Dubbo College's Hugh Sienkiewicz shines in Astley Cup basketballer

With four minutes left on the clock at the Bathurst Indoor Stadium, Dubbo looked headed for victory as it held a 33-28 lead.

But Goldfinch helped claw Bathurst back into the contest with a three-point play. It was not his only big moment.

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With 13 seconds left Goldfinch levelled the game up from the free-throw stripe and then with only a handful of seconds left he potted another free-throw to give Bathurst a 34-33 lead.

But then came Hugh Sienkiewicz's moment.

A Bathurst foul sent him to the stripe and by the time he lined up his first shot there were 1.3 seconds left on the clock.

He missed that first shot, but under immense pressure Sienkiewicz kept his cool to land the second and force a 34-all draw.

The match continued what has been an even basketball competition this year.

Dubbo beat Orange 33-21 while Bathurst and Orange played out a 30-all draw in their tie.

Dubbo coach Jonah Armstrong lamented the fact his side had to settle for a draw after leading for much of the final quarter, he conceded it was an excellent contest.

"It was intense, I haven't been involved in a game like that for a little while. It was fun, it was exciting and even though it was a draw, I feel pretty disappointed we didn't win that," he said.

"We lost our way a little bit and nearly lost it - but the boys should hold their heads up high that they stayed composed in front of a big crowd away from home. They showed a lot fight.

"I think that was a winnable game, but this is what it's all about. At the end of the day everyone loves a close game and to be honest, even though I felt we lost our way a little bit, a draw is what it deserved in the end."

Bathurst coach Sarah Murray was surprised by another draw but said the result was a deserved one.

"Another draw, what are the chances? But look, I think it was a good finish considering we were down," Murray said.

"I think we started really well and then we slowed up a little bit towards the end of the first quarter and started of the second slow.

"But they really picked up in that last quarter defensively, our boys were pushing up and really forcing turnovers, which was fantastic."

It was a fitting way to start the final day of action in the 2022 Astley Cup competition.

While Orange High had already secured the cup after winning its ties against Bathurst High and Dubbo Senior College, the basketball highlighted there was still plenty to play for in the last chapter of the tri-school competition.

Bathurst went into day two of the tie against Dubbo a month after it had built a 56-point, 228-172 lead, over its rival on day one.

The hosts had won the girls football (2-0) and hockey (4-0), drawn the tennis (6-all) and gone down to Dubbo in the boys football (3-0).

It was Bathurst which began the contest the stronger of the rivals, zipping out to an 8-2 lead after three minutes. Max Campbell was strong on the boards early and came up with an excellent block.

But Dubbo rallied as consecutive Robbie Pollock baskets got them within two with 30 seconds of the quarter left, then Sienkiewicz scored on the buzzer to lock it up at 10-all.

It was again tall timber Sienkiewicz who put Dubbo ahead for the first time early in the second quarter, and at one stage the visitors were out by five.

But this time Bathurst rallied - a Gus McMahon three pointer helping the cause - and at half-time it was still very much game on with Dubbo up 20-17.

The third quarter saw sides trade baskets once more, but with 36 seconds of the period left a Will Burton three-pointer put Bathurst up 26-25.

In the final quarter Bathurst continued to try its luck from range, but few three-point attempts dropped. In contrast Dubbo opted to drive into the key and picked up a number of points from easy lay-ups.

Leading 31-26 with five left if looked as if Dubbo would close it out, but Bathurst found its composure and set up the thrilling finish.

The draw saw a 50-50 points split, seeing Bathurst maintain its overall 56-point advantage.

"When were settled we played well, but when we're flustered we do silly turnovers, so that was one of our focusses for the last quarter. I think when they brought the ball up and were confident, they played well," Murray said.

For Armstrong, watching on as students from both schools sang and cheered was an experience he was glad to be a part of.

"I'm from Newcastle, I've never experienced anything like this before, I've never been a part of this, but this is awesome," he said.

"I love it, I just wish I was a kid, I wish I was playing."

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