Carterton New World Lynx came within the proverbial whisker of making it through to the semifinals of Netball Wairarapa's premier one competition next weekend when they went down by a solitary goal to Makoura College at the Colombo Rd courts in Masterton on Saturday.
Needing a win in the last of the qualifying round matches to make the top four Lynx gave the promising Makoura College combination plenty to think about but when it mattered most it was the students who had their noses in front on the scoreboard, 37-36.
The end result might have been bad news for Lynx but it was just the opposite for Makoura College as it took them to second place on the table, behind only unbeaten Harcourts, and, more importantly, assured the Dayle Clarkson-coached side of a semifinal spot at the same time.
Harcourts, for their part, completed their qualifying round programme with a decisive 56-26 win over Wairarapa College, an outcome which highlights the daunting challenge which will confront Wairarapa College when the two teams meet again in next weekend's semis.
Carterton New World Legends were in the comfortable position of knowing they had already done enough to make the top four when they met Pioneer Blue on Saturday but if they were looking for a good dress rehearsal they would have been disappointed, Pioneer Blue winning 45-33. No doubt it will be a more focused Legends squad when they take on Makoura College in their semifinal clash.
The other premier one match on Saturday was between the two teams at the bottom of the points table, St Matthew's Collegiate and Baywide Gladstone, and it was St Matthew's who dominated, winning 64-36.
Unofficial competition points: Harcourts 21, Makoura College 16, Carterton New World Legends 15, Wairarapa College 13, Carterton New World Lynx 12, Pioneer Blue 12, St Matthew's 6 and Baywide Gladstone 0.
Other results were:
Premier reserve: Hellz Hot Shots 47, Wairarapa College B 40; Carterton New World Red 39, Greytown Red 29; Trevs 1 52, St Matthew's B 30.
Premier two: St Matthew's Junior A 36, Carterton New World White 22; Hiona 30, Wairarapa College Intermediate A 13; Chanel Junior A 21, Kuranui Red 19; Greytown Yellow 31, Makoura B 26.
Premier three: Carterton New World Misfits 29, Solway Silver 13; Featherston Black Sox 28, Solway Green 16; Chanel A 28, Pioneer Red 16; Trevs 3 22, Trevs 2 20.
Premier four: Makoura TKT 28, Nga Iwi 26; Wairarapa College B2 24, Greytown Black 19; Carterton New World Social 29, Wairarapa College Junior A 13; Wairarapa College Red 21, Makoura TKT 9 19.
Senior A St Matthew's Junior B 31, St Matthew's Gold 5; Greytown Gold 29, Kuranui Blue 13; Masterton Flames 44, Chanel B 14.
Senior reserve: Wairarapa College Junior B 28, St Matthew's Junior Blue 7; Kuranui White 25, Wairarapa College Gold 5; Wairarapa College Intermediate B 22, Chanel Junior B 21; St Matthew's Junior Red 21, Wairarapa College Blue 6.