Both semifinals on Saturday were one-sided which suggests a lively final.
In the semifinal between Southern Magpies and South Pacific Titans A, Southern finished with a dominant 68-46 win. The first quarter was tight, as both teams made a couple of mini runs of goals to keep their scores ticking over.
The Titans welcomed back Amy Waqawai at centre which gave them some good flow through the midcourt.
Although the Titans had better flow on attack than they did last week, Southern also looked settled in its own attacking plays.
At the end of the first 15 minutes, both teams were sitting on 15 goals apiece.
The second quarter was a different ball game all together as Southern kicked it up a gear.
The defensive pressure across the entire court from Southern created headaches for the Titans attackers.
That allowed Southern goal keep Taniesha Fifita to pick off several intercepts.
While Fifita was picking up ball at one end, it was being converted at the other thanks to some impressive shooting from goal shooter Hannah Riddle-Pelchen.
After lifting its intensity for the second 15-minute period, Southern went into halftime up 33-24.
The second half was similar to the second quarter.
Southern continued to put its foot down and built on its lead. The midcourt combination of Sara McCarthy and Zoey Flockton brought some nicely controlled ball through to the shooters.
Southern kept the momentum for much of the remainder of the game althoughTitans goal keep Taylor Thorne was able to pick up several intercepts of her own to give her side some possession.
More defensive pressure from Southern forced the Titans into making some silly decisions with ball in hand. They tried to force passes into their usually dominant shooting circle, which resulted in either the ball going out the back of the court or another intercept.
While the shooting statistics for both teams ended up in the region of 80% it came down to possession - Southern had 30 more attempts at goal than the Titans and with it bagged the resounding win.
Physed A despatched St Hilda's Senior A 80-40 in a one-sided match. Physed was at full strength.
The side featured three Steel players, Abby Erwood, Kate Heffernan and Georgia Heffernan (signed for 2020).
It also had its standard starting line-up that has been putting out relatively consistent results all season.
The defending champion played solidly in the first quarter, establishing its dominance over the less experienced schoolgirls. It went into the first break up 23-7.
From there Physed did not relent and the margin kept increasing throughout the remainder of the first half.
St Hilda's had a better second half, but could not drag the margin back in.
In the games for fifth to eighth placings, Markham's College A took a 55-48 win over Physed C to keep its spot in Premier A grade for next season.
Physed B reversed its result from last week against Physed Blue to secure its spot for 2020, winning 55-52.
Southern Magpies and Physed A will meet in the grand final at 2.15pm on Saturday.
- Bridget Thayer
