KEY POINTS:
The Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic lost their second match of the transtasman netball season last night, beaten 40-47 by the Melbourne Vixens in Melbourne.
The Vixens' stern defence in a tough, physical encounter saw the Magic rattled and trail throughout after a 21-21 halftime.
Goal defence Maria Tutaia and shooter Irene van Dyk swapped positions in the final quarter and at one stage the Magic tied the scores 39-39. But they turned over the ball too many times and on the other end the Vixens' Australian shooter Sharelle McMahon punished them.
The game was lost by the Magic in the contact area where the stats read 57-32 against them.
They won several turnover ball but lost too many themselves.
The Magic (16 points) still lead the competition by two points and last night's victory moved the Vixens (14) into third place behind the Adelaide Thunderbirds on percentage.
The Vixens took a four-goal lead at the first break but Magic charged back to level 21-21 by halftime.
Melbourne then dominated the third quarter, ending the period up six goals.
Skipper McMahon turned in her usual starring performance despite some heavy defence.
Caitlin Thwaites started the match at shooter but was replaced just before half time by Abby Sargent as coach Julie Hoornweg searched for more athleticism and accuracy.
Sargent took some time to find her range but midway through the third quarter the change paid dividends and she finished that period with six goals from nine attempts.
Magic, who have five New Zealand representatives in their ranks, looked rattled in the face some excellent work by Melbourne's goal defence Julie Prendergast and keeper Bianca Chatfield.
Prendergast was lucky to still be on the court after she took a heavy blow late in the first quarter.
She ran into the elbow of Magic shooter Van Dyk, who was lining up for a shot.
They levelled at 39-39 with five minutes left on the clock but the Vixens maintained their composure and pulled away again.
Sharelle McMahon shot 26 from 31, Abby Sargent 12 from 19 and Caitlin Thwaites 9 from 15 for the Vixens and Irene van Dyk goaled 25 from 28 and Maria Tutaia 15 from 25 for them Magic.
- NZPA
