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Sterling credits ‘game plan’ for crucial victory
November 26, 2024
Captain of Jamaica's Sunshine Girls, Shamera Sterling-Humphrey, revealed that the team studied their previous two games of the ongoing series against England's Vitality Roses and made the necessary changes which propelled them a close 50-49 victory inside the National Indoor Sports Centre.
Romelda Aiken-George led Jamaica's scoring with 30 of 34 attempts, Shanice Beckford converted 19 of 23 tries and Rhea Dixon netted one of two attempts. For England, Liv Tchine shot a near-perfect 26 of 27 attempts, Lois Pearson scored 18 of 21 tries and Helen Housby netted all five attempts.
Resulting from the win, the Jamaica team levelled the four-match series 1-1 with one game to play.
The first two games were played at the O2 Arena in Manchester, England the previous week with the first game ending in a 49-49 tie, and England winning the second 55-47.
"I'm super happy because our fans brought us over the line and we're grateful for that. I think defensively we won the game over England, we did our game plan and revisited the games that we lost to England and came back strong," she stated.
Needing a win to keep hopes alive for the first instalment of the Rhone Hornsby Trophy, the Sasher-Gaye Henry-coached team managed to edge their opponents 12-10 by the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Roses settled down and became calmer, passing the ball and converting their shots. However, they were still playing second fiddle to the Sunshine Girls as the sharp shooting pair of Beckford and Aiken-George, who shot 83 and 88 per cent, respectively, from the field, ensured that the team kept their noses in front, outscoring their opponents 14-13 to claim a 26-23 halftime lead.
The Roses were relentless and pressed hard in their quest for victory in the second half. They were trading shot for shot, as the Sunshine Girls showed determination and wouldn't give up their lead, continuing to mix brilliant defence with sparkling shooting en route to a 38-35 lead by the end of the third quarter.
As England went for broke in the final quarter, they managed to outscore the Sunshine Girls 14-13 and produced an electrifying end.
With the game tied and less than 15 seconds to play, the Sunshine Girls managed to grab possession of the ball and ensure that they would have the final shot of the game, which Shanice Beckford managed to score, sending the crowd into a frenzy, as the home team secured their first win of the series.
Jess Thirlby, head coach of the Vitality Roses believes costly turnovers were a key component in the team's defeat.
"I think we made too many errors at the start of the game and everything that we expected from the Sunshine Girls came at us tonight," she shared.
The decisive game four will take place tonight at the National Indoor Sports Centre, with match time set for 7 p.m.
