St Lucia top U-16 netball

BASSETERRE, St Kitts (CMC):

St Lucia were crowned champions of the 2011 Jean Pierre Under-16 Championship on Friday night when they crushed Dominica in their final game on an intriguing last day of competition.

Entering the contest level with Barbados in the points standings, St Lucia erased any doubt surrounding where the title would head as they carved out an emphatic 51-8 victory in the opening match of the evening session at the Pam Tyson Complex.

Barbados, meanwhile, were sent tumbling by Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) 31-30 in the night's feature encounter, and were forced to settle for second.

St Lucia finished on 36 points from a 7-1 record while Barbados were four points behind with a 6-2 record. T&T ended third on 28 points with St Vincent and the Grenadines fourth on 13 points and Dominica last on two points.

Goal shoot Ianna Hippolyte, named the tournament's best shooter with a percentage of 71.97 per cent, led St Lucia with 31 goals from 40 attempts while goal attack Jo-Ann Anderson supported with 20 from 30.

For Dominica, Sara Baptiste converted five of her 11 attempts.

Possessing an inferior goal average to Barbados, St Lucia ensured from the outset they would score heavily, darting to an early 13-2 lead at the end of the first quarter before strolling to a 26-6 advantage at the half-time whistle.

They then amazingly kept Dominica barren for the duration of the third quarter while pouring in 13 goals, and outscored them 12-2 in the final quarter to execute down the stretch.

Knowing what was required in their nightcap clash, Barbados trailed 4-7 at the end of the first quarter and were even further behind, 10-17 at half-time.