Huijsdens prominent as Ireland open with a win

There was a major boost for basketball when Ireland claimed a big scalp with a 63-53 opening day victory at the FIBA U-20 Women’s European Championship in Kosovo yesterday winning by 63-53 against Ukraine.

Dunshaughlin woman Rachel Huijsdens, who was Meath's 2017 young sportsperson-of-the-year, made a big contribution as Ireland got off to a winning start. 

Mayo woman Dayna Finn was one of the many standouts for the squad on the day, leading her team home with a 20-point game along with seven rebounds and four assists. 

There were other solid performances around the court with Claire Melia putting in a big first half in particular, finishing out with a big double double of 16 points, 12 rebounds and three assists.

Sorcha Tiernan and Rachel Huijsdens chimed in with a combined 17 points in a phenomenal opening day win for the women in green.
 “It’s a great start for us, we needed to get a win today to ensure we gave ourselves the best chance of coming out of the group," commented head coach Martin Conroy. 

Ireland - Alison Blaney (3), Amy Dooley, Amy Murphy, Annaliese Murphy, Claire Melia (16), Dayna Finn (20), 
Enya Maguire, Louise Scannell (3), Maeve Phelan (4), Rachel Huijsdens (8), Sorcha Tiernan (9).

RESULT
GROUP GAME 1
Ireland 63, Ukraine 53.

NEXT UP
Sunday - Ireland v Great Britain, 6pm Irish time.