Young goal shooter Ava Nihill stars as Mount Pleasant claims last HDFNL finals vacancy

But while the Blues prevailed in a do-or-die clash against the Cats by 25 goals, their path into next weekend's elimination final was only assured when North Bendigo fell to top-side Elmore 76-35 at Atkins Street.

Had the Bulldogs been able to do what no other team has done so far this season and beat the Bloods, they would have claimed fifth spot.

Instead, their brave tilt at a first finals appearance since 2016 came up short, with the Blues climbing ahead of the Bulldogs on percentage, to set up an intriguing elimination final showdown against Heathcote next Sunday.

The Saints, who defeated Huntly on Saturday by 21 goals, will be playing in their first A-grade finals series since 2011.

A relieved Mount Pleasant coach Carine Comer said while the Blues' fate was not in their own hands on Saturday, they had done everything in their power to show that they belonged in finals.

"I was super-proud of the girls today, they really put in a full four-quarter effort," she said.

"They came out firing. I was a little bit worried we might have been a bit flat, but we started off the game fast and hard and kept our centres.

"It's always good when you can keep your centres early to help you settle.

"I knew Jessie (opposition coach Jessie Hardess) would have them fired up and they would be pretty keen to get that final win of the season, but so were we."

The Blues, led by star young goal shooter Ava Nihill and goal keeper Ivy Harrop, were particularly dominant early, racing to a 10-goal lead at quarter time and extending the margin by nine goals in the second term.

Comer felt it was the best the Blues had combined during the second half of the season, having battled regular absences from the line-up due to players being away or injured.

"Considering we have a full team again, we really found our feet again today," she said.

"We weren't quite as strong in the second half, but we made a few changes to see what we could work with going forward. We still did very well."

A recurring theme of the Blues' season, Comer praised the performance of 16-year-old goal shooter Nihill, who was a clear best on court, and finished the match having scored 56 of the Blues' 63 goals.

"Honestly, for a 16-year-old, she just goes from strength-to-strength. I don't think she's played a poor game all year. She's been very consistent," she said.

"And that was probably almost her best (game) this year.

"She's such a pleasure to have in our side. She's always looking to improve her game and does a great job every week."

This year's elimination finals rivals have shared the honours against each other this season.

Mounts beat Heathcote by one goal in May at Toolleen, while the Saints prevailed by 11 goals over the Blues in late July.

LBU coach Jessie Hardess conceded her team had been outplayed early, but was pleased to see the Cats fight out the game, particularly in an even third quarter.

"Their shooters made a real difference. Ava Nihill has come from strength-to-strength. And their midcourt - Aish and Maeve Tupper - they're just so quick. You really have to slow them down," she said.

"We just made some silly mistakes here and there.

"I'm really happy with how the girls finished the season. It was only this game and the Leitchy game that we didn't improve on from the first half of the year.

"We improved our scores in every other game. Last week against Elmore, we doubled our score (from the first round), so it's a bit of a guide to how we have improved.

"Considering we've ended up on the bottom of the ladder, I really feel we've been very competitive all year."

Best for the Cats were defenders Tracey Ogden and Rebecca Eade, while Shannon Mills, who was up from A-reserve, showed plenty of promise in her two quarters at wing attack.

In other games, Elmore's win at North Bendigo ensured it finished the home and away season undefeated.

The Bloods won't play until the second week of finals, when they meet the winner of next week's qualifying final between White Hills and Colbinabbin.

The Demons will go into that contest full of confidence after defeating the Grasshoppers by 11 goals on Saturday.

After a tight first half at Colbinabbin, White Hills set up a winning nine-goal break by outscoring the Grasshoppers 16-10 in the third quarter.

The Demons finished full of running to stretch the margin to 54-43 in the final quarter, giving them their second win of the home and away season over their great rival.

White Hills coach Lauren Bowles declared the win as an outstanding warm up for next weekend and another exciting finals series ahead.

"We always knew it was going to be a bit of a grind, particularly the first half of netball, and that's what it really was," she said.

"It was tough contested netball. But I felt the game really opened up for us in the second half and we found a bit more space on the court.

"Our conversion rate was a lot better and we were able to get that eight or nine-goal lead going into the last quarter.

"Being able to maintain that was a real positive, as the last time we played them, we let them back into the game.

"I feel we have such amazing depth within our team, so being able to run fresh legs in different positions throughout the day really works in our favour."

The Demons' 14th win of the season was brilliantly led by midcourter Danni Wee-Hee.

Colbinabbin finished the regular season in third place, with all four of its losses coming twice against Elmore and White Hills

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