A fantastic three days for Otago school St Hilda’s Collegiate ended with the southerners picking up the NZCT Secondary School Girls title. St Hilda’s was excellent throughout the tournament, winning five from five, the standout tournament MVP Bella James.
James, who is already part of the Otago Sparks set-up, hit a very impressive 191 runs. She also captained her side very well, and had good help from teammate Kate Heffernan. Heffernan was second in both the run-scoring charts and the wicket-taking standings.
Tawa College 84/5 (P. Williams 33, K. Fenton 30*; K. Heffernan 4-15) lost to St Hilda’s Collegiate 85/2 in 13.5 overs (I. James 40, K. Heffernan 30*)
St Hilda’s came into the final round as likely winners, but mathematically Tawa still had a chance to make it three titles in a row. Tawa won the toss and elected to bat first. They lost a few early wickets, but their innings was rescued through captain Phoenix Williams and Kate Fenton. The pair put on 55 runs for the fourth wicket before Williams was caught on 33. Other than a runout, Kate Heffernan picked up all the wickets. She took four wickets for 15 off her four overs, which ultimately left her tied second for the top wicket-takers in the competition. The chase was set up by eventual tournament MVP Bella James. She hit a near run-a-ball 40 and had good support from Kate Heffernan who hit an unbeaten 30*. St Hilda’s cruised to the title in the 14th over.
Epsom Girls' Grammar with their team mascot. Image: www.photosport.nz
Epsom Girls' Grammar School 84/4 (M. Coates 32; P. Robertson 2-16) lost to Tauranga Girls' College 86/2 in 18 overs (B. Perry 46*)
Epsom was the other side that still had a possibility of winning the title, while Tauranga wanted to make sure Epsom had no chance of winning the title! Epsom batted first and struggled early on against the bowling of Paris Robertson. Robertson added two more wickets to her tournament takings, meaning she finish the top wicket taker with nine. Mei Coates batted well for her 32, but the run rate was just a little slow to be able to set a big total. In reply, Briana Perry continued her good form with 46 not out. Tauranga timed their chase well, eventually hitting the runs with two overs to spare.
Epsom and Tauranga. Image: www.photosport.nz
Cashmere High School 70 all out in 19.2 overs (S. Edwards 21; O. West 5-12, S. Wenham 3-8) lost to Palmerston North Girls’ High School 71/5 off 16.3 overs (O. West 31;, J. Dean 2-17)
Cashmere take a team talk. Image: www.photosport.nz
The final game of the NZCT Secondary School Girls finals would produce one of the top individual performances of the tournament. Cashmere batted first, and continually lost wickets throughout their innings. The Christchurch school had some fight from Sydnee Edwards who hit a run-a-ball 21. But the story of the match is captain Olivia West. Off her four overs, she took 5-12, producing only the second five-wicket bag of the tournament. Sally Wenham also bowled well, picking up figures of 3-8. After her terrific bowling effort, West opened the batted and was there at the end of the chase. She finished 31*, batting patiently during her 64-minute stay at the crease. Palmerston got the winning runs during the 17th over.
Round Four
Tauranga Girls' College 131/1 (B. Perry 56*, N. Patel 49*) lost to Cashmere High School 132/1 in 20 overs (I. McKenzie 60*, J. Waghorn 40*, J. Dean 26)
A last-ball thriller was how the match between Tauranga Girls' and Cashmere High will always be described. Tauranga batted first and set an imposing 131/1. Brianna Perry hit an unbeaten 56 while Nensi Patel also ended the innings not out on 49*. The pair finished the innings just one run short of a 100-run partnership. The pick of the bowlers for Cashmere was Jenna Waghorn who picked up figures of 1-9 off her four overs, including a maiden. Cashmere was brilliant in reply, keeping up the run rate throughout the innings. Captain Isla McKenzie controlled the entire chase, facing both the first and last ball. She ended with an unbeaten 60*, with her number three, Jenna Waghorn, 40 not out. It had been too close to call with two overs to go, when Cashmere had needed 15 to win. Waghorn hit three boundaries in the over, which left only three runs to be found off the final six balls. During the first four balls of the last over, two singles were picked up, meaning the Christchurch school now needed one off two. A dot ball was bowled next: it would come down to the final ball. McKenzie managed to get some bat on it, hitting it to midwicket and managing to scamper through for the match-winning run.
