East Wrap | Women's Round 5

Featured image: James O'Donohue | @jamesodphotography

Manly Warringah Sea Eagles stretched their NBL1 East winning run to 26 while Norths Bears improved to 8-0 with Jaz Shelley shining as did Shyla Heal as Bankston Bruins remained unbeaten with her and it was a pair of wins for Centre of Excellence and Newcastle Falcons.

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>> EAST WRAP | WOMEN'S ANZAC ROUND

SATURDAY

Manly Warringah Sea Eagles (90) defeated Central Coast Crusaders (56)

The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles made it 26 straight wins with a dominant performance at home to beat the Central Coast Crusaders 90-56.

The Sea Eagles were back home at Northern Beaches Indoor Sports Centre putting their winning record on the line against a Crusaders team buoyed from snapped their 20-game losing streak last week by beating the Inner West Bulls.

Manly Warringah started in dominant fashion with 31 points to 12 in the first quarter while the defending champions then added 15 to nine in the second to go into half-time on top 46-21.

It was another 25 points to 15 in the third quarter before Central Coast did manage 20 to 19 in the fourth for Manly Warringah to go on to score the 34-point victory.

That sees the Sea Eagles now improve to 7-0 on the season with 26 wins in-a-row dating back to last year with Alex Delaney finishing with 18 points, 14 rebounds and three assists with Sari Mowbray adding 18 points, five boards, four assists and two steals.

Josie Radan also had 17 points, nine rebounds, five assists and two steals, Jayda Jansen 15 points, five assists and four boards, Zoey Miller 12 points, six rebounds and five assists, and Kim Dickinson 10 points, five boards and two steals.

The Crusaders are now 1-7 following the loss with Nikki Worner providing 13 points and nine rebounds with Jess Stone adding 11 points and two steals, Darneka Rowe eight points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals, and Cushla Alpen eight points and four boards.

Hills Hornets (51) lost to Norths Bears (75)

The Norths Bears kept pace with the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles as the two undefeated teams beating the Hills Hornets 75-51 with Jaz Shelley shining on the back of signing with the Sydney Flames of the WNBL.

The Bears put their perfect record this season on the line when they took on the Hornets at Hills Basketball Stadium on Saturday with Hills attempting to back up their last up win over the Central Coast Crusaders.

The Hornets did start encouragingly to lead 22-17 by the end of the first quarter before the Bears worked on top with 19 points to nine in the second term to be on top 36-31 at half-time.

Norths then dominated the second half with 21 points to 11 in the third quarter and 18 to nine in the fourth on the way to the 24-point victory to improve to an 8-0 record.

Shelley will now be staying in Sydney for the WNBL season having signed at the Flames and she produced another 25 points, seven steals and six rebounds with 5/11 three-point shooting for the Bears.

Talya Brugler also had 16 points and 15 rebounds with Issy Morgan contributing 15 points, four steals, three rebounds and three assists, and Caitlyn Martin dished out six assists.

The Hornets are now 2-4 following the loss with Jade Kirisome finishing with 15 points, three rebound, two assists and two steals, Kennedy Johnson 10 points, six boards and two assists, Sherrie Calleia nine points, three rebounds and two assists, and Ella Gale six points and 15 boards.

Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders (84) defeated Sydney Comets (51)

Jessie-May Hall was back for the Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders and they made it back-to-back wins with Ruby Perkins starring in the 84-51 home win against the Sydney Comets.

The Spiders did avoid three straight losses beating the Maitland Mustangs on Anzac Day ahead of hosting the Comets at The Brickpit.

Sydney did start strongly with 19 points to 16 in the first quarter, but the Comets only managed to score 32 points the entire rest of the way and 32 in the 30 minutes of basketball was never going to be a winning formula.

In contrast, Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai scored 26 points in the second quarter, 21 in the third and 21 in the fourth to end up scoring the 33-point victory to improve to a 4-2 record with back-to-back wins.

Perkins produced 24 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals in the win for the Spiders with Kristina Moore adding 17 points, seven boards, three steals and two assists, and Jessie-May Hall 12 points, seven assists, six steals and five rebounds.

Ay'Anna Bey added 10 points and six rebounds, Laya Hartman 10 points, four boards and two assists, and Lucy Mead nine points, five rebounds, three steals and two assists.

The Comets are now 2-5 following three straight defeats while Elle Fletcher provided 11 points with 3/7 three-point shooting, Alexandria Oliver 11 points and nine rebounds, Eryn Fisher nine points and eight boards, and Mikayla Pirini eight points, four rebounds and four assists.

Bankstown Bruins (88) defeated Maitland Mustangs (77)

Shyla Heal flirted with a triple double and kept the Bankstown Bruins undefeated with her in the line-up with the 88-77 home win against the Maitland Mustangs.

The Bruins were back home at Bankstown Basketball Stadium on a three-game winning run while they hosted a Mustangs team trying to avoid a third straight defeat.

It was just a one-point lead by quarter-time for Bankstown before Maitland fired up early in the second with a 12-0 run that saw them grab the lead.

