Source: trinidadexpress.com
SINGAPORE
Trinidad and Tobago produced a sterling effort to outlast Wales and start their campaign at the World Netball Championships on a winning note, yesterday.
Trailing after the first quarter, T&T hit back to lead by one at half-time before battling all the way to the end to earn a 51-48 verdict at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
They were joined by Caribbean powerhouses Jamaica, who brushed aside world number six South Africa 72-45, while Barbados thumped Malaysia 62-40 to ensure a winning start for all Caribbean sides.
T&T had the most trying time, as they were forced to pull out all stops to turn back a determined Welsh unit.
T&T were behind 12-13 at the end of the first quarter, but outscored their opponents 14-12 in the second to lead 26-25 at the half-time whistle.
The Trinidadians gave themselves breathing space in the third quarter by grabbing a 38-34 lead, and even though they were outscored 14-13 in the last quarter, they held on to post a rewarding victory.
For T&T, Janelle Barker finished with 36 goals from 40 attempts, while for Wales, Cara Moseley shot 20 from 28 with support from Rebecca James who got 19 from 22 attempts.
Unlike T&T, Jamaica had no problems, storming to a 15-11 first quarter lead, before hammering out a 34-20 half-time advantage. They eased off a little in the third quarter, but still outscored South Africa 16-13 to lead 50-33 at the start of the fourth quarter, before completing the formalities down the stretch.
Outstanding goal shoot Romelda Aiken led the Caribbean side with 40 from 49 attempts, with Anna-Kay Griffiths supporting with 11 from 15.
For South Africa, goal shoot Claudia Basson counted 23 from 26 attempts, while Christina Bootha scored 16 from 22.
Barbados, meanwhile, turned in a dominant second quarter effort to stun Malaysia.
Ahead 15-11 after the first stanza, the Barbadians outscored the Malaysians 21-8 to take a comfortable 36-19 lead at half-time.
Malaysia stormed back, sparking a 15-9 run in the third quarter to narrow Barbados' lead to 45-34. But that was as far as they got.
Barbados were led by Laurel Browne, with 25 of 28, while Nikita Piggott got 16 from 20 attempts.
Izyan Syazana Mohd Wazir led the Malaysians with 23 from 32 attempts.