The three courts located underneath the roof of the Ice House were at full capacity last weekend during the huge City of Mount Gambier Tournament. Teams from all over the region including Murray Bridge, Millicent, Keith and Naracoorte converged on Bern Bruning Stadium for two days ball dribbling action.
The home side was the team to beat with nine title-winning teams across the 13 grades. The hosts particularly turned it on in the Senior Men’s grade with an all Mount Gambier final.
After a tense see-sawing battle between the rivals, Lakers Gold just edged out its Blue rivals by two points. Sam Stafford was prolific for the victors with 21 points, while Kyle Tipene led the Blue team. Mount Gambier also triumphed in the Under 18 Division 1 women’s decider.
Facing archrivals Millicent, the Lakers were in fine form to record a 23-point victory with numerous performers under the ring led by Alyssa Duncan and Sarah Ritter. The Magics’ only scorer in double figures was Georgia Winter.
The fight in Division 2 was much tighter with Naracoorte edging ahead of Murray Bridge by five points. Fans will not forget the Under 18 Men decider anytime soon after just one point separated Mount Gambier and Millicent. The game went down to the final buzzer as both sides threw everything at each other across the four quarters.
Despite the best efforts of Nicholas Joy and Kynan Dunn, the Lakers held on thanks to a 12-point haul from Sam Lock. The Limestone Coast sides also clashed in search of the Under 18 Men Division 2 prize and the hosts emerged on top by 12 points. Another Mount Gambier and Millicent battle emerged during a close Under 16 Boys Division 1 final.
Just two points was the margin after a high-scoring affair and Harry Wright led the Lakers to glory. The respective Under 16 boys Divisions 2 and 3 premierships went to Murray Bridge and Mount Gambier Gold.
The Magic and Lakers were once again the teams to beat in the top Under 16 girls grade and the pair played out a thrilling final. Although Poppy Venn showed her best skills, Millicent could not overcome a consistent Mount Gambier effort led by Ambah Beveridge and lost by one point.
The Bordertown Bandits claimed Division 2. The Lakers dominated Under 14 Boys winning Divisions 1 and 3, while the Kings claimed Division 2. The Magic and Naracoorte won the two Under 14 Girls titles on offer. Murray Bridge and Bordertown fought for the Under 12 Boys Division 1 title which went to the former, while girls’ equivalent went to Mount Gambier.
The Lakers, Kings and Keith also took part in an Under 10’s Girls competition.
