THE Swan Hill Flyers season has ended in disappointing fashion, with both the men’s and women’s sides unable to secure a win from their double-header road trip over the weekend.
On Saturday evening the women fell to the Maryborough Blazers 73-44, in an at times competitive performance from a young and undermanned outfit.
Tamara Weiss was the standout for Swan Hill, scoring 16 points in an impressive performance, while Taylen Blachford and Indi Grey were also strong contributors.
Much like their female counterparts, the men’s side were also no match for Maryborough, with the home side securing a 15-point victory 90-75.
With only three players on the bench, the Flyers ran out of legs in the end, with Lachlan Somerville and Matthew Gardner both continuing their fine form to post 27 and 23 points respectively.
Both sides then travelled to Bendigo for their final matches of the season on Sunday afternoon, taking on the always-strong Braves.
Signs were ominous early for the women, with the undefeated Bendigo scoring 20 points to 10 in the opening quarter, before opening up a 26-point lead by half time.
The domination continued after the main break as the visitors’ season drew to a close with a 90-31 loss.
Weiss backed up her good form from 24 hours earlier, again top scoring with 11 points, with Maeve Sheldrick (8 points) also contributing on the scoreboard.
The men played like it was their last game ever, jumping the highly fancied Bendigo from the start to lead 20-13 at quarter time.
Swan Hill’s dominance continued in the second period, again outscoring the home side to extend their margin to nine points at the main break – with an upset all of a sudden in the brewing.
Knowing that anything less than a victory would end their finals chances, the Braves came out breathing fire in the third term, pegging the margin back to just two points at three-quarter time and setting up a grandstand finish.
It was the home side who won the big moments – and eventually the game – but not before the Flyers gave them a major scare. Swan Hill went down by two points, 73-71.
Gardner again impressed, dropping 23 points, while Hugh Broad (18) and Somerville (11) were the only other Swan Hill players to register double figures.
