Women starting to fire

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

The women’s league is firing up.

Week 8 of the Gisborne Basketball Association club competition had defending champions Lytton High School beating Campion College 52-37, Uawa beating Gisborne Girls’ High School by default, Paikea Nation and Revolution Fitness New Zealand drawing 35-all, and the Rebels beating Ngati Porou 43-32.

The Rebels’ Kaden Moeke (13 points) and sisters Kaipo Olsen-Baker and Te Uarangi Olsen (both 10pts) scored in double digits. To have three players do that was a huge plus.

Even though Ngati Porou missed real firepower in Bronya McMenamin and Ata Mangu in Game 4, the Rebels gave themselves a chance — they led 17-9, 24-16 and 33-24 throughout — and were well worth their win.

Ngati Porou’s Tiara Weir continued her run of great offensive form with 20pts, coming off a 29-point game against Girls’ High and a two-point outing against Lytton a fortnight ago. Her improvement in terms of footwork has been remarkable.

Gritty teammate Roimata Mangu (5pts) fought with the Rebels at the rim. The veteran forward was tireless but the Rebels regularly made plays that might have deflated any opposition.

Kaipo Olsen-Baker made a shotgun lay-up and Te Uarangi Olsen, a three-point shot in the first period. The latter finished the play of the game in the fourth quarter. She scored off a Kaden Moeke crosscourt jump-pass from the right sideline at halfway, Moeke jetting the assist over Weir to Te Uarangi Olsen on the run.

Paikea Nation are always feisty and teams need to be tough if they’re going to draw with, let alone beat, Revolution Fitness New Zealand.

RFNZ are incredibly energetic and positive in everything they do on the floor. They push the ball and they love to run.

But Paikea played with real determination and physicality — the local game has always favoured robust play — and Paikea have the personnel to defend, and attack the hoop, hard.

Melissa Mackey-Huriwai scored 15pts before fouling out; and her teammate Amoe Tarsau junior (10pts) is fearless. Paikea kept their noses in front 7-4, 15-11 and 22-19.

Liana Akroyd (17pts), Christina Sawyer (12pts) and Alyse Stewart (8pts) led RFNZ’s scorers, with Akroyd and Courtney Stubbins both making three-point plays in the fourth quarter.

The referees were vigilant from the tip, trail official Shay Waikawa picking up RFNZ’s Paare Ahuriri-Leach when she stepped on the endline as she made an in-bounds pass.

The shot she made was without precedent . . . almost.

Lytton High School’s Alicia Kepa hit a buzzer-beater from halfway to end the first period in Game 1. With 0.6 of a second left following a Campion basket, Kiara Swannell heaved the in-bounds pass to Kepa on the right sideline.

Only Jimmy Wilson’s 2011 grand final-deciding three-pointer for Purp and Yellow against Blades — with 0.34 of a second to play — has ever been tighter.

On Kepa’s shot, Lytton led 13-10 but Campion held sway 23-21 at the break. Lytton grabbed the lead back, 41-26, at the end of the third quarter.

Lytton captain Jayda Waititi-Leach (10pts), Maia Rickard (10pts), Kepa (8pts) and Honey Mokomoko (9pts) were all part of a cohesive, creative team-effort. They play excellent basketball, are patient, and make the extra pass.

For Campion, Petra Sparks (23pts) and Jayda Banks (9pts) never stopped running.

Campion were competitive and Sparks, in particular, was a force at both ends, but Lytton played with structure and, on the night, polish.