Mountaineers let strong starts slip in opening QSL round against Southern Districts

Toowoomba Mountaineers start well, but unable to hold out charge of Southern Districts Spartans in QSL season opener.

Lisa Salmi. Picture: Kevin Farmer

BASKETBALL: A promising off-season hasn’t translated into initial success for the Toowoomba Mountaineers.

Coming into the first round of QSL fixtures against the Southern Districts Spartans, both the men and women’s division one sides found themselves on the wrong end of the ledger.

It started with the women, who trailed 21-15 after one quarter, and kept the margin at five for a solid portion of the second, before the Spartans were able to close out on a 17-9 run to lead by 13 at the main break.

The defensive intensity of the visitors was on full display throughout the second half, outscoring the Mountaineers 17-8 in the third and 15-4 in the fourth to finish with a 78-45 victory.

The Mountaineers men had better earlier fortunes as they held the ascendancy against Southern Districts.

The home side came out of the blocks firing on the offensive end, dropping 27 points to take an eight-point lead after the first quarter.

The Spartans began to slowly edge their way back into the contest, cutting the lead to just three heading into halftime, before they made their move in the second half.

Toowoomba was outscored 28-13 in the third term and then 24-5 in the fourth as they were downed 89-58 by the Spartans.

The Mountaineers will have just five days to recover ahead of their round two clash with the University of Sunshine Coast Rip City, with both games to be played away from home.