Two sixes, 19 fours in lightning innings for TWC

Grace Kuil hit her first century – on the back of around two runs per ball – in Challenge Cup secondary schools cricket at Nelson Park last night.

Kuil, 16, scored 105 from 53 in Tarawhiti Women’s Cricket Club’s 64-run win over Gisborne Boys’ High School Life Guards.

She hit two sixes and 19 fours as TWCC got off to a strong start to 2022 in the Twenty20 nine-man competition.

In other games, Sonrise-Lytton High School beat Campion College by three wickets, and GBHS Admiralty beat GBHS Blues and Royals, also by three wickets.

Kuil has set the bar very high for the stick.

She had good support from cricketer Kayley Knight (33 from 13 balls with seven fours, batting at No. 7), who was also in superb contact with the women’s team coached by Mel Knight.

Knight senior said: “Grace peppered the leg side of Cow Corner to the back square leg and Kayley put the icing on the cake for us.”

The TWCC bowlers followed up with strong performances.

“Left arm mid-pace Elenor Walsh hit good areas to take 2-21 and Helen Evans played well taking 2-25,” Knight said. “Both collapsed.”

TWCC captain Grace Levy won the toss, opted to strike and was herself fired – played for four hours, on the fifth ball from the first – by Life Guards skipper, the orthodox spinner of the left arm Riker Rolls.

Levy’s opening partner Neve Loffler (11) and Kuil then compiled an 85-point stand. This was followed by a 56-point partnership between Kuil and Evans (12) before Kuil was beaten by GBHS attacking choice leg spinner Joel Kirkpatrick (2-27 from three overs).

Kayley Knight showed the maturity and game savvy expected of a top class cricketer as she and Walsh (2) went 38 for the sixth wicket, and TWCC were all out for 184 in 17.1 overs .

For the Gisborne Boys to get close to 184, they needed at least one batsman to step in. Fly-half Dylan Torrie did it, hitting 12 fours on his way to 65-for-45.

He and versatile youngster Caleb Taewa (20) shared a sixth wicket of 66 before the latter was returned five balls in the 13th.

Their batsmanship had given the Guards a chance to win the game at 101-4.

But with the total at 108, Torrie was sent off, caught by Kuil at Evans’ bowling, after Kuil (lined up in the same position in the middle of the wicket) put his fingers on the holds offered by the Boys’ High No. 1 earlier in the game. .

Torrie’s dismissal was an insurmountable event for the guards’ hopes of victory. Rolls’ brave outfit – which included wider GBHS side debutants Adolf von Staden and Alexander Dinkel – were knocked out for 120 in 18.1 overs.

Rolls, a fierce competitor and honed sports brain, said: “Dylan Torrie and Joel Kirkpatrick had some great all-around games – both kept the wicket for us – and I think Joel is going to be a good one. cricketer.He was outstanding in the field, hitting good areas as a bowler and took the wicket from Grace Kuil, and started with bat, seven from 10 first drop balls.

Kuil and Torrie, chosen by CricHQ, were their teams’ MVPs (most valuable players).

■ As Torrie matured in his approach to cricket, Blues and Royals captain George Gillies did too.

Having won the toss and gone to bat, Gillies set an example for his team to follow for the rest of the season. He carried his bat for 59 steps – with five fours – from 67 balls. He gave the Admiralty a capture opportunity early in his innings, but then crumbled.

Admiralty spearhead Keanu Makiri was the Boys’ High bowlers’ choice of all three teams at the school yesterday, taking 3-15 in 3.1 overs. He has a high front arm, swings the ball back and forth and is dedicated.

The game’s hold was taken by Brandon Fearnley to brush aside big southpaw and Blues and Royals No.3 Jarrod Ormiston (31 from 26 balls, three on all fours). The southpaw fired one of Makiri’s few square-legged short deliveries.

The Gillies-Ormiston partnership was worth 76 runs and the Blues and Royals finished with 106-5 in 18.1 overs.

Apart from Makiri, the Admiralty were well served with the ball by Dylan Worsnop (1-17 from 3.1 overs) and on the pitch by keen Grade 9 debutant Micah Langford.

Admiralty glover Kavindu Withanage, who had a catch in the innings for the Blues and Royals, then took center stage with the bat, scoring his first unbeaten 50 on 26 balls with a six and eight four from No. 4.

His stand of 72 points with Ted Gillies (11no, sixth man) decided the contest.

Gillies played a good supporting role and Withanage showed his skill best when given width by the bowlers.

Winning captain Nathaniel Fearnley said: “We were positive on the pitch and chased everything we could, against guys who were hitting the ball pretty well.

“George looked solid but with the ball Dylan was impressive for us with a very good line and very good length.”

George Gillies, his team’s MVP, identified two secrets to Withanage’s success in what ultimately turned out to be a winning turn in the slot: “Kavi hit the wrong ball with confidence, but also made sure that he stayed at the wicket keeping the good ball. outside.”

■ Jonah Reynolds had the best first-round unbeaten score in a thriller. The 13-year-old scored 76 runs on 70 balls, with 15 fours, from No. 3 in Sonrise-Lytton High School’s combined three-wicket win over Campion College.

Campion captain Hamish Swann won the coin toss and opted to strike, his side going 129-6 in 20 overs.

Joe Singh (21) and Rhys Grogan (18) at No. 7 were the college’s two most successful batsmen.

The most successful bowler for the Sonrise-Lytton offense was their first seam change Marcus Gray, with 3-9 on four overs. Leg-spinner Harvey Reynolds also shone with 1-12 on three overs.

Sonrise-Lytton won the game on the last ball of the 20th – Mitchell van Zyl, seventh man and facing Swann, threw the only ball he faced through the square leg for four. SLHS came at 133-5 in their 20 overs.

That Reynolds was in the middle to the end of the game does him great credit.

He went through an era of maximum balls by more batting retirements, grace periods for batsmen and teams eliminated early being allowed to send batsmen back into the crease.

These are cushions for the cricket reality of being out, or the challenge of bowling a fair six-delivery. Taye McGuinness, with 2-23 from four overs, was Campion’s top bowler. He made excellent use of the new ball and has a great work ethic.

McGuinness and Reynolds were MVPs for Campion and SLHS. The referees for the Challenge Cup matches were Marty Bennett, James Raroa and Clarence Campbell.

Their contributions were greatly appreciated.