Rockingham Flames men and women take out Lakeside Lightning in huge thriller matches

It was a big weekend for the Rockingham Flames with both the men’s and women’s teams taking home victories, with just five points separating them from their opponents. Lakeside Lightning’s men gave their all against the reigning champions but a stellar fourth quarter from Devondrick Walker saw the Flames prevail 101-96. While the Lightning the led 29-24 at quarter-time and 51-48 at half-time, it was Flames MVP Walker who pulled the game back in Rockingham’s favour. With three minutes to go in the third quarter and the Lightning in front by five, Walker hit the court and knocked down a three-pointer straight away, adding another triple before three quarter-time. As the Lightning tried to cling to theirlead, the Flames took over, bagging 29 points to Lakeside’s 19 in the fourth quarter — 20 of those from Walker — to eventually win by five points. The US import finished the stunning performance with 42 points, six rebounds and three assists, Marshall Nelson added 29 points and six assists for the Flames, and Justin Beard six points and five boards in his 200th game for Rockingham. Rowan Mackenzie continued his hot form for Lakeside, producing 32 points and nine assists and Josh Davey added 19 points and 10 rebounds. The women’s team also set the Lightning alight on Saturday night, with both teams fresh off of back-to-back wins. A close contest, the Flames were just one point ahead by quarter-time and worked hard to widen that gap to a three-point advantage by half-time, 47-44. But by three-quarter time, scores were neck and neck before both sides attempted to pull the match in their favour. A triple from Lightning captain Caitie Jones pushed the lead out to four. But Casey Samuels hit back for the Flames, landing a three-pointer before five quick points from Jones put Lakeside back in front with four minutes left. A three-point play from Samuels put Rockingham back in front before free throws from Christina Boag extended the lead to four with 45 seconds remaining. In the end, the Flames went on to win by four, 95-91, to remain in fourth spot while Lakeside remain eighth despite the defeat. Casey Samuels performed for the Flames, hitting 31 points, seven assists, seven steals and four rebounds, while Lisa Koop added 18 points and six rebounds. Jones delivered 34 points for Lakeside while Laci Hawthorne hit 24 points and 13 rebounds for the Lightning.