Lightning’s thriller semi final against Vixens

The Sunshine Coast Lightning will host the inaugural Super Netball grand final after upsetting the Melbourne Vixens.

Lightning's Caitlin Bassett during the semi-final Super Netball match against the Melbourne Vixens. Picture: AAP

The Sunshine Coast Lightning will host the inaugural Super Netball grand final after upsetting the Melbourne Vixens 56-55 at Margaret Court Arena this afternoon.

It was a heated, physical game played with no substitutes and only one timeout in front of a slightly disappointing turnout of 3,763 fans.

Lightning’s Stephanie Wood shoots. Picture: AAP

The Vixens seemed poised to take control of the match after grinding their way to a five goal lead halfway through the third quarter, but the Sunshine Coast held their nerve and wound the margin back to 42-20 at the final change.

The Lightning didn’t miss a goal in the final quarter, and a slight reduction in intensity saw the home slid lose grip on the match, according to coach Simone McKinniss.

“I think in the last quarter our work rate dropped off somewhat. It was a good hard tough match, I guess that’s finals netball,” she said.

Both sides succeeded in slowing down their opponents and forcing turnovers, but it was the Lightning who managed to make them count.

Goal shooter Caitlin Bassett carried a heavy load for her side, scoring 46 of the Lightning’s 56 goals en route to an MVP performance.

That shooting came on the back of a mountain of defensive effort from Bassett’s team mates, who held the Vixens to their second lowest score of the season.

The Lightning’s international defensive combination—Langman, Mostert and Mentor—managed to contain the league’s most dangerous offence by consistently slowing down Melbourne’s ball movement and disrupting the team’s core connections.

Langman’s toil saw Liz Watson, a favourite for national selection later this year, frustrated and unable to deliver the kind of fast ball that the Vixens have feasted on throughout the season.

For their part, Mostert and Mentor focused firmly on shutting down Melbourne’s dynamic goal shooter Mwai Kumwenda, limiting the Malawian import to just 33 goals.

Normally that would create enough opportunities for veteran goal attack Tegan Philip to steer her team home, but today the shots simply weren’t falling.

Bassett, though, was imperious for the Lightning, battling hard for space against the Vixens’ rangy, talented young defence while putting up a scorching shooting figure of 94 per cent.

Her partner, goal attack Steph Wood operated primarily as a passer, leading the Lightning in both feeds (29) and goal assists (15).

The match was still tied with ten minutes to go, but two fumbles from Melbourne were pounced on by the Sunshine Coast, who carved out a lead that they held despite some desperation from the Vixens.

The Lightning now have a week off before they get a chance to end their first season with a championship at 7pm on the 17th of June. Their home game will actually be played at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre, a venue with significantly larger capacity than their normal base at the University of Sunshine Coast.

The Vixens will head to HiSense Arena in seven days to host the winner of tonight’s match between the Giants and Magpies. Melbourne swept the Magpies this season, and split their contests against the Giants.

The most pressing matter to address, though, will be how the team can reignite the high octane offense that carried it to a minor premiership this year.

The Vixens will head to HiSense Arena in seven days to host a Giants side that somehow overhauled a 5 goal deficit in 6 minutes to stun the Magpies.

The most pressing matter for Melbourne to address, though, will be how the team can reignite the high octane offense that carried it to a minor premiership this year.