Garlick overcomes injury and slow start to shoot Orange High to victory

But a 1-0 lead on Friday morning was as close as they came with the Hornets shooting the lights out at the PCYC.

With blisters on her hands following the long-weekend's state titles in Sydney, Georgia Garlick struggled to find her flow in the first quarter.

Thankfully for Orange High, Ellen Dolbel was picking up the slack with some patented up-and-unders.

But the break seemed to do Garlick wonders as the goal shooter came out on fire in the second quarter. The home side built a huge 38-15 on the back of this to lead by 23 at half-time.

"It was hard to shoot the ball, but I just had to get into a rhythm," she added.

There was no miracle comeback for the Bathurst outfit as the Hornets ran out comfortable 79-27 winners.

Garlick was pleased their preparation paid off.

"Our other Orange High team had a game against Bathurst so we saw how they played and how they worked," she said.

"The girls were a bit nervous for the tallness and the contact, but overall we went pretty good."

While the shooters can give themselves a well-deserved pat on the back for their performance, Lyla Callaway was the understated heartbeat of the Orange outfit.

The centre continuously managed to find herself in the right spot at the right time in both attack and defence.

"It's really good because last year we were pretty close to (Bathurst) but this time we got a good win over them," she said of the lop-sided score-line compared to the tie the two schools played out in 2023.

"There was a little bit (of worry) coming into the match, but we stuck through and kept going."

This was the year nine student's second taste of the Astley Cup.

She was excited to once again be taking part on the court.

"The atmosphere is really good when the whole school is cheering. It does get a bit scary out there but you just keep going," Callaway added.

"I'm very proud of everyone."