Volleyball: Mauao side back at top of ladder

Mauao men clawed their way back to the top of the Northern Zone ladder on Friday night with a straight sets win over fellow Bay club Tauranga, while Tauranga women cemented a top-5 position in the women's draw after a surprisingly difficult five-set win over South Auckland at the ASB Arena in Mount Maunganui.

With five matches to go, Mauao are only two points ahead of the fourth team in the Top-4 race, and although five points ahead of the fifth-placed Auckland side Diamonds, a bad weekend with two losses could see them drop as low as sixth place. Given that the top eight sides in the strong league are all capable of beating any other team on their day, the Mount side cannot afford the sort of off-day they had with their two-loss home weekend a fortnight ago.

The Stew Henderson-coached Tauranga women have yet to really convince this year, although they are cruising in third place in the league. Their real tests come over the next two playing days, when they meet league leaders Manukau South and Sparta, plus the fourth-placed Hamilton side, all away.

On Saturday, the women got off to a cracking start against the Aucklanders, with some powerful spiking from Simone Head and captain Lisa Claassen, to win the set easily. They did the same in the third and deciding fifth sets, but each time they relaxed in the following set, making enough errors at the start of each to give the enthusiastic young South Auckland side narrow leads that the home team could not break. Coach Henderson's task seems now to be how to keep the entire team focused for all of a 90-minute match, rather than just patches of it.

Northern Zone League, June 15, in Tauranga and Auckland

1st Division

MEN: Mauao b Tauranga 3-0 (25-13,25-20,25-20); South Auckland b Waitakere 3-1 (26-24, 25-21, 24-26, 25-22); Sparta b South Auckland 3-1 (18-25, 25-16, 25-18, 25-18); Diamonds b Harbour Raiders 3-2 (25-16, 20-25, 27-29, 25-21, 15-13)

WOMEN: Tauranga b South Auckland 3-2 (25-13, 23-25, 25-12, 22-25, 15-10); Manukau South b Harbour Raiders 3-1 (25-22, 21-25, 25-23, 25-19); Hamilton b South Auckland 3-0 (25-15, 25-21, 25-16); Manukau South b Saints 3-0 (25-9, 25-18, 28-26)

2nd Division

MEN: Taupo b Mauao 3-0, Rotovegas b Hamilton B 3-2, Rotovegas b Tauranga 3-0, Taupo b Hamilton B 3-1, Hamilton A b Mauao 3-1, Legends Blue b Harbour Raiders 3-1, Sparta Masters b South Auckland 3-1

WOMEN: Rotovegas A b HVC Hillcrest 3-0, Tauranga C b Tauranga B 3-2, Whakatane b Rotvegas B 3-1, Hamilton A b Hamilton B 3-0, Tauranga B b Hamilton B 3-0, Rotovegas B b HVC Hillcrest 3-1, Harbour Raiders b Elim 3-0, Otuangaofa b Diamonds 3-0, Legends b Alfriston 3-0, Wang Fang b Elim 3-1