Pimpinio stamped itself as a Horsham District league A Grade netball threat on Sunday, knocking off perennial powerhouse Kalkee by four goals in an impressive display.

The Tigers won only one game last year en route to a wooden spoon, but have already matched that win total three weeks into the season by beating the Kees 42-38 at Pimpinio.

Pimpinio trailed by three goals at the first break, but with Kalkee defenders Emily Polack and Emily Langley keying in on star goalie Tahlia Thompson, the Tigers began to play through Mikayla Dumesny in attack.

The move paid dividends, with Dumesny shooting a game-high 24 goals while Thompson played a supporting role with 18.

With defenders Victoria Taylor and Ruby Williams forming a rock-solid defensive tandem, the Kees struggled to generate scores of their own.

But the game remained in the balance until late in the fourth quarter, when a well-timed run sealed the game for the home team.

Pimpinio co-coach Hayley Hatcher said her team had worked on maintaining its composure following a 31-goal loss to Laharum in round two.

“I think we learned from the previous week where we got a little bit flustered,” she said.

“We just tried to keep the relaxed vibe up. We’ve got some great leaders on the court who helped us do that.

“My girls are all very calm, cool players, so we focused on leaning into that and capitalising on our turnovers, because our defence was really strong again.

“I think they’ve put pressure on themselves to already have the connections when, realistically in round three, no one has them yet.”

With a win already under its belt, Hatcher said Pimpinio would continue to push for improvement in 2026, starting with its match against Taylors Lake this weekend.

“Taylors Lake is always a bit of an unknown. They’ve got Sharon Fedke at the helm and she has wonderful netball knowledge, so you never know what to expect,” she said.

“What we do know is that they’ll be strong and fight for every ball, so we’re going in prepared for them to come out fighting. We just have to keep our heads and keep building.”

In other results at the weekend, Edenhope-Apsley downed Kaniva-Leer United 49-39 and Laharum throttled Rupanyup 91-24 in a pair of Anzac Day matches.

The Saints were led by a big performance from coach Lavinia Fox, who scored 43 goals, while for the Demons both Ilze Van Zyl and Caitlin Jones-Story topped the 40-goal mark.

Noradjuha-Quantong got the better of Natimuk United on Sunday, winning 53-36 thanks to Leah Mirtschin’s efforts in keeping Ram goalie Emma Uebergang to 15 goals, while Harrow-Balmoral downed Swifts 53-33 with Megan Little contributing at both goal attack and goal defence.

This weekend’s slate of games will see the Rams host the Baggies at Natimuk Showgrounds, Edenhope-Apsley at home against Noradjuha-Quantong, Kaniva-Leeor United travelling to Cameron Oval to play Laharum and Kalkee at home to Rupanyup. 

The entire April 29, 2026 edition of The Weekly Advertiser is available online. READ IT HERE!

The entire April 29, 2026 edition of AgLife is available online. READ IT HERE!