Gritty Glanmire hold out

Glanmire 79 DCU Mercy 72: Women’s U18 National Cup final: Glanmire were crowned Women’s U18 National Cup champions after a magnificent final at the National Basketball Arena on Saturday morning.

The Cork side laid the foundation for victory with some superb shooting outside the perimeter in the opening quarter as they surged into a 19-point lead (35-16).

However, they lost focus in the second quarter with some poor shot selection and DCU quickly grabbed the lifeline to reduce the deficit to 46-37 at the break.

The momentum remained with DCU after the break and when Anna Brennan nailed a basket in the 26th minute the Dublin side led by the minimum.

It was the wake-up call that the Cork side needed and with Hollie Herlihy and Louise Scannell leading by example they pressed four clear 58-54 entering the last quarter.

Coming down the stretch Glanmire extended their lead again to 15 points. DCU rallied in the closing minutes but Glanmire held out for a seven point win.

Glanmire coach Paul Lenihan admitted: “We got a great start but suddenly lost our way but credit to the girls they showed great character to close out the game when it threatened to run away from us.”

Scorers for Glanmire: Sarah Kenny 21, Louise Scannell 19, Hollie Herlihy 18.

Scorers for DCU Mercy: Tia Kelly Stevens 22, Saoirse Power Cassidy 19, Rachael Huijsdens 17.

GLANMIRE: H Lenihan, S Kenny, O Dupuy, A Braham, L Scannell, H Herlihy, J Quirke, A O’Driscoll, E Roach, J Forde, J Fitzgerald, S Egan.

DCU MERCY: A Brennan, S Power Cassidy, C Hamill, R Huijsdens, M Petrakova, R Fennell, B Brennan, T Kelly-Stevens, S Guebali.

Referees: Dick Dunne (Dublin), Canince Kelly (Kilkenny), Maurice Thornhill (Cork).

MVP: Sarah Kenny (Glanmire).