Written by: Yusoff Kim Edited by: Choa Zhao Xiang Photos by: EusoffWorks
In their match against last year’s runner-ups, Kent Ridge Hall, our girls put up a magnificent display on both offense and defence, playing from a very unfamiliar position- being down. However, the mental fortitude our girls showed today truly deserves applause from everyone in Eusoff Hall.
With the starting lineup of Pat, ShiYi, Jane, Laura, Natalie, Michelle and (HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!) BriLIANNt, pulling from the momentum of their past games, we were sure they would take an easy lead and put the game in our favour from the start. However, this game would not come as easily to them as the last few. Our girls hustled hard from the start, with a quick interception by (HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!) BriLIANNt and a good look to S(EH)AL Team 6 Sniper Shi Yi puts the ball in the net for our first lead. However, KR started out even stronger, and though Michelle’s anchored defence gave them a tough time, they soon took a solid 5-2 lead over us. (HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!) BriLIANNt eventually steps up though, channeling all 4 years of her experience into a bankai defence, and along with Nat, forces turnover after turnover from the KR offence.
Throughout the match, birthday girl Li Ann’s defence was just too intense.
Despite that, the KR girls still put on a magnificent show, widening the gap to 9-2, as our team fails to find the net on a few attempts. But never fear, as SINGAPORE SUPER SHOOTER JAMIE IS HERE, subbing in to bolster the offence. With her l000nG arms and excellent passing, the momentum swings back to Eusoff as Jane finds SUPER SNIPER SHIYI to cut the score to a 5 point deficit. Though KR manages another point, superb control by Laura helps us to match it, as Nat clamps down even harder on the KR offence to prevent their fast break. With the mojo back on our side, Laura Jamie and Shiyi form a bermuda triangle where all defenders in between them just disappear to SOMEHOW BRING US 9 points, just a 3 goal deficit from KR. (HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!) BriLIANNt, still channeling her LYLC 4 year power, intercepts the ball yet again and Jamie goes up for a nice rebound to bring the score 10-12 to KR! Though KR manages a quick point, our girls weren’t letting them end off their quarter strong, and SINGAPORE SOLID SUPER SNIPER NETS 3 BALLS IN A ROW TO EQUALIZE!!
From here on out, with momentum heavy on our side, the girls put on an absolute show, as Jamie refuses to get outdone, scoring 3 quick points of her own. On defence, our team absolutely stopped KR, forcing multiple errors and turnovers, with (HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!) BriLIANNt securing a rebound as the team puts flows the ball ever so smoothly to bring it to 18-14! Getting desperate, the KR defence tries desperately to block Jamie, but she just holds the ball away, putting it in the net to bring us up 19-14! Even though they’re up, the girls never let their guard down for a single second. With team chemistry that could put the science faculty to shame, they forced KR to turnover almost every single ball as they found passes out of nowhere. A highlight of the game came when Jamie pulls out a pump fake to SUPER SNIPER ON FIRE SHIYI, who nets it to put us up 24-17! Michelle, going strong, slows down the game and toys with the KR offence, who are so desperately trying to get the ball past her, but to no avail. As crunch time approaches, our girls dug deep, despite some of them already playing the whole game. Angie easily controls the court, moving the ball wherever she wants it to go with careful orchestration. With a few good intercepts, and Laura pressuring the KR offence, our girls pulled the lead further, finishing strong with a scoreline of 36-17 to Eusoff Hall!
It was an excellent showing by Laura, as she controlled the attack and defended with poise and confidence.
Though the game started off shaky where our girls were down by more than half the score in the first quarter, their heart and hustle shone throughout the game to not only the spectators, but to their own teammates as well. They played not only for themselves, but for their team and probably also (HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!) BriLIANNt’s birthday present! Coming back from 9-2 down is never easy, but showing that they had the mental fortitude to overcome such a big deficit, and scoring double the opponent’s points in the end proved that they gave their 100% on the court today. Mad respect for them as the showed us all the mettle of champions. Let’s all support them in their final match on the 4th of february, 10-11pm at USC!!!
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