South Wrap | Women's Round 3

Featured image: Trent Moore Sports Photography

The Mount Gambier Pioneers won in double overtime in their home opener with Lou Brown having two big NBL1 South performances for Frankston Blues as did Steph Reid for Sandringham Sabres and Bec Pizzey for Eltham Wildcats.

>> HOT SHOOTING LUPFER EMBRACING NEW SPECTRES HOME

>> SOUTH SPOTLIGHT | KEILOR DIG DEEP TO BEAT NUNAWADING

>> SOUTH SPOTLIGHT | RAIDERS DOMINATE AS SPECTRES GO COLD

>> SOUTH SPOTLIGHT | PIONEERS PULL OFF DOUBLE OT STUNNER

>> SOUTH SPOTLIGHT | COBRAS SURVIVE FALCONS SCARE TO GO 4-0

>> SOUTH SPOTLIGHT | PIZZEY LEADS ELTHAM TO FOURTH STRAIGHT

WEDNESDAY

Eltham Wildcats (78) defeated Frankston Blues (70)

The Eltham Wildcats overcame 22 points and 12 rebounds from Lou Brown for the Frankston Blues with Bec Pizzey continuing her standout start in her team's 78-70 home Wednesday win.

Pizzey has been one of the players of the season so far by doing a bit of everything and she was instrumental once again in Wednesday night's match up with the Blues to lead her team to a fourth straight victory at Montmorency Secondary College.

After Frankston raced out to an 11-2 start, Eltham outscored them 51 points to 25 the rest of the first half to end up leading by as much as 19 in the second half on the way to the eventual eight-point win that takes them to 4-1.

Pizzey delivered another standout all-round performance made up of 19 points, eight rebounds, six steals, three assists and two blocked shots.

Lil Dart also finished with 14 points, nine assists, four rebounds and two steals, Mackenzie Smith 12 points, four boards, two assists and two steals, and Emily Maltezos 11 points and four assists with 3/6 shooting from downtown.

Frankston couldn’t quite maintain their hot start even though they did fight hard in the second half with Brown finishing with 22 points and 12 rebounds but she did only manage seven points and three boards after half-time.

Pahlyss Hokianga delivered 15 points, four rebounds and two steals with 4/7 three-point shooting while Emily Monaghan contributed 14 points, four boards, four assists and three steals with 4/10 shooting from behind the arc.

Sianni Martin also had 14 points and two assists, and Jacqui Trotto nine rebounds including four at the offensive end to go with three assists, two blocks and two points.

THURSDAY

Sandringham Sabres (102) defeated Melbourne Tigers (73)

Steph Reid and Klara Wischer combined for 47 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists as the Sandringham Sabres won big 102-73 at home to the Melbourne Tigers.

The Sabres were back home at Southern Basketball Stadium attempting to bounce back from a loss to the Diamond Valley Eagles hosting a Tigers team still chasing a first win of 2026.

Sandringham got on top early to open up a 10-point lead in the first quarter with that growing to as much as 15 in the second, 25 in the third and 34 in the fourth before they secured the 29-point victory to improve to a 3-1 record.

Reid came up huge with 25 points and eight assists with 4/9 three-point shooting while Wischer delivered 22 points, 11 rebounds, four steals and two assists also going 3/4 from downtown.

Isis Lopes added 19 points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals, Maddie Angus 11 points and seven boards, and Josie Agnew 11 points, four rebounds and four assists.

The Tigers are now 0-4 following the defeat with Zitina Aokuso making her first appearance and putting up 28 points, eight rebounds and five assists on 8/11 shooting from the field and 12/16 at the foul line.

Isa Brancatisano added 23 points, four rebounds and three assists with 5/10 three-point shooting while Hannah Giddey contributed six points, eight boards, three assists and two steals.

Kilsyth Cobras (82) defeated Waverley Falcons (80)

The Waverley Falcons scored 12 straight points after being down 15 late in the third quarter but the Kilsyth Cobras managed to hold them out in a thrilling finish for the 82-80 Thursday win.

The Cobras were back home at Kilsyth Sports Centre putting their undefeated record on the line against the Falcons and the home team looked on track to do exactly that when up five with two minutes to play in the third period.

That's when Waverley got on a roll with the last 10 points of the third frame and the first two of the fourth, and they ended up hitting the lead and being up 80-79 late when Amelia Todhunter hit a three ball.

Haylee Andrews then scored a tough bucket for Kilsyth before a turnover from either team allowed the Cobras to secure the two-point win and go to 4-0.

