Wasps Netball secured their first win of the new Vitality Netball Superleague season with a hard-fought 57-53 victory over Saracens Mavericks at Ricoh Arena.
It was a high-intensity match-up between two ambitious sides. In front of just under a thousand fans, the Black and Golds pulled away in the second quarter and maintained that margin throughout the second half.
The victory for the two-time Superleague champions completed an enthralling Round Two which also saw London Pulse edge-out Surrey Storm in a compelling match on Monday night live on Sky Sports.
Wasps started the quicker of the two and created an early three-goal lead, with the new shooting partnership of Rachel Dunn and Lexi Baker showing their skills.
The visitors came straight back with three unanswered goals though, as former Wasp George Fisher proved to be clinical at the other end.
As the first quarter went on, the Black and Golds started to win the mid-court battle with the trio of Amy Flanagan, Jade Clarke and Iona Christian forcing turnovers and the first 15 minutes came to a close with Wasps holding a 14-12 lead.
Mavericks opened the second with three quickfire goals as Wasps' work in their attack-end stuttered slightly. However, the home side came back into it again through the productivity of Baker and Dunn.
Through their hard work, Hannah Knights and Fran Williams continued to shut down Mavericks in attack and the home side led by six [31-25] at half-time.
Within two minutes of the restart, Mavericks were back level and then edged a goal ahead before Mansfield introduced Katie Harris at GA and moved Baker to WA.
Harris changed the picture and missed just one shot during her time on court. Together with the experiened Dunn, she made sure that Flanagan's work on the back foot was rewarded.
At WD, Flanagan blocked off key channels, gained interceptions and was instrumental in Wasps holding a 43-39 advantage going into the final 15 minutes.
The home side pressed on in the fourth quarter, boosted by further clinical shooting, and maintained their hold to secure a valuable first victory of the new season.
"This was a really important win for us tonight," head coach Mel Mansfield said.
"It was about how the team were feeling at this stage in the season and it will be a big boost.
"I was pleased with our start after our poor start last week and we were able to keep the pressure on after half-time.
"It's only game two of a long season and we know we have plenty to improve on. Lexi Baker had an exceptional game at GA but we needed something different in the second-half and Katie Harris is so reliable for us."
Up Next - Wasps have a quick turnaround as they travel to Team Bath Arena to take on Anna Stembridge's outfit on Friday night. For Saracens Mavericks, it's a second meeting in three rounds with Severn Stars on Saturday.
Coverage of the Vitality Netball Superleague season continues with Round Three on Monday, March 9 when London Pulse entertain Celtic Dragons. Join us on Sky Sports Arena, Mix and YouTube from 6.45pm.