THE Hamilton Hurricanes junior girls teams finally took to the field earlier this week, as the Western Victoria Girls Shield got underway on Wednesday.

The Under-18 team opened its carnival with a clash against Colac at Clem Young Oval on Wednesday morning.

The combined Hamilton-Wimmera team won the toss and bowled first, with just one wicket falling in the early overs.

A 69-run second-wicket partnership pushed the tally up towards triple figures, as the ball got thrown around in search of wickets.

Heidi Schneider and Bridie Reid collected two wickets each for the home team, as Colac posted 5-130 from its 20 overs.

The run chase was slow going, as scoring proved to be harder in the second innings with Hamilton-Wimmera quickly shifting its mindset to simply batting out the overs.

Bridie Curran’s eight runs was the top score, coming off 54 balls, as the team could only manage 8-35 at stumps.

The group got a chance to bounce back with a clash against Ballarat at Monivae College in the afternoon.

Once again, the locals bowled first after winning toss and it was a similar start to the game, as the Ballarat opening batters started positively, putting on 72 runs before Aisha Hendriks got the breakthrough.

Only one more wicket fell, as Ballarat reached 2-123 after 20 overs.

Reid was the other wicket-taker.

The run chase improved from the first game, but the scoring rate still wasn’t enough to reach the target.

Schneider top-scored with 17, as the team closed its innings at 6-79.

Day two started with a battle against Warrnambool at Monivae with Hamilton-Wimmera electing to bat first this time.

Losing both openers with 10 runs on the board was not what the team was hoping for, but Isobelle Schorback smashed 24 to steady the innings alongside Chelsea Kearnes (12).

The home team struggled to maintain the scoring late in the innings to finish on 9-78.

Warrnambool made light work of the chase, losing just two wickets, pushing past the target to score 2-107 at stumps.

Ruby Pickett and Leila Elton were the wicket-takers.

A rematch against Colac concluded day two back at Clem Young Oval and once again the Hamilton-Wimmera team won the toss and batted first.

It was tough going, as no batter reached double figures with Curren’s nine runs the standout alongside Pickett’s eight-not-out.

Five ducks ruined any momentum the home team created, eventually bowled out for 39 inside 17 overs.

Colac blasted the Hamilton-Wimmera bowlers early in the run chase to reach 41 without loss in the eighth over to pass the target, forcing an early finish to the game.

The team finished its campaign with a clash against Ballarat at Clem Young Oval on Friday morning, missing out on qualifying for the final.

Under-16

The Hurricanes won the toss and bowled first, with Alexis Hunt grabbing an early wicket to boost the home team’s confidence.

A 26-run second-wicket partnership steadied Wimmera’s innings, but regular wickets from that point stopped any momentum for the visitors, as Hamilton restricted Wimmera to 9-80 after 20 overs.

Ella Jackson was the standout bowler, finishing with four wickets.

Hamilton’s run chase got off to a nervous start with both openers back in the sheds with just 15 runs on the scoreboard.

Lauren Sharrock (11) and Sophie Walker (13-not-out) held the innings together in the middle overs for the home team.

A late innings struggle to get past the target was aided by 38 extras from Wimmera, as Hamilton was eventually bowled out for 82 inside 19 overs.

Warrnambool awaited the Hurricanes in the afternoon match at the same venue and once again, Hamilton won the toss and sent its opponent to the crease first.

A 38-run opening stand but Hamilton on the back foot, with only one batter failing to reach double figures throughout the innings.

Hamilton struggled to restrict scoring, as Warrnambool went on to post 4-158.

The Hurricanes struggled to do much damage in the run chase, as the home team slumped to 3-9 in the early stages and was unable to recover.

Walker was again the standout with bat in hand, contributing 12-not-out in the lower order, as Hamilton was bowled out for 55.

Hamilton started Thursday with a game against Geelong at Tarrington and batted first after winning the toss.

Olivia Read anchored the innings and batted through much of the innings before she was eventually dismissed for 36, while Jackson (13) and Emilie Tonissen (17-retired) helped push the Hurricanes’ total up to 3-92 after 20 overs.

The home team was unable to apply enough pressure with the ball, as Brodie Mitchell’s 30 helped set a solid foundation for Geelong at the top of the order.

Geelong eventually reached 6-114 from its allotted overs to claim the win.

The team then had a bye in round four, before taking to the field on Friday morning for a clash against Colac.

Under-14

THE Under-14 team proved to be the most successful Hamilton team during the week.

The Hurricanes started the carnival with a clash against Colac at the Hamilton Recreation Reserve.

Colac batted first after winning the toss, but lost early wickets to be 3-25 early on.

The visitors steadied to post 4-111 after 20 overs, with the wickets shared between Kelsie Hunt, Eloise Millard and Sophie Satchell.

Xarifa Christie-Hill got the Hurricanes off to a steady start in the run chase, adding 16 runs at the top of the order, while Millard (13-retired), Hunt (14-not-out) and Lucy Fraser (22-retired) helped Hamilton to 3-125 to start the campaign with a win.

Hamilton then faced Nichols Point with the Hurricanes sent to the crease to bat first.

Losing both openers without scoring put the home team on the back foot, with Ella Peters’ six the highest score among the top seven batters.

Christie-Hill did her best to get Hamilton to a competitive score, adding 16 to the tally, as the Hurricanes were bowled out for 78.

It was a smooth run chase for Nichols Point, reaching the target with ease before pushing on to 7-104 at stumps.

Millard was the star with the ball, finishing with 3-3 from her two overs.

Warrnambool was next on the schedule to start Thursday’s proceedings and once again, the Hurricanes were sent to the crease to bat first.

Hunt blasted her way to 24-retired at the top of the order, while Alicia Eats’ 28-retired helped Hamilton to a total of 3-115.

Regular wickets and tight bowling from the Hurricanes restricted Warrnambool to 4-93 at stumps.

Hunt, Millard and Madison McLean were the wicket-takers.

The afternoon game was against Ballarat and the Hurricanes won the toss and batted first.

Millard’s 12 runs at the top of the order was the standout, as Hamilton slumped to 6-49.

Bonnie Jackson (13-not-out) and Sophie Spence (11-not-out) helped push the team’s total up to 7-80 after 20 overs.

Jayda Wright impressed for Ballarat with a run-a-ball 44 at the top of the order to put her team in a strong position.

Unable to apply enough pressure in the field, Hamilton’s bowlers got put to the boundary and Ballarat raced towards the target, eventually closing its innings on 4-140.

Eats was the only multiple wicket-taker for Hamilton with two.

Hamilton faced Geelong on Friday morning to close out the carnival, narrowly missing the final on Friday afternoon.