Eight straight wins helps Crystal Blues hold a firm grip of top spot of women’s A-grade competition

Crystal Blues are virtually guaranteed to finish on top of the Albany Basketball Association’s women’s A-grade standings after their round 13 victory on Tuesday night.

After winning against second-placed Valkyries, Crystal Blues sit six points clear and a hold a commanding advantage in percentage with just three rounds to play.

A powerful second half guided Crystal Blues to their eighth straight win.

After trailing by six points at half-time, Crystal Blues outscored their opponents by 14 points in the second half to run out eight-point victors.

Crystal Blues quickly trimmed the margin back to a single point early in the second period but Valkyries responded to skip away by eight points again.

However, with seven minutes to play scores were level and Crystal Blues finished full of running to score the last nine points and seal the 46-38 victory.

Isabella De Giambattista and Casey Griffiths caught fire in the second half for the ladder leaders, combining for 26 of their side’s 34 second-half points.

De Giambattista finished the game with 17 points continuing her hot form while Griffiths added 13, all of which came in the second half.

Brodie Dixon hit three long bombs on her way to 11 points and Tay Weeden also knocked down 11 for Valkyries.

Sonics kept their slim top-two chances alive on Tuesday night with a dominant second half against Raiders under-18s.

Sonics trailed by 11 at half-time but outscored their opponents by 16 points in the final 25 minutes to chalk up a 48-43 win.

Alyssa Ward and Casey Gabriel both were influential in the win with 14 points each while guard Jorja Ward led the way for Raiders with 12.