Manchester Thunder and Wasps win to stay clear in Vitality Superleague
Saturday 6 April 2019 20:46, UK
Manchester Thunder and Wasps recorded Vitality Superleague wins on Saturday evening but London Pulse stunned Saracens Mavericks.
A huge weekend of action, which concludes with Loughborough hosting Surrey in a match you can see live on Sky Sports YouTube channel, saw the top two record priceless victories as they look to secure a place in the semi-finals.
Thunder inflicted a 73-46 hammering on Celtic Dragons at Belle Vue to stay three points clear before Wasps picked off third-placed Bath with a 61-46 win at the Ricoh Arena success that halted their six-match winning run.
The surprise of the round came at the Copper Box, where London Pulse claimed just a second victory of the season, producing a brilliant final quarter turnaround to beat Saracens Mavericks 62-59 and leave them playing catch-up in the race for the top four.
Severn Stars completed the winning quarter on Saturday, putting this week's three-point deduction behind them, with a hard-fought victory over Strathclyde Sirens at the University of Gloucester.
A fast start set the tone for Manchester Thunder who continue to lead the way following a win over Dragons and, after other results, they look in pole position to claim a home semi-final, opening up a six-point advantage over third place with five games left.
Once again Joyce Mvula and Kathryn Turner were able to put the hosts in front early thanks to fine defensive work from the ever-reliable Kerry Almond and Emma Dovey, who produced key turnover ball.
By the end of the opening quarter, Thunder were eight goals clear of Dragons, who have been enjoying their best season in years, but proved no match for Karen Greig's side who added another 20 goals in the second quarter for a staggering 40-20 half-time lead.
Greig took the opportunity to rotate her squad, with Ellie Cardwell coming on in attack and Amy Carter and Rebecca Airey also taking to the court, but there was no let-up as Thunder moved 31 goals clear ahead of the final 15 minutes.
With the points in the bag, Thunder took their foot off the pedal and Dragons, as they have done all season, battled bravely to take the final quarter but it was the leaders who continued their fine form to take the points and stay clear at the top of the table.
Back-to-back champions Wasps remain their closest competitors after a dominant defensive display saw them run out 15-goal winners over Bath.
An early turnover gave Bath the first goal of the game but Wasps were quickly in front and by the end of the first quarter led by seven and never looked back as they recorded back-to-back wins for the first time in a month.
Mel Mansfield's side had been knocked out of their stride following two defeats to Manchester Thunder and an agonisingly last-second defeat to Loughborough.
But the champions showed their mettle with a dominant performance, opening up an 11-goal lead by half-time thanks to some cool finishing from Rachel Dunn.
With the hosts 32-21 in front, they continued to make Bath pay, Fran Williams again impressing in defence and Player of the Match Katie Harris linking brilliantly with Dunn on the way to a crucial and in the end comfortable three points.
At the Copper Box, Mavericks slipped to a third defeat in four games as they were beaten 62-59 by London Pulse in another thriller.
Pulse produced a thrilling final-quarter comeback to turn a two-goal deficit into a three-goal victory and end the Superleague's longest winless run, which had stretched back to the opening weekend in January.
A pulsating contest see-sawed both ways, with Mavericks fighting back to assert some dominance after Pulse had started fast to forge a 17-16 first-quarter advantage.
Mavs looked to have overcome the loss of George Fisher to win the second quarter by four points and get themselves 33-30 in front as they looked to return to winning ways following defeat to Loughborough last time out.
But Pulse have been edging closer to a second win of the season and their battling qualities were evident throughout as they pinched the third quarter by a single goal and then produced their best display of the season to claim a huge three points.
Both teams held the lead going down the stretch, but a crucial turnover with minutes left proved decisive as Pulse opened up the defining three-goal advantage and Mavs stay fifth, three points adrift of Lightning who play their Round 13 game on Monday night.
Severn Stars began the day in eighth spot, but move up to sixth after a 49-40 win over Strathclyde Sirens.
The pair traded goals early on before Stars were able to open up a small advantage, Georgia Rowe finding her range at the end of the first quarter for a 13-11 lead, but Sirens edged the second by a solitary goal to stay within striking distance at half-time.
With nothing between the teams, each turnover was proving pivotal but neither side could open up more than a couple of goals' advantage and Stars took a two-goal lead in the final quarter where a couple of huge turnovers proved vital.
New recruit Leah Kennedy and defensive stars Sam Cook and Jodi-Ann Ward made the plays that allowed Stars to open up the crucial seven-goal lead that proved the decisive factor.
Follow the Vitality Superleague on Sky Sports on Monday when Loughborough Lightning host Surrey - live and available to all on our YouTube channel and also on Sky Sports Mix & Action
