Netballers on a high

By Jarrod Potter
THE Cranbourne South West Netball Association (CSWNA) 13-and-under team was crowned the winner of the State Association Championships last week.
The grand final was played between CSWNA and Waverley City at the State Netball and Hockey Centre, with CSWNA fighting back in the last minutes of the grand final to force a draw and take the match to overtime.
With scores locked at 8-8 going into overtime, CSWNA rallied to win the championships 15-10.
In an instance of great coincidence, CSWNA and Waverley City had faced off in the finals of an earlier tournament, the Central East Zone championships on 5 June, with the same result of a five-goal overtime win to CSWNA.
Gabrielle Dwyer, the CSWNA team’s goal shooter, said the grand final was exciting, especially as it went into overtime.
“It was really enjoyable to play at that level,” Dwyer said.
“When the siren went and it was tied at the end, I knew we could beat them, as we’d beaten them before.
“As the final siren went, we were all very happy to know we had won.”
The CSWNA 13-and-under girls were invited to the State Association Championships on 18 June after the CEZ championship victory and it was the only CSWNA team make it through to the final stage at the State Netball and Hockey Centre.
Sports Minister Hugh Delahunty presented the girls with their medals. This is the first state championship victory for a CSWNA team in any age group.
The CSWNA team has three tournaments left in the representative season at Kingston, Cranbourne and final tournament in Springvale in August.