Durham’s U13 girls have had an exceptional season so far, with six wins in eight games, displaying strength in all facets of the game.
In their most significant victory to date, the team defeated Cumbria’s U13 Girls on 11th July by bowling them out in the chase and winning by 145 runs.
The game’s highest scorer – captain Kate Million retired for the outstanding 65 at Appleby Eden Cricket Club and leads the team’s batting average with 137 runs. In another notable performance, Million opened the batting for unbeaten 47 at Barnard Castle Cricket Club.
Olivia Power, who has the most wickets on the squad (9), also had her finest game with bowling of 4/9 against Cumbria.
In another outstanding effort, the squad defeated Northumberland’s U13 Girls by 102 runs. Durham’s excellent total of 180/8 was spearheaded by Erin Ward, who batted at number 10 and was unbeaten for a score of 44. Powerful bowling attack was able to eliminate the entire opposition for only 78 runs. In just three overs, Ella Jackson demonstrated how well she commanded the bowling by taking three wickets for just two runs at the start of the innings at Eppleton Cricket Club.
A notable bowling performance by Sophie White was her hattrick at Barnard Castle against Cumbria. White took three consecutive wickets in the 17th over in contribution towards a 46-run victory.
Head Coach Layla Tipton said: “The girls are having an excellent season and I’m very proud of their performances.
“It has been great to see them apply some of the skills they’ve been working on and dominate the game through their strengths. It’s fantastic how the girls have bonded on and off the field and I’m looking forward to the rest of the season and our festival in Malvern that is coming up.”
Head of Female Talent Pathway Rachel Hopkins said: “I am so pleased with how Layla and the U13s have started their season. The girls had a long winter of hard work, so it is great to see them put things into practice and be rewarded with the results that they deserve.
“The development of the squad is improving immensely as the season goes on and this is only going to help our pathway strengthen in depth as we move forward with a fantastic group of female cricketers.’’
The team now looks ahead to take on Yorkshire and Lancashire in the next couple of weeks before taking part at a festival at Malvern College.