Double delight for Warragul Warriors

Close to 300 fans packed the Warragul Leisure Centre to see Warragul Warriors women and men take out a double header of the 2026 CBL Gippsland conference, prising the perpetual Warrior Cup from Pakenham's grip.

The home crowd lifted both sides at key moments — none more so than when the women held on in a tense final quarter.

The women downed Pakenham 64–57 and the men powered to a 78–58 win in the round one matches.

Saturday night's wins carried extra meaning, with the Warrior Cup - the perpetual trophy contested between the Warragul and Pakenham Warriors - on the line. Pakenham had held the cup for a number of years.

Women
The women set the tone for the night. Warragul edged the opening quarter 17–14 and took a 31–27 lead into half-time, but Pakenham hit back hard in the third, winning the term 23–20 to close the gap to a single point at the final change (51–50).
With the game on the line, the Warriors clamped down defensively, holding Pakenham to just seven points in the last quarter while scoring 13 of their own to close out a 64–57 win.
Perina Leime led the way with 18 points, while Keira Ingham was outstanding with 16.
Beth Quadara (10 points) and Ellie Coutts (8) provided a steady presence across all four periods, and Bec Orwin chipped in with six.
It was a genuine team effort, with eight different Warriors finding the scoresheet to overcome a 22-point night from Pakenham's Stella O'Loughlin.
Men
The men completed the double in the second game.
After a tight first quarter (21–20), Warragul won the second 17–12 to lead 38–32 at half-time, then broke the game open with a dominant third term, outscoring Pakenham 20–5 to stretch the lead to 58–37 at the final break, with Kaden Gregg pouring in seven points late in the quarter.
Pakenham strung together a 9–0 run early in the fourth, but the Warriors steadied after a timeout and finished strongly to win 78–58.
Ben Gaze led from the front with 23 points, including back-to-back threes to open the final quarter. Jordan Gooiker added 15 points (three from long range), Jack Dawson was strong around the basket for 14, and Gregg finished with 9. Olliver Muir contributed seven points, while Riley Morehu added four as nine Warriors scored.
Both sides head on the road for round three to take on the Moe Meteors on Sunday, October 18 at Latrobe Leisure Moe Newborough, with the women tipping off at noon and the men at 2pm.
The Warriors return to the Warragul Leisure Centre on Saturday, November 7 for their next home double-header — the women take on the Korumburra Wildcats at 5:30pm, followed by the men against the Sale Sonics at 7:30pm.