Cobras still in the hunt

By Tania Martin
KILYSTH Cobras men’s side remains in the hunt for the SEABL East Conference Championships while the ladies have continued their 7-0 winning streak.
Joe Werner was again a stand-out in the weekend’s play in the Cobras 107-66 demolition of the Dandenong Ranges.
He finished the game with 33 points and 13 rebounds. Dandenong, who were looking to challenge the Cobras for the fourth place in finals, played like their season was over.
The once mighty Rangers, who dominated the Big V Competition for many years, prior to the move back to the SEABL, have fallen back to earth and will have their work cut out for the remainder of the season.
Kilsyth (9-10) moved above Bendigo (9-10) into third place with the win, and sit just half a game behind Knox (10-10) in second place.
Werner was outstanding in the first term, helping the Cobras build a 25-16 first quarter lead with 13 points while his front court partner Tim Lang (14 points) proved a difficult match up for Dandenong.
The Rangers fought back in the second term reducing the margin to three with six minutes to play.
Quincy Henderson (10 points, 6 rebounds, 4 blocks) was also outstanding, restricting high-scoring Rangers’ import Vince Inglima to just six points for the night.
Dusty Jura (22 points, 13 rebounds) and Matt Witherden (20 points, 6 rebounds) gave their all for the Rangers but it was not enough as Kilsyth again extended the margin in the third term. The Cobras held Dandenong to just 16 points for the quarter and hit another 28 of their own to build a 24-point lead going into the final term.
Veterans Matt Shanahan (12 points, 10 assists) and D.J. Taylor (14 points, 6 rebounds) put their stamp on the game in the final term helping the Cobras again outscore the Rangers 35-18 to extend the final margin beyond 40. This was just the remedy the Cobras needed to get their season back on track and remain in the hunt for that elusive title. The test now for the Cobras is to put together a win streak and place a claim on second place on the table. Canberra will travel to Kilsyth next Saturday night with tip off scheduled for 8.15pm before the Cobras travel to Frankston on Sunday to take on the Blues at 2.30pm.
Meanwhile the Lady Cobras continued it unbeaten streak with a 17-point win over the Dandenong Ranges.
League MVP candidate Amy Denson with 25 points, 10 rebounds, and 3 assists again showed her class against Australian Opal Elyse Penaluna who scored 22 points and 10 rebounds. Denson lead her team to their ninth win of the season.
Kilsyth travelled to Dandenong with just eight players, missing Gemma and Tania Kerr, and after losing Brooke Nisi to an injury in the third term played the final quarter with just seven players.
With their season on the line the Rangers managed to stay with the Lady Cobras for the majority of the match, the lead changed multiple times in the first quarter but Kilsyth went into the first break with a three-point margin.
Sarah Parsons (11 points, 16 rebounds, 7 assists) proved the difficult assignment for the Rangers as despite not hitting a field goal for the entire match still managed to go close to recording another triple double.
Dandenong struggled to contain the high-scoring Lady Cobras in the final term after Penaluna fouled out early in the quarter. Despite playing a zone for the majority of the game the Lady Cobras still managed to score 79 points with Clare Papavs (15 points) exploiting the soft defence. The Lady Cobras (9-5) have all but locked away a place in the 2009 finals series, giving them an opportunity to defend their title, but their next challenge is set to define their season. Kilsyth’s last lost was against Nunawading by a single point on the buzzer. The Lady Cobras will host the Spectres this coming Saturday night looking for some redemption.