Portlaoise scoop second national title in three days; Waterford Wildcats crowned U20 champions

Portlaoise Panthers rounded off a monumental weekend for their club as they claimed their second National Cup title in just three days this afternoon when they stormed home to a 75-71 point win over Trinity Meteors in the Hula Hoops Women’s Division One National Cup final.

The return of Claire Melia at Christmas added an extra element to Portlaoise and it was the inside combination of Melia and MVP Trudy Walker that helped Portlaoise dominate the inside as they outrebounded Meteors by an incredible 41 rebounds. Despite being dominated so dramatically on the boards, Trinity managed to stay in the game to the very end by forcing Portlaoise to turn over the ball consistently through the excellence of Lauren Grigsby in particular.