There was the feeling among spectators that the students would eat further into the deficit. Horouta had other ideas.
They dominated the third stanza to win it 19-11 and take a commanding 21-goal lead into the final quarter.
Girls’ High, like the second quarter, stemmed the flow and ended up winning it 14-12, but by then it was a matter of how much Horouta would win by.
The final result was nowhere near as close as was predicted. Last time these teams met, only six goals separated them.
Horouta’s Lu Taitapanui, defending the goal circle, was among the standouts. She hunted the ball, made many intercepts and delivered speedy ball to her attackers.
Centre Lexi Rutene controlled play through the middle of the court and linked both ends well.
Shooter Mia Reeves displayed strong movement around the attacking end, driving out to collect passes and moving quickly back into the circle to finish off.
In the second game of the night, Whāngārā Old Girls had to work had to fend off gritty clubmates East Coast Roofing OG Whāngārā 42-38.
They led all the way but never by enough to feel comfortable - 10-9 at the first break, 20-18 at halftime and 33-27 after three quarters.
The game lived up to the hype and could have gone either way.
Both teams had mini runs of goals and looked like they were going to pull ahead only for their opponents to dig deep and pull the score back.
There were impressive passages of play from both as they worked the ball into their shooters while the goal circle defenders did their part to stop the ball going in – especially Whāngārā's Joaquina Kaa and OG’s Materoa Poi, who collected some excellent intercepts and rebounds.
Whāngārā led by six going into the last quarter and extended it to 10 at one stage, but the tenacity of their clubmates whittled it back and supporters were on the edge of their seats as they willed their team on.
OG Whāngārā earned a losing bonus point for being within five goals or less.
The premier action continues from 9am tomorrow with GGHS Snr A taking on Character Roofing YMP (2).
YMP (2) won by five the last times they met after the score was tied 36-all heading into the last 15 minutes.
Expect this to be another close game as YMP are only one point behind Girls’ High on the table.
Competition pace-setters Turanga FM YMP (1) face Whāngārā gara Old Girls (1) at 11am.
YMP are playing well as they look to regain the title Whāngārā took from them last year.
They had a comfortable win over Whāngārā in their previous meeting, so Whāngārā will need a full-hour performance to stop a YMP side on a roll.
The other senior grades return to the courts tomorrow, after a school holiday break, from 9am to 2pm.