Nikita Young finished with 23 points, seven assists, four rebounds and four steals without missing a shot going 8/8 along with 3/3 from deep and 4/5 at the foul line in 28 minutes.

Andrews ended up only narrowly missing a triple-double with nine points, 10 assists and eight rebounds.

Catelyn Van Es also had 14 points and three rebounds for the Cobras, Lily Exton 10 points, six boards and two assists, Ariel Jenkins nine points and three rebounds, Emme Shearer eight points, seven boards and three assists, and Georgia McBean seven points and two rebounds.

The Falcons are now 2-3 with Maddi Utti putting in another strong showing with 25 points, six rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots on 10/17 shooting from the field and 4/5 at the line.

Sophia Locandro added 17 points and 11 rebounds for Waverley, Amelia Todhunter nine points, four assists and four steals, Tayla Dalton nine points five rebounds and four assists, Hannah Rapp nine points, five boards and five assists.

FRIDAY

Casey Cavaliers (109) defeated Ringwood Hawks (86)

The Casey Cavaliers had to fire back from 11 points down in the third quarter to dominate the rest of the way to score the 109-86 home victory against the Ringwood Hawks.

The Hawks arrived at Casey Stadium fresh off their first win of the season against a Casey team trying to back up their own last up win against the Frankston Blues.

After a tight battle in the first half, Ringwood managed to score 12 straight points to open up an 11-point lead during the third quarter but then Casey fired back before going on a 13-0 run themselves.

They ended up dominating the rest of the game including 33 points to 15 in the final term to secure the 23-point victory and improve to 3-1 as a result.

Dallas Loughridge starred in the win for Casey with 34 points, 10 assists, four rebounds and three steals with 8/13 three-point shooting.

Nyaduoth Lok also had 20 points, five rebounds, three steals and two assists, Sam Bowman 20 points, 14 rebounds and three assists, Chelsea D'Angelo 12 points, six boards and four assists, and Sharne Robati 12 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots.

The Hawks are now 1-5 following the loss with Honey Kaur top-scoring with 17 points and nine rebounds with Chelby Koker adding 16 points and six assists, Taylor Mole 15 points and six rebounds, and Aneta Bandilovska 13 points and four assists.

Mount Gambier Pioneers (96) defeated Ballarat Miners (94)

Abby Prohaska got the Mount Gambier Pioneers to overtime after they trailed by 16 early in the fourth quarter and then it was the Grace Champion to hit the match winner after two extra time periods for the 96-94 home win.

Ballarat put themselves in a good position for the road win up 16 early in the fourth quarter but Mount Gambier stormed home and it was a three ball from Prohaska just before the buzzer that tied scores at 81-81.

Massive late shots from Casey Samuels for Ballarat and Kelsey Rees for Mount Gambier then saw the game into a second overtime, and after Samuels and Champion traded triples to keep scores tied, Champion hit the last score of the game and the Pioneers won the classic by two points.

Prohaska ended up top-scoring for the Pioneers with 18 points with seven rebounds on 3/6 three-point shooting while Rees produced 16 points and 16 boards.

Tilly Boler continued her strong start to the season with 17 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals with Carla Pitman adding 14 points, six steals, five assists and four rebounds, and Champion 12 points, six boards and two assists.

Ballarat are now 2-2 with Samuels finishing with 27 points, 12 rebounds and four assists with 7/12 three-point shooting.

Abbey Wehrung added 24 points, 11 rebounds and four assists, Elissa Brett 19 points and five boards, and Malia Fisher 16 points and 11 rebounds.

SATURDAY

Frankston Blues (81) defeated Kilsyth Cobras (74)

Lou Brown delivered another huge performance for the Frankston Blues and this time it resulted in a win as they defeated the Kilsyth Cobras 81-74 at home.

Brown was also outstanding in Wednesday's loss to the Eltham Wildcats as they hosted the Cobras at Jubilee Park Stadium with Kilsyth having won their opening four matches of 2026.

No more than five points separated the two teams in the first half but in the third quarter Frankston went on a 10-0 scoring run and eventually led by as much as 12 points in the fourth term before securing the seven-point win.

Frankston are now 3-2 as a result of the win with Brown superb with 32 points and 10 rebounds with 11/25 shooting from the floor and 8/13 at the free-throw line.

Emily Monaghan also had 17 points and eight rebounds, Pahlyss Hokianga 14 points and three steals, Sianni Martin 10 points, and Jacqui Trotto five points, four rebounds and four steals.

