Bath were first to add to the score board, granting them an early lead against Lightning. Both Alice Harvey and Nicola Smith stepped up to counteract Bath’s strong start, disrupting the home sides attacking flow. Elsewhere, a mid-court interception from Smith helped to propel Lightning onwards, levelling the playing field.
A continuous steam of shots from Rhea Dixon and Mary Cholhok cemented Lightning’s prominence on court, helping to progress the team onwards. Whereas some quick feeds from captain Nat Panagarry allowed Lightning’s mid-court attack to shine.
In retaliation, Bath’s Sloan Burton worked hard to keep her team in the running, placing some clean shots to goal. As the first quarter drew to a close it was all still to play for, with a reverse hand interception from Alice Harvey allowing Lightning to finish in a favourable position.
The second quarter opened up with an attacking masterclass from Hannah Joseph and Nat Panagarry as they allowed the ball to travel down court with ease. Within Lightning’s circle, Bath’s Jayda Pechova attempted to shut down Panagarry's feeds, working hard to contest Cholhok’s shooting domination.
Niamh McCall came on for Rhea Dixon at goal-attack within the latter part of the first half, hoping to progress Lightning’s lead further. As the half-time mark rolled around, the team were beginning to advance onwards, hoping to hit the second half of the game strong.
Half-time: Loughborough Lightning 43 – 25 Team Bath
Yet, it was clear that Bath didn’t intend on backing down, with their talented goal-shooter Kadeen Corbin attempting to propel Bath onwards through some well-placed shots at goal.
Annabel Roddy took over from Nicola Smith at goal-defence, working hard to regain possession for her team. Down the other end of the court, Hannah Joseph picked up a misplaced ball from Team Bath, allowing McCall to take a great shot from around the circle edge.
Whereas Bath’s Tash Pavelin, fuelled by the scoreboard, made a masterful intercept with minutes left of the third quarter, giving the home side a much-needed boost when faced with the striding lead of Lightning.
Third quarter: Loughborough Lightning 61 – 36 Leeds Rhinos
The final quarter saw Bella Baylis come on at centre for captain Nat Panagarry, helping to streamline the ball down the centre of the court, whilst also making some impactful feeds around the circle edge.
The home side continued to rise to the challenge, with this week’s player of the match, Lisa Putt, making some crucial interceptions as the final quarter progressed.
Yet, as both teams moved towards the end of the game, it was clear that Lightning were set to bring home the win, with the away side conceding seventy goals, with six minutes left on the clock.
Full time: Loughborough Lightning 76 – 51 Leeds Rhinos
After a great performance, away from home, Lightning head coach Vic Burgess commented on the team’s win…
“We played really well today, there was some great work from all of the girls out there on court”.
“Some key things for us to note, and therefore work on, would be doubling up when looking to win ball, and keeping hold of possession when we win interceptions…there was a slight dip in momentum within the final quarter, but ultimately the team worked it out towards the end of the game”.
As previously mentioned, Bath’s Lisa Putt deservedly took Player of the Match for her clinical defensive work during the final quarter.
Next week, Lightning will be on the road again as they prepare to face Cardiff Dragons within round fourteen of the Netball Super League, on Saturday the 18th of May.
Starting line-up:
GS: Mary Cholhok
GA: Rhea Dixon
WA: Hannah Joseph
C: Nat Panagarry
WD: Beth Cobden
GD: Nicola Smith
GK: Alice Harvey