On Tuesday 14 March, the Carnabys flew to Sydney to jump-start their 2023 UBL season with a face-off against the University of Sydney (USYD).
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In their first official game of the 2023 UBL season, the Carnabys women’s team went up against USYD, who were the 2022 runners-up in the women’s competition.
The Carnabys displayed a sense of fearlessness when it came to taking the shot but struggled a bit to maintain control of the ball, which unfortunately led to a 30-point loss.
The game was relatively close in the first half thanks to strong moves inside by Ella Averill (#32) who brought the game to a brief draw in the first quarter. Averill has been one of the Carnabys’ dominant players and is also a very skilful shooter, having led the scorecard in the Tuesday women’s game. Another strong player was Shenae Hartree (#30) who averaged 15 rebounds a game in 2022 and was one of the leading scorers in the USYD game.
At half-time, USYD had an 8-point lead which was shaved down to 5 points after Carnabys Captain Sarah Allen (#24) scored a 3-pointer in the 3rd quarter.
As the game progressed, the Carnabys struggled to successfully make their baskets with USYD constantly keeping up their pressure and defence. This resulted in a 16-point margin by the fourth quarter.
While the Carnabys’ last quarter was highlighted by a smooth 3-pointer from Aleka Kabugua (#8) and two points squeezed in by Hartree, the Carnabys missed out on the win. The final score was 74 – 44 (USYD).
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While the Carnabys men’s team started off hot, they unfortunately dropped off and suffered a 31-point loss.
The Carnabys had a solid first quarter and kept up with last year’s undefeated champions. A number of successful shots were taken by returning Carnabys Tim Hollick (#7) and Tobey Martin (#11), as well as by newcomer Dyson Lowe (#31). However, it was clear that USYD had a strong defence and knew how to keep the pressure up as they blocked some of the Carnabys’ attempted throws. By the end of the first quarter, it was 24 – 14 (USYD).
From the outset, the Carnabys maintained strong possession, with Ali Rammal (#29) and Husam Roamer (#9) keeping up a strong presence. However, the west coast team struggled to execute its plays and capitalise on movement across the court. At half-time, the score was 46 – 24 in favour of USYD.
With 10 minutes left in the game, the Carnabys tried to keep up the pace, ultimately scoring another 16 points. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a high-enough climb to surpass USYD.
The final score was 90 – 59 (USYD).
Despite the loss, the Carnabys had an excellent presence across the court and displayed a lot of scoring potential to hone in on for future games.
