After shaking off their nerves from Mondays game against Fiji, team Samoa was able to make a strong come-back and clock in their first win against Singapore 59-36 at yesterday’s PacificAus Sports Series in Australia.
The Elizabeth Manu coached side started the game off aggressively with focused set plays, led by aptain Auteletoa Tanimo. Samoa got an early 15-9 lead in the first quarter. In the second quarter Samoa put on a defensive clinic shutting down the Singaporean offense allowing them to score only 5 points ending the second quarter off with a margin of 33-14.
The third quarter started off with a goal from Goal Shooter Ky-Mani Schwenke who played her first international cap for Samoa with confidence and ease. Wet spots on the court caused an unfortunate injury for Singapore but this did not slow down Samoa in any way as they kept a strong drive when attacking the rim, finishing the third quarter with a 47-26 lead.
The Eseta Autagavaia – Malia Seumanutafa duo proved to be unstoppable in the circle together, whilst Sheridan Stowers with her outstanding lockdown defence, forced multiple turnovers and interceptions.
Communication throughout the game on the court kept team Samoa able to work together on both ends of the court. Jessica Lagaaia and Soli Ropati controlled the mid-court at a fast pace, putting a lot of pressure on Singapore. The excellent Samoan defense led to turnovers which the girls quickly capitalized on.
Samoa will take on Tonga today (Thursday) and Papua New Guinea tomorrow. Both games are set to start at 3:30pm. The remaining games of the PacificAus Sports Netball Series will be streamed live and on-demand to audiences from across the globe via http://netballaustralia.tv
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