Surrey Storm slipped to a 39-48 defeat against Celtic Dragons at the Copper Box Arena on Friday evening as the Welsh side claimed their first win of the season.
Storm were looking to build on their positive performance against London Pulse, but their opponents delivered a determined display to seal a seven-point success.
It was a fairly even first quarter as Dragons opened up a 10-13 advantage following a strong start out from the blocks, but Storm did manage to wrestle more of the initiative before half-time.
Storm achieved this through faster transitional play while keeping their composure in key moments, and this saw the Guildford outfit reduce the three-point deficit to make it 21-22.
However, Dragons performed admirably after the break to resist the Storm fightback, with Clare Jones producing a strong performance at wing defence to help her earn Player of the Match.
Karyn Bailey’s sharp shooting helped Storm stay firmly in the contest heading into the final quarter though, with the goal shooter scoring 27 of her 29 attempts.
The fourth quarter then saw Dragons pull away into the lead as they looked hungry for their first win of the season, while Storm struggled to reach the same level of fluidity towards the end of the game.
This saw Dragons almost double Storm’s score in the final 12 minutes as they sealed a 39-48 win to pick up their first three point of the campaign.
Storm must now make a quick recovery ahead of their clash with Severn Stars on Saturday afternoon, with this now looking like even more of a pivotal game against the side sitting one spot below them in the table.
© Copyright 2024 Surrey Storm
