State House stand out in Westlands

Pangani Girls' Esther Ngendo challenges Brigid Kilonzo (left) of County Girls during Westlands sub-county Secondary Schools Sports at Jamhuri High School on Saturday March 2, 2019. [Jonah Onyango, Standard]

State House are Westlands sub-county secondary schools girls’ basketball and hockey champions. 

They dethroned arch-rivals Parklands Arya after triumphing in the games that ended yesterday at Nairobi School. Their basketball win was not a walk in the court, as Arya, last year’s winners, stretched them to extra time after playing to a level score of 52 in regular time. 

It was sweet revenge for State House who came close to winning the title last year, but lost to Parklands in the final. They made their intentions known from the onset, taking the first quarter 10-6.

They inched closer to victory in the second quarter, dominating it to take a comfortable 29-19 lead at half-time.

Arya looked determined after the break, taking the third quarter 11-7. They proved stronger in the final period, scoring an impressive 22 points against the opponents’ 16 for a 52-52 tie to set the stage for extra time. State House regained their footing to take charge in extra time as Arya struggled to contain them. Accurate passes and quick effective decisions earned them a 69-57 win following a 17-7 extra time score. 

Nairobi School retained their boys basketball title with a resounding 51-23 win over former champions Strathmore School.

In hockey, State House wrestled the crown from Arya on an unbeaten run. Playing in the round robin format, State House topped the standings with 20 points from six wins and two draws. Arya finished second with 15 points from four wins, three draws and a loss. Kianda School, Loreto Convent Msongari and St Georges finished third, fourth and fifth respectively. In the boys’ contest, Nairobi School and Hospital Hill will represent Westlands in the regional games. 

In Starehe, Dr Ribeiro Parklands won the boys’ hockey and handball titles after beating Starehe Boys Centre in the finals.

They registered a 1-0 and 26-14 victories in hockey and handball finals respectively.

Starehe and Ngara won the boys and girls basketball titles. Starehe beat their hosts Jamhuri 34-17.