GLASGOW – Jamaica’s Sunshine Girls fell short in their bid to win gold at the Commonwealth Games when they were defeated 56-48 by New Zealand in the final Scotland on Sunday.
Fresh from their historic victory over Australia in the semifinal on Saturday, Jamaica could not replicate the same performance at the Hydro Arena in their efforts to claim their first-ever gold medal at the Games.
The Sunshine Girls’ defence could not contain goal shoot Grace Nweke, who netted 48 of her 54 attempts, while Georgia Heffernan made eight of her nine shots.
For Jamaica, Romelda Aiken converted 32 of 36 attempts and Shanice Beckmore scored 16 of 18 shots.
New Zealand opened up a five-goal gap in the first quarter before Aiken struck twice in the final seconds as Jamaica pulled within 16-13 at the end of the first quarter.
The teams then went goal-for-goal in the second to cap a tight first half in which only one interception was made.
The crowd briefly sensed another upset when Jamaica pulled level in the third, but New Zealand restored the five-goal advantage before the penultimate period and cut loose in the final quarter to eventually win comfortably by eight goals.
“We knew we had to be smart in attack and not give them too many opportunities because once they build momentum, they’re very hard to stop,” Heffernan said after her side’s victory.
“Defensively it was a real grind, but we stayed in the contest, kept fighting, and after such a huge week, I couldn’t be prouder of what we’ve achieved.”
CMC
