BEARS Lagoon Serpentine’s bid to make the A Grade netball finals is all but over.
A narrow defeat to unbeaten Mitiamo has the Bears two games behind Marong and with an inferior percentage with just two rounds left to play.
Serp’s battle with the Superoos was a tight affair until Miti surged, scoring 14 goals to seven in the third quarter to set up a 45-35 win.
The Bears have games against fourth-placed Newbridge, and Calivil, in seventh spot on the ladder, to come.
They will need to win by huge margins to bridge the percentage gap to Marong, while the Panthers need just one victory to ensure their finals appearance.
However, they face Mitiamo this week and then Newbridge to round out the season.
Winless Inglewood began well against Calivil on a slippery home court but couldn’t sustain the pressure after quarter-time.
The Woodies were just three goals behind at the first break, but the Demons scored 13 goals to four in the second quarter to establish a solid lead.
They pressed home their advantage in the second half with 30 goals to 13.
The win pushed Calivil ahead of Maiden Gully into seventh place on the ladder.
Next Saturday is Inglewood’s last chance to win a game this season when the Woodies play second-last Maiden Gully before a final-round bye.
A tight first quarter turned into a rout when Bridgewater took on Newbridge.
The Mean Machine turned a two-goal lead into a 19-goal margin at half-time and coasted home 62-38 to overtake the Maroons in third place in the battle for the double chance in the finals.
Bridgewater has the bye this week before taking on Mitiamo in the final round, so Newbridge can grab third spot on the ladder if it can overcome Bears Lagoon Serpentine and Marong in the next two weeks.
Marong was untroubled in a 40-goal win over Maiden Gully that saw the Panthers shore up fifth place.
They held a comfortable lead all day against the Eagles before showing their skill with19 goals to four in the final quarter.
The Panthers face a tough task at home against top side Mitiamo this week before finishing the home and away season with a trip to play fourth-placed Newbridge.