The Penola Netball Club came home with a bag of silverware from Saturday’s Kowree Naracoorte Tatiara grand finals.
The Eagles won three grand finals and narrowly lost another two, in what was a tough day of competition.
Penola won the A Grade, B Grade and C Grade premierships, and were narrowly defeated in A Reserve and Division 1.
A Grade The Eagles have landed as Penola comprehensively defeated Keith to claim the 2023
Kowree Naracoorte Tatiara Netball Association A grade premiership on the weekend.
Penola was dominant from the get-go, establishing a 10 goal lead by the first break, with Keith needing to fight hard to get back into the match.
However the Eagles extended the lead further to 15 by the end of the half.
In the second half Keith re-emerged reinvigorated and managed to draw the quarter, however going into the final quarter 15 points down meant the damage had already been done.
Penola finished the match 23 point winners in an incredible result to claim the 2023 title.
April Possingham was exceptional for Penola in attack, scoring 35 goals for the match, alongside young goalie Tegan Lythgo who was also excellent.
The defensive efforts of Chelsea Galpin and Jordyn Adams were instrumental to Penola’s success, with the pair keeping Keith to below 30 in a hard fought battle.
Captain Brooke Klemm was the standout for the match and was named best on court for her efforts, proving a formidable force on the big day.
A Reserve Penola suffered an unfortunate defeat in the A Reserve grand final, going down to Naracoorte by only three goals.
Naracoorte went into the match favourites having been the best team all season and the Eagles were keen to avoid a repeat of 2022’s heartbreak which saw Penola lose the grand final.
The match started off on the right foot for Penola with a five goal lead at the end of the first quarter.
Kasey Venables and Karly Honner looked on top early in their battles with the Demons’ defence.
A big second quarter for Naracoorte saw the Demons take the lead before claiming a two point lead at the end of the half.
The lead was extended to five points at the last break, with Penola needing a big quarter to get back into the match.
Tara Millard was excellent in the middle but had tough opposition, with Penola’s defence doing its best to get on top of an explosive Naracoorte attack.
Penola closed in during the final quarter, reducing the gap to three, but Naracoorte managed to hang on to claim the premiership.
Naracoorte’s Grace Collins was declared the best on ground for her standout performance.
B Grade Penola continued its unbeaten run to claim the B Grade premiership.
The Eagles showed right from the beginning they were too strong for Border Districts.
Penola outscored Border Districts in the first two quarters thanks to an excellent attack display from Teegan Galpin and Sarah Murphy.
The Eagles defence of Cailtin Eason and Jade Lythgo were also on top of the Border Districts attack.
The Hawks managed to close the gap in the third quarter to go into the final quarter five goals down.
Penola’s mid court of Ava Copping, Jess Blackmore and Monique Maney applied plenty of pressure to Border Districts to slow their court movement, enabling the Eagles to win by five.
Lythgo’s exceptional defensive performance was crucial to Penola getting the result and it was recognised with a best on court performance.
C Grade The Penola Eagles are once again top of the nest in C Grade, winning the grand final by seven goals against an in-form Mundulla.
Going into finals Penola was unbeaten, however Mundulla brought the side back to earth in the first round of finals, delivering the Eagles their first loss of the season.
Penola responded well, winning the next match to go through to the grand final and book a rematch.
On Saturday Penola was on top from the get-go leading at both breaks in the first half.
However, Mundulla was not far behind and the game was still up for grabs going into the second half.
Penola had a two goal lead before the final quarter term and its attack was determined to stand and deliver, outscoring Mundulla 13-8 to give the side some breathing room in the final minutes.
The Eagles held their nerve and took the premiership, winning by seven goals.
Tiarna Schmidt was incredible for Mundulla and was named best on court in a losing side.
DivISION 1 Penola suffered a tough defeat in the Division 1 grand final in an incredibly close contest that went right down to the wire.
Finishing just below Kingston on the ladder the Eagles entered the match underdogs.
Kingston had a one goal lead at the first break before two consecutive tied quarters had the Saints enter the final quarter with the slimmest of
margins.
Penola gave its all with good performances throughout, but the Saints proved too strong for the Eagles.
Penola was outscored 8-11 in the final term to go down by four points with a final scoreline of 38-42.
Saints Piper Stenner was named best on ground for an excellent performance which proved the difference in the end.
