VU Western Lightning’s Fiona Themann. 44364 Picture: CONTRIBUTED
By MICHAEL ESPOSITO
VICTORIA University Western Lightning already has more wins than it did last season.
After two losses to begin the Victorian Netball League season, the Lightning upset local rivals City West Falcons in Round Three, and have not looked back.
The team’s most recent win, a 33-32 thriller against the Southern Saints, showed the kind of character that has made coach Matthew Hills optimistic about the season ahead.
The Lightning scored the last two goals and defender Fiona Themann made a match-saving intercept with 15 seconds to go.
In a game that ebbed and flowed, the Saints made two changes after half-time and reversed a two-goal half-time deficit into a three-goal lead halfway through the third quarter, before Hills made some positional changes, including Amelia Hills to centre.
“I went to a line-up that I hadn’t used so far this season. I wanted to see how it went in the heat of battle and I also thought it was our best opportunity. That stemmed the blood loss and we went in to the last quarter level sand continued with that line-up,” he said.
The Lightning will go into the next game on 11 April favourites to defeat the winless Boroondara Genesis.
“It’s very important for us to maintain the rage before we go into two big games against Ariels and Monash after the Genesis game,” Hills said.
“We’d love to go into two really big games being five and two and have a chance of being right up there at the end of the first round.
“The fact we’ve gone from 0-2 to 4-2, I’ve had to re-evaluate now because we’re ahead of where I expected to be.
“Confidence breeds winning and winning breeds confidence, so that’s what’s happening with the group at the moment.”
The Lightning has played the Victorian men’s Under 23 side twice to keep its match fitness up over the mini break.
