CASEY’S women’s team has scrapped out an 11-point win in a low scoring clash with the Southern Saints at Casey Fields on Saturday afternoon.
Sporadic rain heavily effected the contest causing the ball to spend plenty of time on the deck, but Casey was tougher when it mattered and recorded a second win in a row.
After star Demon Kaila Bentvelzen started the game in defence, she was swung forward in the second half and had an immediate impact.
The 20-year-old took a strong mark in the early stages of the final quarter and nailed the set shot, ultimately sealing the win for Casey.
With just 12 minutes remaining in the match, Danielle Lawrance snapped through the Saints’ first and only goal of the afternoon, giving her side some hope.
Although the rain began hammering down, the Saints benefited from a howling breeze, trapping the ball inside 50 as they began to look dangerous.
But when Saint Kayla Ripari couldn’t convert from close range following a courageous mark, the scoring dried up allowing Casey to claim the four points.
With a thick layer of water covering the surface, scoring was never going to be high.
The Demons got on top in the clearances early which was crucial in locking the ball forward.
After doing all the attacking in the opening term, Casey finally had some luck, with a 50-metre penalty walking Taylor Mesiti to the goal line to get the first on the board.
The Saints pegged Casey’s flow back in the second term, beginning to do some attacking of their own.
But Sophie Phillips made the Saints pay for their inability to score, toe-poking through a brilliant goal just a split-second prior to the half-time siren to extend the Demons lead to 12 points.
Casey’s Maddie Shevlin was a constant force throughout the match, driving the Demons forward in tough conditions.
The third term passed by without a major being converted, as Casey’s defence held up strong throughout the afternoon conceding just one goal in 80 minutes of play.
There was a late scare for Casey with Darcy Guttridge crunched in a tackle and left grasping at her leg, but she will have eight days to recover for next week’s clash with the Tigers.
Casey will be looking for a third consecutive win when they venture to Bendigo's Queen Elizabeth Oval on Sunday.
CASEY DEMONS 1.2 2.2 2.3 3.3 (21)
SOUTHERN SAINTS 0.0 0.2 0.3 1.4 (10)
CASEY GOALS
Bentvelzen, Mesiti, Phillips
