ROMELDA Aiken scored 50 points to help the Sunshine Girls rebound from their 16-point defeat to Australia with a 70-46 flogging of Samoa in their penultimate preliminary round netball fixture at the 19th Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India yesterday.

The victory puts Jamaica in pole position to claim one of two semi-final spots from pool ‘A’, as they are now the sole second-placed team — with three wins from four games — behind leaders Australia, who defeated Malawi, 74-35, for a fourth straight win.

Playing at the 4,494-seater Thyagaraj Sports Complex, Jamaica, who started with young Anna-Kay Griffiths at goal-attack and Kimone Tulloch at centre, trailed their number nine-ranked opponents by a point (15-16) at the first break.

But, spurred by a triple-substitution (Simone Forbes, Paula Thompson, and Sasha-Gaye Henry) going into the second quarter, the Girls rallied to take control of the match and led 33-26 at half-time.

They went on to win the third and fourth quarters, 21-9 and 16-11, with Jhaniele Fowler adding 13 goals from 15 attempts in the last segment. Forbes scored seven from nine.

Sepuita Langi top-scored with 36 goals from 44 attempts for Samoa, while Barbara Faasavalu added six from nine.

The Sunshine Girls will next be in action tomorrow against host India when they are expected to confirm their place in the semi-finals.

India have so far lost all of their games and are the cellar team in the group, scoring 70 goals, while conceding a staggering 272. The Sunshine Girls have netted 262 times and let in 190.

Jamaica — Romelda Aiken (GS, Jhaniele Fowler), Anna-Kay Griffiths (GA, Simone Forbes), Nadine Bryan (WA), Kimone Tulloch (C, Paula Thompson), Georgia Gordon (WD, Sasha-Gaye Henry), Althea Byfield (GK, Kasey Evering), Nicole Aiken (GD).

Samoa — Sepuita Langi (GS), Barbara Faasavalu (GA, Shirin Chang), Frances Solia (WA), Brook Williams (C), Alyce Solaese (WD, Grete Liuaana), Monique Vaai (GK, Monica Fuimaono), Italia Tipelu (GD).

Subs not used: Lee Watson, Sanonu Robertson.