And they have finals MVP Abigale Philpott to thank for it.

Philpott was immense in the big games for the Eagles, helping the Orange Basketball Association representative outfit tough it out against Illawarra in a brutal semi-final before starring again in the grand final, this time against Gosford.

While her side battled to get the ball through the basket, it meant the Eagles side had to lock it down on the defensive end of the court.

They did just that, Dederer said, defying their offensive issues to defeat Illawarra in a low-scoring affair 23-20 before rocketing to a 36-13 win in the final.

“Abigale Philpott was phenomenal for us in the semi-final,” Dederer said, the tournament held at Gywnneville’s Snake Pit complex.

“Blocked shot after blocked shot after blocked shot, she kept us in it at the defensive end during a tough semi-final against Illawarra and really did a good job spoiling things for them.

“And then she was virtually the only one of the girls who managed to shoot too. She was a deserved finals MVP for us.”

Dederer said her side played smart basketball – and defended the house down as a result.

They conceded just the one free throw in the second quarter of the final against Gosford.

“That’s what won us the game. We just built and built from that point on,” Dederer added.

“We put the pressure on defensively and adopted a full court, man-to-man defence and it really limited Illawarra.

“So we adopted the same style of defence against Gosford too and it worked. We just had to be as disruptive as we possibly could.”

Orange began its campaign well, knocking off eventual finalists Gosford 48-32 in game one before emerging big winners over Maitland, 43-18, in game two.

“After the first day, I thought we were a fair chance at doing really well,” Dederer said.

Then on a massive day two the Eagles girls hung on to beat Mossvale 42-41, defeated Sutherland 43-34 before losing to Illawarra by 10.

It was Orange’s only loss of the round stages.

“We played three games on the second day and physically and mentally the girls were just exhausted,” she said.

Alonside Philpott, Orange’s successful side was made up of Zora Hines, Amelia Holmes, Annalise Maier, Grace McRae, Sharone Moore, Brooke Parish and Willow Smith.

“But they’re a really talented group. We were luck to coach them,” Dederer added.

All of Orange’s sides made semi-finals, with under 12 girls losing to Bathurst, the under 14 girls going down to Illawarra, the under 18s girls losing to Maitland and the under 18s boys suffering a tough loss to Gosford.