Firebirds 52 Steel 50
BRISBANE - Queensland bookends Laura Geitz and Romelda Aiken lifted the Firebirds into fourth spot with a thrilling 52-50 transtasman victory over the Southern Steel on Monday night.
In a do-or-die encounter for the Firebirds, goal keeper Geitz and goal shooter Aiken stood tall in a tense final quarter at Brisbane Convention Centre to ensure they stayed alive in the fight for an ANZ Championship playoff berth.
Geitz was outstanding, especially down the stretch when she grabbed a rebound over Steel goalers Donna Wilkins and Megan Dehn in the dying minutes plus another forced turnover which effectively sealed the match.
At the other end, Aiken overcame the close checking and highly-physical game from burly Steel defender Megan Hutton to nail 48 goals at 81 per cent accuracy.
The win moves Queensland into fourth spot (12 points) as they leapfrogged the Steel (12) on the ladder on percentage.
Both sides have an awkward run home and will also be challenged by the West Coast (5-6) who host the Firebirds in the final round.
"I think we've proved that we're worthy of being in the top four tonight so we need to build on that one," said relieved Firebirds coach Vicki Wilson.
Wilkins (32 at 91 per cent) and promoted shooter Dehn (18 at 86 per cent) shot the lights out for the NZ outfit throughout but it was a rare missed shot with less than three minutes left which turned the momentum back the home side's way when Geitz latched on to the rebound.
Both sides were evenly matched throughout a see-sawing and intense first half as neither could break free by more than four goals.
With Silver Fern Wilkins on fire, the Steel gained the ascendancy through the second quarter, coming back from 16-12 down early in the term to shoot the next four straight and then hold a 23-20 lead.
But with rising Australian defender Geitz pulling off some clutch intercepts, the home side stormed back just before half-time to regain the lead 26-25.
Queensland again shot out early in the third-quarter to hold a four-goal advantage before it was whittled back as Hutton got under Aiken's skin and they were also penalised twice at the centre pass.
But another late surge gave the Firebirds a crucial 40-36 advantage going into the final quarter.
Steel coach Robyn Broughton made wholesale changes which had immediate impact with the visitors scoring the first three goals to close within a single shot
- AAP
