

Quarter Final v Port Pirie

 Good defensive pressure by Georgia Steinert and Sam Lubcke limited Port Pirie’s scoring opportunities. Gemma Leonard scored a 3 pointer to see bullets lead 12 to 7 at quarter time. The second quarter saw some good screens and cuts creating easy baskets extending the lead 23 -10. A good start to the third quarter saw quick lay-ups from Salter and Leonard to further increase the lead. Bullets continued strongly to have a convincing win 50 – 30.

Semi Final v Mt Gambier

Bullets started their semi final game slowly and let Mt Gambier had too many second chance opportunities. At the end of the first quarter Salter made a solid post-up move to bring the gap back to 6 – 11.  Lackluster offence by bullets allowed Mt Gambier open field goals to see them lead 24 to 18 at half time. Salter hit a three early in the third quarter but Bullets were unable to close the gap to see a 6 point deficit at ¾ time 37 – 31.

Mt Gambier were too strong and more determined in the last quarter with Bullets failing to add to their tally. Final score Mt Gambier 50 to Bullets 31.

Under 16 Girls Division 2

THE second division Under 16 Girls were crowned Country Champions after a dominating performance in Division 4 at the Port Adelaide Recreation Centre.

The team fought off neighbours Eastern Hills in the opening game, before accounting for Mildura, Naracoorte and Kangaroo Island. They then beat Naracoorte again in the grand final to remain undefeated and win the championships.

In the first game against Eastern Hills, both teams took several minutes to settle with the first score coming three minutes into the quarter. Bullets scored eight points before running into foul trouble which sent Eastern Hills to the free throw line and subsequently, its first points. Bullets let by seven points at quarter time. A strong second quarter helped Bullets extend their lead and at half time the score was 21 to 5. Eastern Hills stepped up the pressure in the third period, forcing the Bullets girls to miss their shots. Bullets settled in the fourth quarter and despite trading goal for goal, they ran out strong winners 39 to 23.

Early foul trouble made the start of the match against Mildura tense, as it took seven minutes before Bullets registered on the scoreboard. They were then able to take advantage of Mildura’s foul trouble taking the lead 5 to 2 at quarter time. Mildura were more consistent under the ring in the second quarter which enabled them to close the gap to 9-7 at half time. Strong defensive pressure meant Bullets found themselves in foul trouble in the third quarter, but they maintained a three point advantage at the final change. Bullets slowly took control of the game in the last quarter, blitzing the backcourt with continuous steals and intercepts. It wasn’t until the last three minutes when Bullets went on a 15-mil run and won the game 38 to Mildura 20.

The game against Naracoorte started with a low scoring quarter with both teams attacking the ball and rebounding well, thus with many turnovers.  Bullets managed to have a slight edge at quarter time, with a 6-4 lead. At the beginning of the second quarter there were many tough battles under the basket as each team struggled to gain possession of the ball. Another close quarter with Bullets up 13 to 10 at half time. Naracoorte fought hard in the third quarter to gain the lead. Bullets lost momentum but towards the end of the quarter, successful foul shots kept them in them game. With Bullets up 21-16, the match was set for a tight finale. Strong offence for both teams in the final ten minutes resulted in a high scoring quarter. Bullets held on in a frantic finish, winning 34 to 28.

In the final match of the minor round against Kangaroo Island, the first quarter was even but low scoring. Bullets were passing and driving well to the basket in offense, but shots were not dropping. At the first break Bullets were down 2-3. A strong start in the second quarter with great defensive pressure up the court caused several turnovers. But, a poor field goal conversion rate kept the game tight, Bullets up by only one point at the main break. Both teams came out defensive despite scoring well in the third quarter. Stray passes let the Bullets girls down but they still managed to increase their lead by four. Bullets continued to work hard and were rewarded as their offence and defence came to fruition in the last quarter.  The team continued with a great finish, holding off Kangaroo Island with intense defensive pressure to claim a 31 to 15 win.

Bullets started the Grand Final against Naracoorte down one player with injured guard Caitlin Bratkovic on the bench. Fighting hard for possession of the ball, Bullets managed to hold a small lead at quarter time with accurate shooting from Stacey Hein, Zoe Harrison and Sophie Ansell. Great defensive pressure from both sides meant it was difficult to score for either team in the second period. Ashley Cox and Kelsey Gepp made some great steals in the mid-court, but the scores were still close at half time.  Bullets up 9-6.

Rebecca Burat had strong hands under the basket in the third quarter which enabled her to pass off and allow Bullets to score freely. Nicole Bissell used her height to full advantage and positioned herself well stopping the opposition from adding to their score. In an extraordinary defensive effort, Bullets turned the ball over countless times in the backcourt and took a commanding 21 to 6 lead with one quarter to play. Naracoorte came out stronger in the last quarter, scoring accurately and gaining lost ground. Bullets, however, gave 120% and great team work helped them run out fantastic winners 32 to 19.

Credit must also be given to coach Sam Le Gallou and team manager Annette Bratkovic for their efforts.