The Gators travelled out to the eastern suburbs to play at Mullum Mullum Stadium against the Vikings, and both men and women’s sides were put to the sword early.
While the men’s Gators didn’t necessarily shoot poorly, the Vikings nabbed seven offensive rebounds in the opening term and hence recorded more shots at the rim, resulting in a 25 to 15 quarter-time deficit despite Shepparton shooting above 50 per cent from the field.
It was a story of what was to come, as an outsized Gators unit felt the brunt of being muscled under the basket.
The Vikings soldiered on in the second term, nailing shots from beyond the arc consistently as the Gators struggled to reply with their own, the lead increasing to 26 at the main break.
Taine Wattie was admirable as the Gators came out of the half with added energy and tenacity, restricting the Vikings to 17 points in the third term, while its deficit only increased by five.
The Gators played out the last term with continual effort, losing the period by four, resulting in a 94 to 59 win for Blackburn - but just a nine-point extension of the lead in the second half.
Wattie finished with 23 points, 11 rebounds and five assists in the loss, but it was a tough day for all other Gators on offence, Wattie leading the Gators in all three aforementioned categories.
For the women’s match-up, the result was no easier on the eyes, losing in similar fashion.
The Gators trailed 25 to 16 at quarter time, just one point off the men’s scoreline at that time, before a Vikings second term all but ended the contest as well, with the women in orange scoring 31 points to 10.
A valiant post-halftime response was seen by the women’s Gators in the third too, restricting Blackburn to 18 points and only losing the quarter by five, before the Vikings sealed the deal in the last to win 90-43.
The Gators will hold a home double header at Shepparton Sports Stadium this Saturday against Mornington in the women’s and against Altona in the men’s, with tip-offs at 1pm and 3pm respectively.
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