The Mustangs turned that into the 42-40 advantage at half-time but the Bruins delivered a monster third quarter with 30 points to 18 on the way to building their own 17-point lead and completing the 11-point victory.

It's a fourth straight win for the now 5-2 Bruins with Heal delivering 19 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and three steals on 5/10 three-point shooting.

The Bruins were +26 in the 29 minutes from Kiahna Davis-White on the way to 16 points, seven rebounds and two assists with Margot De Freitas contributing 16 points, seven boards and two assists.

Davida Dale added 12 points, eight rebounds, six assists and three steals with Kaila Proctor scoring eight points and Lily Austin seven.

The Mustangs are now 2-5 following the loss with Shakera Reilly top-scoring with 16 points, four rebounds and four assists with 4/10 three-point shooting.

Rachel Williams added 13 points and four rebounds, Jessalyn Finney 12 points, nine boards, three assists and three steals, and Sara Matthews 12 points, six rebounds and two assists.

Illawarra Hawks (77) lost to Centre of Excellence (96)

The Centre of Excellence made it four wins in five matches to start the season with a commanding performance to beat the Illawarra Hawks 96-77 with Isabel Smith and Zara Russell combining for 44 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds.

The CoE returned to action last weekend and split their two games losing to Newcastle but beating Maitland as they took on the Hawks at The Snakepit with Illawarra having lost their past two matches.

It was a strong start from the Centre of Excellence with 22 points to 14 in the first quarter before that lead was out to as much as 19 in the second period and was 48-31 by the half-time break.

The lead for the CoE did grow to 27 points in the second half but Illawarra did fight out the contest and even put up 30 themselves in the fourth term to cut the final winning margin for the Centre of Excellence to 19.

The CoE are now 4-1 on the season following the win with Isabel Smith delivering 24 points, six assists and three rebounds on 9/11 shooting from the floor, 3/4 from behind the arc and 3/3 at the free-throw line.

Zara Russell also had 20 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, Olivia Olechnowicz 16 points, three boards and two steals, and Aspen Crase 16 points and three rebounds.

The Hawks slip to a 2-5 record following the loss with Una Jovanovich finishing with 20 points, six assists and three rebounds on 9/18 field goal shooting.

Darcy Rees added 19 points, six rebounds and two steals, Asha Phillips 16 points and six boards, and Ruby MacDonald five points, four rebounds and four assists.

Sutherland Sharks (75) lost to Newcastle Falcons (79)

The Sutherland Sharks without Lauren Nicholson fired back from a 16-point deficit to hit the lead in the fourth quarter but Nicole Munger sealed the win with the last four points for the Newcastle Falcons to prevail 79-75.

It was a clash of two in-form teams at Sutherland Basketball Stadium with the Sharks having won three of four games so far in 2026, and the Falcons four of five including the past four in-a-row.

That set the stage nicely but it was always going to be tough even at home for Sutherland without Nicholson and that proved the case with Newcastle going up by 16 in the second quarter, and leading 47-31 at the half.

The Sharks fired back to briefly grab the lead in the fourth quarter before a 9-0 Newcastle run.

But again Sutherland responded to tie scores up late before Munger sealed the win for the Falcons with the last four points and they won by those four to improve to 5-1 with the five consecutive wins.

The Falcons were pushed all the way by the Sharks but their big guns delivered in the end with Nicole Munger not too far off another triple double with 16 points, nine rebounds and six assists on just the nine shot attempts of which she made five.

Kate Kingham top-scored with 23 points with five rebounds while going 5/10 from beyond the arc with Meg Jefferson adding 18 points, 11 boards, three assists and two steals, and Rose Bond eight points and three rebounds.

The Sharks battled valiantly in the absence of superstar Lauren Nicholson with Abi Curtin finishing with 24 points, five rebounds and four assists on 9/14 field goal shooting.

Maddy Norris added 23 points, nine rebounds, three blocks and two assists on 11/16 shooting with Ella Dent delivering 12 points, seven boards, five steals and three assists, and Aliza Fabbro nine points, two rebounds and two assists.

Canberra Nationals (49) lost to Albury Wodonga Bandits (67)

Unique Thompson had a big performance with 21 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Albury Wodonga Bandits to the 67-49 road win over the Canberra Nationals.

The Nationals were back home at Tuggeranong trying to make it back-to-back wins up against a Bandits team trying to bounce back from a last up loss to the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles.

Albury Wodonga managed to go on a 10-0 run in the first quarter to lead by as much as eight before still being up five at quarter-time.

That lead got to 12 in the second term and was still seven at the half-time break in favour of the Bandits before they continued to build on that advantage in the second half.

Albury Wodonga did end up leading by as much as 21 before winning by 18 to improve to 3-3 as a result.

Thomspon delivered 21 points and 14 rebounds on 9/14 field goal shooting with Emily Lytle contributing 13 points, five boards, three assists and three steals.

