GABA Round 3: Chapman Valley remain undefeated with help of Aaron Ralph while Hawks & Olympians pick up wins

Chapman Valley remain the sole undefeated team in men’s division 1 of the Geraldton Amateur Basketball Association after an 85-74 win over Pumas. In the clash of the top two sides on Tuesday, October 24, Pumas managed to get the jump early as they took a quick lead to start the game. Their side was scoring from all over the court, as all eight players added to the stat sheet during the game. Down by 10 going into the second half, Chapman Valley managed to turn the tables, led by Buccaneers captain Aaron Ralph in his first appearance for the team this season, tying the game up by the end of the third. A 27-point fourth quarter from the Valley helped them storm home and take the win over Pumas, putting them at the top of the ladder and remaining the lone undefeated team. Ralph had 32 points in his season debut while Elliot Bennett had 19 points, while on the Pumas’ side Tom Dobson dropped 18 and Flynn Dillon had 16 points. The next day the Hawks beat Trades as the league’s leading scorer Robert Griechen continued his dominance in the 100-62 victory. The top scorer got the first bucket of the game but Coby Ryan from Trades managed to respond from mid-range. Hawks’ offensive assault began early as a Michael Wright score helped extend their lead to double digits. Fletcher Klasztorny stole the ball and turned it into a quick dunk before a timeout was called with three minutes to play in the first and the score at 23-6. The second quarter was opened with a three-pointer from Trades’ Campbell Surtees, but Griechen responded with a three of his own. That trend continued throughout as Trades were able to crash the boards, but they missed opportunities and couldn’t keep up with the Hawks’ scoring. The Hawks walked away with the 100-62 win, as Griechen led the team in scoring again with 42 points while Ryan Blanchett had 20. Surtees scored 15 for Trades while Ben Svenson dropped 14 points in the loss. After suffering a big loss in round two, Olympians picked up a 117-83 win over Stateside, and welcomed Buccaneers grand final MVP Johny Narkle into the line-up for the first time this season. However, it was Quinton Narkle who dominated, leading the charge with 41 points in the win, while Liam Bennett had 20 and Johny Narkle had 10 points in his debut. Stuart Egan put up a 34-point effort for Stateside, helping keep his team competitive early in the game. In division 2, Pumas pulled off a one-point win over Chapman Valley, 52-51, while Trades remained undefeated with a 76-46 win over the Hawks and Stateside had a 69-41 victory over Olympians.