Kilsyth are 4-1 having suffered a first defeat with Nikita Young providing 18 points, five rebounds and four steals with Emme Shearer adding 14 points and eight boards, and Georgia McBean nine points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals.

Keilor Thunder (52) lost to Sandringham Sabres (65)

It was quite the grind for four quarters but in the end Steph Reid was the major difference as she led the Sandringham Sabres to the 65-52 road victory against Keilor Thunder.

The Thunder were home at Keilor Stadium looking to back up last week's win over the Northern Force while the Sabres were looking to back up Thursday's win over the Melbourne Tigers.

Sandringham were leading by five points at both the end of the first and second quarters before 24 points to 16 in the third term saw them take charge on the way to the 13-point win as they improve to a 4-1 record.

Reid delivered 19 points and three assists in the win for the Sabres with Klara Wischer adding 15 points and eight rebounds, Isis Lopes 14 points and six boards, Josie Agnew seven points, and Lucy Cochrane six points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals.

Keilor are without Maddy Rocci who is with the Toronto Tempo as part of the WNBA training camp with Lara McSpadden top-scoring with 20 points and seven rebounds with Izzy Wightman adding 11 points, five boards and three assists.

Ballarat Miners (74) lost to Eltham Wildcats (86)

Coming off a double overtime gruelling battle in Mount Gambier less than 24 hours earlier was always going to be quite the test for the Ballarat Miners and it proved the case with the Eltham Wildcats winning 86-74.

Even though the Miners were at home at Selkirk Stadium, they had played a double overtime game that they came up short in on Friday in Mount Gambier while the Wildcats arrived in Ballarat having not played since beating the Frankston Blues on Wednesday.

Ballarat were also without Malia Fisher but they started strongly to lead 31-23 before quarter-time before Eltham took over starting with 30 points to 15 in the second term on the way to the eventual 12-point win to improve to 5-1.

Lil Dart top-scored for the Wildcats with 20 points, four rebounds and three assists on 4/8 shooting from downtown with Mackenzie Smith adding 19 points and five boards on 4/6 three-point shooting.

Emily Maltezos also had 12 points and five assists, Bec Pizzey nine points, 19 rebounds, three blocks and two steals, and Sara-Rose Smith 11 points, six boards, three assists and two steals.

Ballarat are now 2-3 with Camille Hobby putting up 26 points, 10 rebounds and two steals with Abbey Wehrung adding 17 points, seven assists and six boards, and Elissa Brett nine points and five rebounds.

Knox Raiders (78) defeated Nunawading Spectres (55)

The Nunawading Spectres only managed 20 points in the first 20 minutes with the Knox Raiders handing them a first loss of the season with Alicia Froling a dominant presence as the reigning champs prevailed 78-55.

The Raiders were back home at the State Basketball Centre having split their opening four matches and hosted a Spectres team who had been in hot form over their first four matches, but the Raiders shut them down and limited them to six points in the second quarter and 20 points for the half.

Nunawading did manage 35 points in the second half but Knox put up another 48 including 32 in the third quarter on the way to the dominant 23-point home win.

Alicia Froling produced a monster performance for the Raiders with 23 points, 17 rebounds, two assists and two blocks with 8/12 shooting from the field and 7/8 at the foul line while being +25 in her 32 minutes.

Paige Bradley added 13 points, six rebounds and five assists, Taylah Simmons 11 points and five boards, Haliegh Reinoehl nine points, eight rebounds and two assists, Paige Burrows eight points, four boards and four assists, and Shaneice Swain seven points and six assists.

Kylee Blacksten put up 27 points with four rebounds and three assists with 11/13 free-throw shooting, but the rest of the Spectres team only scored 28 points on 10/45 shooting with 4/27 from downtown.

Diamond Valley Eagles (90) defeated Geelong United (51)

The Diamond Valley Eagles shook off a first loss of the season to dominate Geelong United for the 90-51 victory with Alex Sharp and Abbey Ellis combining for 46 points.

The Eagles suffered their first loss of the season to the Mount Gambier Pioneers last Saturday ahead of hosting the winless Geelong at Diamond Valley Sports and Fitness Centre.

United were looking for a first win of 2026 after an unbeaten 2025 until the Grand Final and they started well with 22 points to 15 in the first quarter, but it was all Diamond Valley from there.

The Eagles had 22 points to eight in the second quarter, 23 to seven in the third and finally 30 to 14 in the fourth on the way to the 39-point win as they improve to a 4-1 record.

