Surrey Storm could only manage a single win in an electric evening of British Fast 5 All-Stars action, despite a valiant fight throughout all 3 matches at London’s O2 Arena.
Report: Storm 11-20 Mavericks
The battle of the London rivals in round one saw Hertfordshire Mavericks take the spoils in an exciting 11-20 All-Stars opener.
Mavericks kicked off the tournament with an immediate turnover from the Storm centre pass, followed by an impressive 3 point shot to 0-4 up early on.
Katie Harris got Storm underway with a safety shot under the goal, before Coach Hoffman activated the first power play of the evening at the perfect time, giving Rhea Dixon a double 3 point shot. Storm were back in the game at 7-11.
Mavericks followed up with their own power play, but the resilient Storm defence forced them out of luck and they had to settle for no goals during the 2 minute period.
Sadly there was no way back for Storm though, as Hertfordshire took the win to advance as round winners.
Report: Storm 35-22 Northumbria
A superb shooting display from Harris earned Surrey Storm their first win of the evening and a shot at the All Stars semi-finals.
Dixon opened the scoring with a brace of goals from the 1 point zone, before taking a midcourt steal for Harris to extend the lead to 8-1.
Northumbria looked like they were picking up confidence until Jo Trip flew in with a strong interception to break down their possession. The power play period didn’t assist their cause either, with the Storm defence keeping them out for the full 2 minutes to lead 11-4.
Coach Hoffman hit the buzzer for a Storm power play midway into the game – the point at which Harris really came alive, sinking a 6 pointer followed by a crowd pleasing 10 point shot to push the lead to an unassailable 33-7.
Northumbria picked up late on, but the lead was too big to catch and Storm advanced with a 35-22 win.
Report: Storm 21-34 Wasps
One of the matches of the evening saw Storm push Wasps right till the final buzzer, losing 34-21 to end their fight at the Fast 5 All-Stars.
Trip got the game underway in a confident fashion, taking an interception from the centre pass to allow Storm to lead 2-0 lead on. Big goals at both ends followed but still Surrey held the lead, which was extended thanks to a huge Dixon long bomb for 5.
Wasps tied the game level at 11 a piece before taking their power play. Francis and Trip were in fine form still though, and broke down their attack allowing no goals during the double points period.
A Storm power play followed but their luck was starting to fade. Dixon took a single goal for 2 points but the lead wasn’t enough to stop Wasps advancing to the semi-finals, thanks to some sharp shooting from George Fisher.
Head Coach Tania Hoffman said: "The Fast 5 event was fantastic. Great for the fans and something a bit different for the players too. I would love for teams here to be able to come and play in venues like this every week."
Lightning paced sporting action returns to The O2 Arena on Sunday afternoon as the British All-Star Basketball Championships take over the iconic venue, including fellow Surrey Sports Park team Surrey Scorchers. Live Sky Sports Arena coverage starts at 1pm.
? | Tania Hoffman hails the "great atmosphere" at @Fast5allstars #LetsGoStorm ?? pic.twitter.com/Yt9wN0Nz4h
— Surrey Storm (@SurreyStorm) September 23, 2017
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