Kijana McCowan also had 13 points and nine rebounds with Timeeka Coleman adding 13 points, three boards and two assists.

Canberra are now 2-4 following the loss with Callie Bourne finishing with 14 points, 15 rebounds and three steals with Allison Day adding 11 points, 10 boards and three steals, Skye Rees eight points, five rebounds and two assists, and Alison Francis eight points and two boards.

SUNDAY

Centre of Excellence (86) defeated Albury Wodonga Bandits (53)

Eliza Shanahan fired in the second half to lead the Centre of Excellence to a dominant 86-53 win over the Albury Wodonga Bandits to cap off a double win NBL1 East weekend both at home and away.

The Centre of Excellence won their first two games of the season but then after a near month-long break they suffered a first loss back on Anzac Day against the Newcastle Falcons.

They hit back the next day against the Maitland Mustangs and then made it consecutive wins on Saturday this weekend with the 21-point road win against the Illawarra Hawks.

They were then back to the Australian Institute of Sport on Sunday to host the Bandits who arrived having beaten the Nationals also on Saturday to start their weekend in Canberra.

It was a dominant performance from the CoE with them leading by 12 at half-time and then outscoring Albury Wodonga 39 points to 18 in the second half on the way to the 33-point win to improve to 5-1 on the season with the Bandits now 3-4.

The Centre of Excellence made it a double win weekend with Eliza Shanahan finishing with 17 points, six rebounds and three assists with 7/13 field goal shooting.

Zara Russell had 12 points to half-time and finished with 15 for the game with three steals, two assists and two rebounds with Olivia Olechnowicz contributing 13 points, seven assists and six boards.

Isabel Smith added eight points and five rebounds, Aspen Crase eight points and five boards, Lily Mapp seven points and six rebounds, and Reece Anticevic seven points, two boards and two assists.

Emily Lytle did all she could for the Bandits with 27 points, eight rebounds and two assist on 11/26 field goal shooting along with going 3/7 from downtown and 2/3 at the free-throw line.

Unique Thompson added nine points and 15 rebounds, Kijana McCowan seven points, two boards, two assists and two steals, and Emma Mahady five points, two rebounds and two assists.

Penrith Panthers (60) lost to Sydney Comets (73)

The Sydney Comets snapped a three-game losing slide by beating the Penrith Panthers 73-60 on Sunday with Mikayla having an impressive double-double with 12 points and 12 assists.

The Panthers were back home at Minto Indoor Sports Centre looking to snap their three-game losing run in their lone game of weekend against a Comets team having lost the last three including on Saturday to the Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders.

It was all tied up at 18-18 by the end of the first quarter and it remained close with no more than four points between the teams in the entire first half with the Comets ending up leading 40-38 at the main break.

It was in the third period when the Comets made their move with 18 points to six and that saw their lead grow to 17 before they secured the 13-point victory to improve to 3-5 for the season.

Pirini finished with 12 points, 12 assists and five rebounds in the win for Sydney with Elle Fletcher putting up 19 points, four boards and two steals, and Alexandria Oliver 18 points, 13 rebounds and two assists.

Alexandra Kayrouz had another 13 points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals, Eryn Fisher seven points, nine boards, three steals, two assists and two blocks, and Lily Graham pulled down 12 rebounds.

The Panthers are now 1-5 having lost four in-a-row with Hannah Griffin doing all she could with 29 points and four rebounds with 7/15 three-point shooting and going 6/6 at the foul line.

Maria Garcia Leon added eight points, nine rebounds, three blocks and two assists, and Chanel Bastin eight points, four assists and two rebounds.

Newcastle Falcons (110) lost to Inner West Bulls (67)

Kate Kingham had 22 points and five three-pointers to help the Newcastle Falcons to the dominant 110-67 home Sunday win against the Inner West Bulls.

The Falcons were back home at Newcastle Basketball Stadium having won five straight including on Saturday on the road to the Sutherland Sharks.

They were hosting a Bulls team playing their first game since losing to the Central Coast Crusaders last Sunday.

The Falcons opened up a 28-17 lead by the end of the first quarter before putting up another 31 points to 20 in the second term to go into half-time leading 59-37.

Newcastle went on with the job from there with another 28 points to 16 in the third quarter and 23 to 14 in the fourth to complete the 43-point victory to make it six in-a-row and improve to a 6-1 record.

Kate Kingham finished with 22 points, 11 rebounds and four assists in the win for Newcastle while shooing 5/11 from three-point territory.

Sophie Brennan added 19 point and seven assists with 5/7 long-range shooting while Lucy Wilsmore also had 18 points, four rebounds and two assists, Ella Kaluski 12 points, four boards and four assists, Meg Jefferson 12 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and two steals, and Nicole Munger seven points, six boards and four assists.

Inner West remains winless in 2026 after seven matches with Taylah Levy putting in a big performance made up of 35 points, four rebounds and four assists with 5/12 shooting from beyond the arc.

Jennifer Mailei also had nine points, three rebounds and two blocks, and Lilianna Jacob six points and four boards.