UTT stays unbeaten

Joelisa Cooper, this year’s netball nominee for 2010 First Citizens Sports Foundation “Sportswoman of the Year” award, was in smashing form on Thursday night, but her effort was in vain as her Fire X team fell to the University of T&T (UTT), 47-44 in the Courts All Sectors Netball League. Cooper missed only one of 24 attempts, scoring 23 goals for Fire in the Championships Division match at the Eastern Regional Indoor Sports Arena in Tacarigua, to continue her billing as one of the best shooters in the sport locally.

UTT opened the match with its usual shooters national captain Janelle Barker and Jillisa Allan. The duo basically had the match under control in the opening stanza 10-8. Barker, whose attempts at goal were limited to ten, of which she netted eight, was replaced by youthful six-footer Samantha Wallace. Her replacement combined well with Allan, who got in 17 from her 22 tries.  The shooters ensured that UTT remained out from in the next two sessions, 24-21 at the half and 33-30 in the third. Wallace went on to score a match-high 22 from 31 to help in the narrow three-goal win for UTT, the only unbeaten team in the division.

Also shooting Fire were Afeisha Noel (14/22) and Simone Morgan (7/14). In the second match of the night, Police, led by Gursher Grant, completed a 43-33 victory over Fire Y. Grant netted the bulk of the police officers’ goals with 36 from 42.