Ladies get on the board

By Paul Pickering
DANDENONG held off a fast-finishing Nunawading to win its season-opener in the SEABL Championship Women’s division on Sunday.
The Rangers won each of the first three quarters to lead by 12 points at the last break and defied a late Spectres rally to win 47-45.
Nunawading’s frontline boasted Bulleen WNBL stars Elyse Penaluna and Zoe Carr, who suited up for the Spectres less than 48 hours after playing in the WNBL decider in Canberra.
And there was no respite for the pair as they combined to play 73 of a possible 80 minutes, scoring more than three-quarters of their team’s total.
Penaluna finished with 19 points and nine rebounds, while Carr contributed 14 and nine.
For the visiting Rangers, point guard Amelia Todhunter led the way with 12 points, seven rebounds and two steals in 25 minutes of action.
Fellow WNBL Ranger Faith Probst (eight points, seven rebounds) had an ordinary shooting night, connecting on just two-of-12 field goals, but she found plenty of support in the paint from Tess Meyer (8, 9) and Claire Fitzgerald (8).
Rookie swingman Catherine Guest (5, 8) was also active on the boards, but committed six turnovers in her first outing.
The Rangers will now host Sandringham, which lost its first-round encounter with Frankston, from 5.30pm on Saturday night.