Tawa College 113/6 (R. Thuraisingham 52, O. Macrae 43; M. Noema-Barnett 3-22) beat Palmerston North Girls’ High School 98/5 (O. West 33; R. Thuraisingham 2-6)
Tawa batted first against Palmerston North and put on a solid 113/6. Opener Roshani Thuraisingham continued her good form with a half-century. Her opening partner, Olivia Macrae, also cashed in with 43. The opening stand was key for Tawa, the pair hitting 87 before Macrae was stumped off the bowling of Molly Noema-Barnett. Noema-Barnett was the pick of the bowlers, taking three wickets for 22 off her four overs. In reply, Palmerston North had a good start with a 55-run opening stand between captain Olivia West and Eikam Singh. West was the top scorer for her team with 33. Unfortunately for the Central Districts team, Tawa managed to restrict the run rate in the middle overs, ultimately winning them the game. Melissa Veale was the standout with the ball with figures of 1-8 from her four overs.
St Hilda’s Collegiate 123/7 (G. Heffernan 34*, O. Gain 29; G. Adams 2-15, C. Campbell 2-19, M. Coates 2-24) beat Epsom Girls' High School 71 all out in 19.3 overs (A. Hucker 40; G. Heffernan 5-11, E. Carson 2-6, K. Heffernan 2-10)
The final match of round four would turn out to be a final-esque match featuring Auckland’s Epsom Girls' and Otago’s St Hilda’s Collegiate. St Hilda’s batted first and produced a good total of 123/7. Epsom would have been worried around halfway through the game, but they managed to peg back their opponents with some good bowling. Georgia Heffernan was the standout with the bat, hitting an unbeaten 34. Campbell, Adams and Coates all picked up two wickets apiece for Epsom. In order for Epsom to chase down 123, they were going to need to accumulate wickets, but sadly for them the opposite happened. Again, Georgia Heffernan was the star — this time, however, it was for her bowling. Heffernan picked up five wickets, a game-high in the tournament so far. She combined well with her twin Kate, who picked up two wickets for herself. Eden Carson meanwhile put herself on the top of the tournament wicket-takers list with another couple of strikes. Amie Hucker was the only good story for Epsom, hitting a quickfire 40 as Epsom eventually fell 52 runs short.
Round Three
Epsom Girls' Grammar School 127/2 (G. Adams 56, A. Hucker 54) beat Tawa College 89/5 (A. Gillies 44*)
Coming into round three, both Epsom and Tawa were unbeaten. Conditions were perfect for batting and Epsom’s Gemma Adams and Amie Hucker made good use of them. Their opening partnership was broken only in the 18th over — and only once they had put on 114 together. Adams fell first for 56, and next over Hucker was caught for 54. Tawa was going to need a positive start to chase down 127, and with both openers falling for a duck it did not begin well for them. Anna-Leigh Gillies contributed a spirited unbeaten 44*, but she didn’t get the support needed to chase down a good total, while some very smart fielding from the Epsom side also restricted the Wellington school.
Palmerston North Girls’ High School 56 all out in 16.3 overs (O. West 27; G. Bartlam 3-7, P. Robertson 2-5, B. Perry 2-6) lost to Tauranga Girls' College (B. Perry 21)
Both teams came into round three with a point to prove, after having been unable to pick up a win during round one. Palmerston North batted first and, other than a 27 from Olivia West, it was all Tauranga. Regular wickets meant there was no momentum for the Central Districts school. Georgia Bartlam was the pick of the bowlers with 3-7 off her four overs, but she also had good support from the tournament's top wicket-taker at the time, Paris Robertson, and captain Briana Perry, who both grabbed two scalps. In reply, Tauranga made it look easy, hitting the winning runs after 14 overs.
St Hilda’s Collegiate 158/2 (O. Gain 72*, K. Heffernan 39) beat Cashmere High School 75/7 (E. Carson 3-10)
St Hilda’s entered their round three match against Cashmere High School as firm favourites — but you can never know with these tournaments. St Hilda’s batted first, and set a very imposing total of 158/2. Olivia Gain was the star with the bat, hitting an unbeaten 72 off just 53 balls. Kate Heffernan continued her good form with a run-a-ball 39. Cashmere had struggled with their run rate during the opening two rounds, which meant attempting to chase 158 was always going to be a big ask. The St Hilda’s bowlers all bowled very economically, with only one player going for more than five runs an over. Eden Carson was the pick of the bowlers with 3-10. The result means St Hilda’s and Epsom Girls’ would be set up for a key clash during round four.
Round Two
Cashmere High School 103/2 (J. Dean 34, I. McKenzie 28, J. Waghorn 21*) lost to Tawa College 104/1 off 17.5 overs (R. Thuraisingham 45*, O. Macrae 28)
Defending champions Tawa College lost the toss and had to bowl first. Cashmere had a good platform with the top three scoring some 20 runs between them, but it was the run rate that halted their innings. Consistent economic bowling from Tawa meant runs were hard to come by. A very good four overs on the trot from Phoenix Williams really kept the score down. In reply, the chase was set up by the openers with a 59-run stand. Rashani Thuraisingham batted very well, ending the innings not out on 45. In the end, Tawa cruised to the win in the 18th over.
