Mackay Meteorettes take on Cairns Dolphins in State Under-14 Championships grand final

The Cairns Dolphins were too good for the Mackay Meteorettes in the Division 1 grand final of the Basketball Qld Under-14 Championships. WATCH ALL THE DAY’S REPLAYS.

The Cairns Dolphins are the 2021 Basketball Queensland Under-14 Girls State Champions after outlasting the hometown team, Mackay Meteorettes, by five points in an epic grand final this afternoon.

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Milla Boodnikoff shoots free throws for the Cairns Dolphins. Picture: Matthew Forrest

NORTHSIDE WIZARDS 3 DEF SUNSHINE COAST PHOENIX ORANGE 42-31

A 23-point performance from Hannah Broadhurst proved too much to overcome for the Sunshine Coast Phoenix as the young gun helped her Wizards team to an 11-point victory in their final game of the tournament.

Both teams were relatively evenly matched throughout the game but Broadhurst’s offensive ability was what allowed Northside to take the lead and run away with the game.

The result means the Wizards took ninth place in Division 3 with the Phoenix finishing in 10th.

BURDEKIN WILDCATS DEF SD TITANS 56-53 (GIRLS DIV 2)

The Burdekin Wildcats have produced arguably the comeback of the tournament to claim the Division 2 gold medal over the Southern Districts Titans in Mackay this morning.

Burdekin found themselves trailing by 18 points in the second half, only to flick the switch on both ends of the floor to work their way back and make the crucial plays when it mattered most to record a three-point victory to take home the state title.

The result is a remarkable achievement for the team from the small North Queensland town.

Zaylah Morris was dominant for Burdekin with 19 points while she also had support from Mikayla Pirrone with 13 and Taylar Viero with 10 points.

Isabel Bottger scored 19 points for the Titans.

LOGAN THUNDER DEF SD SPARTANS 45-43 (GIRLS DIV 1)

The Logan Thunder have bounced back from the disappointment of missing out on the grand final to beat rivals the Southern Districts Spartans in a two-point victory to take home the bronze medal.

Both teams went into the match looking to finish the tournament on a high note after losses in the semi-finals and it was clear early in the game, this was going to be a close contest with two sides full of rising stars battling it out.

But in the end it was the Thunder who just had too much to close out the bronze medal game and end their state championships on a win.

Isabella Mirkovic had 17 points for the Thunder while Tereise Reupena had 10 points for Logan.

Olivia Olechnowicz led the scoring for the Spartans with 16 while Briana Ordono had 10 for Southern Districts.

CAIRNS DOLPHINS DEF MACKAY METEORETTES 53-48 (GIRLS DIV 1)

The Cairns Dolphins are the 2021 Basketball Queensland Under-14 Girls State Champions after outlasting the hometown team, Mackay Meteorettes, by five points in an epic grand final this afternoon.

Both teams came into the championship game in red hot form after rolling through the pool stages without a loss and following dominant wins in yesterday’s semi-finals with Cairns beating Logan and Mackay demolishing the Southern Districts Spartans.

It was Dolphins star Taryn Bond who led from the front from the opening tip, scoring 19 points for the game to put her Cairns team, coached by NBL1 player Myra Donkin, in a position to take home a state championship.

But Mackay had fought too hard all week to let the game slip and like they had all week, Isabel Smith (17 points) and Cheyenne Bobongie (12 points) put their team on their back and almost led them to victory.

However, the Dolphins were the better team in the last game of the tournament, overcoming the home crowd advantage for Mackay to close out the game and bring another gold medal back to Far North Queensland.