“The first half was incredible because everybody was making their shots,” she said.
“The third quarter was slower and the fourth period I can’t even remember. It’s awesome to win the league, especially as a school.”
Lytton led 14-4, 30-13 and 40-26 through the quarters.
Waititi-Leach (12pts), Honey Mokomoko (11pts) and Alicia Kepa (11pts) provided the champions’ firepower after Kiara Swannell (9pts) broke the ice with a right-handed lay-up four minutes into the game.
Swannell hit a three-pointer to give Lytton a 5-0 advantage before Anna Spring, with four and a half minutes left in the first period, hit a one-handed “floater” for 5-2 — Campion’s first points in a club final.
Fierce competitionSpring (9pts) and Campion captain Petra Sparks (13pts) were fiercely competitive throughout while their teammate Te Oriwa Tuipulotu-Collier led all scorers in the women’s final with 17 points.
Year 13 student Tuipulotu-Collier came to Campion at the end of 2016, having been a standout player at Rotorua Girls’ High School under revered coach Sue Pene.
“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the family-oriented nature of basketball here,” she said.
She found the style of play in Gisborne different from what she had been used to but she admired the work that everyone put in to help student athletes, day in, day out.
Campion coach Adrian Sparks said his team had a great season.
“We played a blinder to beat Ngati Porou in the semis — and here we went missing like Noah’s Ark. We missed 16 out of 24 free throws. It just wasn’t our night.”
Lytton coach Tarsau said their motto was to play smart, and the girls were quick learners.
“All they needed was a little bit of guidance, because they do it all for themselves out on the court.
“They play a wide range of sports — basketball, netball, hockey, rugby. They’re physically fit but, more than that, they’re selfless and they play for each other.
“Sisters Jody Walters and Amoe Wharehinga and Reremoana Bartlett-Tamatea were all role players who did jobs defensively, such as boxing out. And tonight those players’ ability to keep their composure was big for us.”
Waititi-Leach, Mokomoko and Maia Rickard are all natural ball-handlers, while Swannell gave a measure of her big-match temperament in the semifinal against Paikea, when she made the first shot in overtime.
Basketball fans should never forget how hard Lytton had to fight to beat Paikea two weeks in a row, or how in eliminating Ngati Porou, Campion cleared a path for new champions by unseating the only women’s team to win three consecutive club titles.
The first quarter of the 2017 final was notable for Swannell’s seven points, while in the second period Sparks gave one of the best assists of the year, a bounce pass, into a spinning Spring on the move.
Sparks went on to make a three-point play in the third quarter against Bartlett-Tamatea at the five-minute mark, but down the home stretch Lytton were dominant. Kepa and Waititi-Leach both made long jump shots.
Even with the score increasing, the GBA officials were vigilant. Bartlett-Tamatea was picked up for progress by lead referee Shay Waikawa with the score at 46-34.
Sparks made a difficult shot, a reverse lay-up, on a superb assist from Summer Marama-Kingi to close the score to 55-39.
Petra Sparks said her side did not start well but in the second half started taking the ball to the hoop — as Lytton did in the first two quarters — and they began to score.
“It was exciting just to get to the final, especially with our three rookies — Summer, Brittany Lemaua and Michelle Hills,” Spark said.
“We’ve all improved in our play, knowledge and experience — and we’ve all enjoyed it.”
Gisborne Basketball Association chairman Dwayne Tamatea, the point guard of the Rising Suns’ greatest days, said Lytton made their shots and Campion missed some easy ones.
“Lytton had experienced players like Jayda, Maia, Honey and Alicia but Te Oriwa, for Campion, is unbelievable. She’s a good player.”
Catherine Kepa said she and fellow club competition marshal Adrian Sparks had enjoyed the league.
“The long nights were a challenge but giving people an opportunity to play is what we wanted to do, as well as give our kids a chance to score and keep time at the table. They were great at that stuff by the end.”