St Hilda’s Collegiate 178/4 (I. James 83, K. Herrernan 64, P. Robertson 2-32) beat Tauranga Girls’ College 99/2 (N. Patel 44, H. Topp 34*)
St Hilda’s turned a few heads in their first match, meaning that the pressure was on the team was Otago to perform. Batting first, St Hilda’s didn’t look like they had any pressure on them at all: quite the opposite. A 131-run stand between captain Bella James and number three Georgia Heffernan set the game up, Otago Sparks rep James producing the innings of the tournament to date, hitting 13 boundaries in her 83 runs. She was supported well by Heffernan who produced a 37-ball 64. Needing nearly nine runs an over from the beginning of the chase meant that Tauranga would have had to produce something special to pick up an unlikely win. Tauranga lost an early wicket, but they had good spine in the chase. Northern Spirit representative Nensi Patel top-scored with 44, while opener Holly Topp hit an unbeaten 34. Sadly for the Northern Districts school, the run rate was always going to be a tough issue. After their 20 overs, the Tauranga girls finished 79 runs short.
Epsom Girls Grammar 92/7 (J. Tainui 35, S. Wenham 3-8; G Minnis 2-23) beat Palmerston North Girls’ High School (O. West 21, J. Tainui 2-10, G. Adams 2-13)
Auckland’s Epsom Girls' came into this clash full of confidence after an opening round win. Epsom batted first, but kept losing wickets at crucial times. Captain Jayda Tainui set the standard with a quick-fire 35, but didn’t get much support from her teammates. Bowling-wise, Palmerston North was great. Opening bowler Sally Wenham picked up figures of just 3-8 off her four overs, while Grace Minnis pitched in with two wickets. The beginning of the chase started well for Palmerston North with a 36-run opening stand. The Central Districts side had wickets in hand — but also had a lot of scoreboard pressure. Epsom's Tainui brought herself onto bowl and changed the innings. Both she and Gemma Adams picked up two wickets while also keeping the run rate down. Palmerston North needed 17 from the final over, but Amie Hucker kept her cool and bowled a maiden!
Tawa College, St Hilda’s and Epsom Girls' all head into tomorrow with two wins apiece.
Round One
St Hilda’s Collegiate 102/8 (I. James 34, E. Black 24; G. Minnis 3-7, J. Ogden 2-14, O. West 2-21) beat Palmerston North Girls’ High School 68/8 (S. Wenham 20; E. Carson 3-17, M. Johnson 2-6, L. Taylor 2-9)
The NZCT Secondary School Girls Finals began with Otago’s representative, St Hilda’s, facing off against Central Districts representative Palmerston North Girls' High School. St Hilda’s was sent into bat, and made good use of the opportunity. Captain Bella James led from the front, top-scoring with a run-a-ball 34. Emma Black provided good support for her captain while the standout with the ball was Grace Minnis who produced figures of 3-7 off her four overs. In reply, Palmerston North never really got going. The Heffernan sisters opened the bowling for St Hilda’s and set the pace for the innings. The sisters' figures over their eight overs were 1-13, including a maiden from each sister. Eden Carson finished with three wickets, Laura Taylor and Molly Johnson both helping out with two wickets apiece.
Tawa College 100/3 (A. Giles 45, R. Thuraisingham 29; P. Robertson 3-16) beat Tauranga Girls’ College 61/9 (K. Fenton 3-11, J. Maisuria 2-3, M. Veale 2-17)
Tawa College, after winning the past two NZCT Secondary School Girls Finals, are certainly a team to watch out for. Tauranga decided to bowl first, a decision opening bowler Paris Robertson will be grateful for. Robertson picked up three wickets, while for Tawa, Anna- Leigh Giles was the pick of the batsmen with 45. Tawa set Tauranga a decent 100/3 off their 20 overs. Sadly for Tauranga, however, only one batsman would reach double figures. Kate Fenton picked up three wickets, Jeneesha Maisuria and Melissa Veale both grabbing a brace of wickets. Tauranga did bat out their overs, however, they finished 39 runs short.
Epsom Girls’ Grammar School 118/5 (J. Tainui 34, G. Adams 32, M. Coates 21*; E. Lovett 2-23) beat Cashmere High School 75/3 (I. McKenzie 21)
The final match in the round was a classic Auckland v Canterbury rivalry, with Epsom Girls' playing against Cashmere High. Epsom batted first and openers Jayda Tainui and Gemma Adams set the tone for the innings. Both hit thirties, and both at a good rate. The Cashmere bowlers did manage to put a squeeze on the innings with some good, economic bowling. Epsom finished with a respectable total of 118/5. In reply, Cashmere was always struggling with the run rate. Again, captain Jayda Tainui stood out, this time with the ball. Even though she didn’t pick up any wickets, she slowed the innings down, only conceding nine runs off her four overs.
