By JARROD POTTER
ONE of the rising stars of Dandenong Women’s Cricket Club made her presence felt at the VicSpirit Under-18 Championships.
Sophie Molineux, 15, from Bairnsdale, was one of the prime performers for the Gippsland Pride as she smashed 225 runs at an average of 75 and picked up eight wickets at 3.88 plus a hat trick.
“Not really – I had no idea what to expect,” Molineux said.
“I was pretty shocked, it was a really good week for the girls – it was good having a bit of contribution as always.
“You always want to do well and the girls got along and played as a team and it was a really good week.”
Converted temporarily to a left-arm orthodox spinner, as opposed to her regular pace-bowling on account of a back stress fracture, Molineux was thrilled to take a hat-trick, but thought the third wicket was not particularly there.
“It was a bit lucky – but you’d take it,” she said.
“Midway through the innings -they were four or five down – come on to bowl and the first was a catch to short cover, next two were LBW and bowled.
“The last one was an LBW but I thought it was going down leg.
“I can’t really remember – it’s a bit of a blur. There wasn’t a big celebration, but looking back on it I think it’s pretty special.”
Playing her part at Dandenong in the Victorian Women’s Cricket Association (VWCA) in a couple of first XI matches so far, Molineux has enjoyed her time at the club and especially playing alongside Australian representatives like Julie Hunter and Sarah Elliott.
“Really loved it – it’s just a great culture at Dandenong – jumping straight in and they’re very supportive and it’s very easy to feel part of the team.
“Just want to get used to Premier and playing with and against some of the best cricketers in Victoria and some of the best in Australia and hopefully the runs will come later on.”
Molineux now gets to test her all-round skills at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in the VicSpirit Championships grand final, with her Gippsland Pride team taking on the Western Waves on Sunday 23 February.
