Tauranga Girls' run out of steam in crunch | Bay of Plenty Sport | Surfing, Rugby, Soccer, Football, Cricket in Bay of Plenty

The Tauranga Girls' College A side showed the skills but couldn't quite muster the stamina to claim one of the nationals berths up for grabs at the regional qualifier yesterday.

Targeting a top-six finish in the secondary schools girls' Zone 2 AA premiership at Queen Elizabeth Youth Centre, the local hopes led Cambridge High 31-28 at halftime in their decisive match yesterday morning.

Despite having key player Chelsea McQueen out after fracturing her elbow earlier in th three-day tournament, Tauranga Girls' drove strongly - particularly guard Te Hiria Bennett - and capitalised through the first two quarters. However, they couldn't match Cambridge's finishing touch through the second half.

With tall 14-year-old Makayla Daysh making an impressive move up from junior grade but sidelined mid-game due to the side's foul count, Tauranga Girls' height disadvantage also told in the latter stages. Ceding 38 goals to their own 21 in the last two quarters, they saw their prospects of advancing to the national finals in Palmerston North later this month slip away.

Coach Luana Winiata saw plenty to be positive about in her team's showing, nevertheless. "We started really well and our defence was good. The pace was up there though and keeping to the intensity of the game was the problem."

If Tauranga Girls' crunch match was high-pressure, the tournament's climax offered drama worthy of a Stateside NBA final - coaching overload and all.

With Hamilton Girls' High School and Hamilton's Fraser High tied 53-53 at the death, Fraser coach Jeff Green strayed onto the court as Girls' High player Kirby-Anne Auld was taking a penalty shot.

It wasn't the first time Green, a former NZ Breakers coach, had overstepped the line in the match, and Veshae Wilkinson's resulting free shots fired Hamilton Girls' to victory 55-53.

Following their loss to Cambridge, Tauranga Girls' showed the form that earned them this year's Baywide championship, picking themselves up to beat Manurewa 68-61 in the playoff for seventh.

Winiata was upbeat about in her team's improvement on the college's eighth-placing in Zone 2 last year.

"I'm rapt with how they've done this week, they've stepped up individually and as a team," she said.

BBNZ Zone 2 secondary schools girls' AA premiership, Queen Elizabeth Youth Centre, Tauranga, August 31-September 2:

Hamilton Girls' High School (1st) b Hamilton's Fraser High School (2nd) 55-53; Waikato Diocesan School (3rd) b Hauraki Plains College (4th) 67-34; Cambridge High School (5th) b Rotorua Girls' High School (6th) 74-39; Tauranga Girls' College (7th) b Manurewa (8th) 68-61. Sacred Heart College 9th, St Kentigern College 10th, Bethlehem College 11th, St Peter's College 12th.