CELTIC Dragons got their season up and running with their first win last night, a 61-41 victory over Loughborough Lightning at the Sport Wales National Centre.
The home team led by a slim margin for the first two periods but raced ahead in the scrappy third quarter when they placed 18 points between them and the visitors. Shooter Timmy Cato opened the scoring and impressed with her prolific strike rate, helped by her outfield teammates who did well to find space and quickly move the ball to their star shooter.
Dragons wing defence Kyra James pulled off a number of impressive blocks to claw back possession from a feisty Lightning side who, like the Dragons, were looking for their first win of the season.
It was a slow start for the visitors who struggled to assert themselves after the breaks in play and who were constantly on the back foot, the number of obstructions perhaps showing frustration among the Lightning side. Despite a spirited display from her team, head coach Melissa Hyndman was under no illusions of the uphill task the Dragons face to live up to their second placed finish last year.
She said: “It was a much better performance tonight but there’s still a lot to do. “I’m just happy to have the first win at home and also so happy that I got eleven out of the twelve girls out on the court tonight” Player of the match Stephanie Williams limped off in the third quarter after making a great defensive interception but Hyndman confirmed it was not serious. “It’s cramp. Lots of the players suffered from it after the 48-hour turnaround since Saturday’s match against Northumbria.”
The Dragons will look to continue their winning streak against Surrey Storm, on February 17.