Ellis put up 26 points, five steals and four assists while Sharp added 20 points, 14 rebounds and two assists with Shannon Dufficy contributing 12 points and 12 boards.

Erin Riley also had 12 points, eight assists, seven rebounds and three steals, and Isis Beh seven points, four boards, three steals and two blocked shots.

Geelong are now 0-4 following the loss with Indi Bowyer finishing with 12 points, four rebounds and two assists, Jordan Vasquez 11 points and 13 boards, and Reagan Bass nine points and seven rebounds.

Dandenong Rangers (88) defeated Bendigo Braves (67)

Imogen Rock had a huge night for the Dandenong Rangers as they scored their first win of the season with the 88-67 home win over the Bendigo Braves.

The Rangers were at home at Dandenong Basketball Stadium having lost their first four matches of 2026 hosting a Braves team having won two of three but arriving without Kelsey Griffin.

That made a significant difference to Bendigo's prospects and the Rangers got on top early to lead 28-17 by quarter-time but their lead at the half was just 43-41.

It was in the fourth quarter with 27 points to 10 that Dandenong took charge for the 21-point win and to improve to 1-4 as a result.

Rock put in a huge all-round performance for the Rangers with 22 points, 15 rebounds, seven assists and four steals while Cat MacGregor delivered 23 points and four boards with 5/14 from three-point range.

Holly Griffiths added 14 points and nine rebounds, Clare Camac 11 points, 10 boards and three assists, Elly Morgan eight points and three assists, and Georgia Taylor eight points and six rebounds.

Bendigo are now 2-2 following the loss with Olivia Pollerd producing 20 points, five rebounds and two blocks with Jess Smith adding 18 points on 4/9 three-point shooting, Kelly Wilson 12 points, 12 assists, seven rebounds and six steals, and Ahlise Hurst nine points and 10 boards.

Hobart Chargers (75) defeated Northern Force (69)

It was a tremendous showcase for Tasmanian basketball at MyState Bank Arena and the Hobart Chargers came from eight points down at three quarter to dominate the fourth quarter and beat the Northern Force 75-69.

The two Tasmanian teams did battle on the home of the JackJumpers and soon-to-be Jewels in the NBL and WNBL to celebrate the 30-year anniversary of the Chargers, and they put on quite the show.

The Force were chasing their first win of the season still and were leading by nine points at quarter-time, by 16 at half-time and then still by eight at three quarter-time.

That's when the Chargers took control with 23 points to nine the rest of the way to secure the six-point win and improve to 1-4 on the season having got their first win.

Tishara Morehouse top-scored with 19 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals with Sharna Thompson contributing 16 points, four boards and three assists, Chloe Broomhall 13 points and nine rebounds, and Portia Chopping nine points, two boards and two assists.

The Force are still chasing that breakthrough win at 0-5 with Jewels WNBL signing Keely Froling delivering 19 points and 14 rebounds.

Sarah O'Neill added 13 points and two assists, Millie Baker 11 points and four assists, and Rebekka Kalaydjiev seven points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals.

SUNDAY

Nunawading Spectres (53) lost to Keilor Thunder (70)

Keilor Thunder overcame the absence of Maddy Rocci as she chases her WNBA dream with Izzy Wightman and Lara McSpadden coming up huge to beat the Nunawading Spectres 70-53 who had another off shooting performance.

The Spectres came into the weekend having won their opening four matches of the season, but their shooting went cold on Saturday night in a loss to the defending champion Knox Raiders.

They had the chance to quickly hit back on Sunday at Nunawading Basketball Centre but it wasn’t to be as they went 2/14 in the first quarter to set the tone for the afternoon with Keilor able to take control and be in charge of the whole contest to win by 17.

The Thunder are now 3-2 on the season with Wightman stepping up for 24 points and five rebounds on 10/16 shooting from the field and 3/5 from downtown.

McSpadden celebrated her 100th game in the NBL1 with 21 points, 11 rebounds, three assists and two steals with Macey Boyle providing 12 points, five boards and four assists, and Kasey Burton five points, nine rebounds, six assists and two steals.

Nunawading are now 4-2 after the hot start to 2026 with Kylee Blacksten top-scoring with 15 points and three rebounds despite going 4/15, but she did make all six foul shots.

Kate Tanner added nine points, 10 rebounds and two steals despite shooting 3/12 with Rachel Antoniadou adding nine points, Teagan Potter seven and three rebounds, and Riley Lupfer six on 2/13 shooting.