Westlake Girls (7-0) are the clear leaders at the mid-point of the Auckland Secondary Schools Girls Premier Grade regular season. The reigning champions are unbeaten at this stage and two wins clear of their nearest rivals.
Those closest rivals are St Kentigern College and Takapuna Grammar with 5-2 records followed by a bunch of teams scrapping for the fourth play-off spot.
With all ten players scoring 7 points or more Westlake were untroubled in recording their seventh consecutive win of the season, easing past Epsom Girls Grammar 115-29.
Westlake 115 – Emma Schroeder 21, Charlotte Mawston 16, Kodee Williams-Sefo 16, Mia John 13, Brydie McMillan 11, Lily Fotu 10
EGGS 29 – Kiki Reti 8, Olivia Edhouse 8, Ivy Tino 5
Further north Rangitoto College left their best until last to record a come from behind 58-51 home win against Mt Albert Grammar School.
Rangitoto were marginally in front at the first break (13-11) before Payton Uri and Lara Cocker-Lemalie combined to give MAGS a 26-24 half-time lead.
Eva Veale scored half a dozen points for Rangi in the third but Cocker-Lemalie and Gianna Tiatia inflicted further damage on the hosts defence to stretch the MAGS lead to 42-37 at three-quarter time.
A couple of threes from Payton Laurence sparked the Rangi run in the fourth and down the stretch it was points from the foul line that got them home – Sienna Maurice, Veale and Mela Andrews all successful as MAGS were outscored 21-9 through the closing minutes.
Rangitoto College 58 – Veale 18, Andrews 14, Laurence 10, Bella Anderson 8
MAGS 51 – Cocker-Lemalie 16, G Tiatia 10, Uri 8, Emina Tiatia 6, Phoenix Kaipo 6
Manurewa High claimed their fourth win of the season with a vital 72-61 victory at St Kentigern College.
There was little to choose between the two teams in the early exchanges – Manurewa were up by one point (21-20) at quarter time although it was all locked up at 34 points apiece at half-time.
St Kent’s guard Ash Tuumaialu, on her way to a game high 32 points, scored 9 of them in the third quarter but that was matched by Taisha Tanira and with skipper Zhendy Li and Alyssa Uluheua chiming in with triples Manurewa held a 54-50 half-time lead.
Manurewa secured the win in the fourth by holding St Kent’s to 11 points while at the offensive end a balanced scoring effort was led by Taisha and Emily Tanira.
St Kentigern College 61 – A Tuumaialu 32, Charlie Yock 9, Kilani Tuineau 8, Manawa Rogers 5
Manurewa High 72 – T Tanira 19, E Tanira 15, Bella Manu-Moore 11, Shirley Tuilimu 10, Beautiful Campbell 7
On the back of 42 points from Bailey Flavell Takapuna Grammar beat Northcote College 87-67 although it wasn’t until the fourth quarter that the Northcote challenge was finally subdued.
Flavell and Manaia Watson provided the bulk of the first half scoring for Takapuna but with Lily Morgan in double figures Northcote only trailed 45-40 at the interval.
Natalja Burton and Amy McKenzie combined for a dozen points in the third as the Takapuna advantage grew to 62-50.
Forward Ema Lavemaau and guard Lisa Gear regularly posted points for Northcote in the fourth but a trio of threes from Flavell and another from Arabella Neville secured a fifth win for Takapuna and moves them to equal second on the ladder alongside St Kentigern.
Takapuna Grammar 87 – Flavell 42, McKenzie 14, Burton 13, Watson 11
Northcote College 67 – Morgan 17, Lavemaau 14, DJ Hannah 13, Gear 11, Misha Aitchison 7
Standings:
7-0 Westlake
5-2 Takapuna, St Kentigern
4-3 Manurewa
3-4 Rangitoto,
2-5 MAGS, Northcote
0-7 Epsom
LACEY LOWDOWN 