By Jonty Ralphsmith
The Pakenham Warriors men suffered a heartbreaker against Altona.
Despite a 16-9 final quarter, and getting as close as one point late in the contest, fourth-placed Altona held them off to win by three points.
The 84-81 victory was set up by a dominant second quarter, when Altona piled on 34 points to reverse an 11-point quarter-time deficit to be up by five points at half time.
Canadian-import Joe Davis recorded a double-double in the loss with 19 points and an impressive 17 rebounds.
Josh Dow (15 points) and Ned Weideman (20 points) also contributed offensively.
The loss leaves Pakenham, a dominant force all year, needing to beat third-placed Sherbrooke this week to remain in the top-two; a loss would likely result in the Warriors slipping to third to finish off the season.
The women’s drought continues, going down to top-seeded Wyndham by 42 points.
Although the visitors were the classier side, the Warriors did not allow them to get off the leash until the last quarter, when 36 points were piled on.
Haille Nickerson scored 22 points as a clear standout for the hosts, who used 10 players, giving court time to youngsters Chloe Zielinski and Chelsea Schreuder as they continue to build.
Of the women’s remaining three games, their final hit-out against Southern Peninsula is the one most likely to yield some celebration, with second-placed Bulleen and fourth-placed Sunbury to come next week.
The youth league women were also defeated, narrowly losing every quarter to second-placed Bulleen with the final result being a 14-point defeat.
Both teams used 12 players, with Zielinski and Schreuder both backing up from their seniors appearance to play important roles for the youth league.
The youth league men were Pakenham’s only victors of the weekend.
After asserting their dominance in the first half, Pakenham piled on 30-9 in the third quarter against Southern Peninsula to win by 26 points.
Mitchell Johns’ 23 points and 11 rebounds led the way for Pakenham in the impressive victory.
