MELBOURNE, Australia (CMC) — Carla Borrego damaged the chances of the Canterbury Tactix making a strong finish to the ANZ Championship, and then her knee in a 58-34 victory for the Adelaide Thunderbirds yesterday.

Jamaican Borrego scored 38 goals before she hobbled off the court with a medial ligament strain in her right knee in the final period of a one-sided affair at ETSA Park in Adelaide, Australia.

Borrego helped to give the T-birds the edge, as they faced a sterling challenge throughout the first half from an injury-ravaged Tactix.

Seen as something of a mismatch between two teams at opposite ends of the ladder, the Thunderbirds headed into the first break 15-12 ahead.

Despite an obvious height advantage, Borrego could not dominate Tactix goalkeeper Charlotte Knight, as the teams trade goals through most of the first stanza before a couple of untimely turnovers for the Tactix allowed the home team to edge away.

The free-flowing spectacle continued in the second period, with Borrego remaininga constant threat under the hoop for the home team, where she reigned supreme in the rebound stakes, but was pushed all the way by Knight and Victoria Smith.

A few more Tactix turnovers gave the T-birds some breathing space, and they headed into half-time with a 27-23 lead.

Borrego helped the T-birds start the third period with a noticeable lift in intensity, and this resulted in five straight goals that left the Tactix winded.

The Tactix struggled to retain possession, and Borrego was the main benefactor, as the T-birds extended their lead to 42-28 going into the last break.

The previous day, Althea Byfield, the Sunshine Girls goalkeeper, gave a typically athletic performance, but her Northern Mystics side failed to slow down Championship leaders New South Wales Swifts, who claimed a 54-48 road victory in Auckland, New Zealand.

The result has almost certainly spelt the end of the Mystics chances of making the top four, as the Swifts went on to notch their 10th straight win to keep their unblemished record this season.

The Mystics were inconsistent, and the Swifts were able to absorb the little pressure the home team exerted.

Romelda Aiken, the other Jamaican in the Championship, and her Queensland Firebirds face Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic in a road game in Rorotua, New Zealand, today.