A huge upset was recorded in the Bermuda Netball Association Senior League on Tuesday night when Storm defeated Phoenix Heat 30-25 to hand the champions their first loss in a number of years.

Heat, winners of the league from 2017 apart from when the competition was cancelled as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, have been accustomed to going the whole season unbeaten, with Erika Russell’s side previously dominating as Lady Bluebirds, winning the title from 2013 to 2016.

Selah Tuzo, the best attacker for Storm, scored 13 goals, followed by MVP Inshan-nae Smith with eight. Nabiilah Nasir contributed seven, while two points came from Elishae Smith, the most outstanding defender for the winning team.

Heat, who had Stacia Ming named MVP, got their goals from K'Xiyae Gibbons, who top scored with nine points coming from best attacker Eshé Grant. The standout defender’s award went to Chelzea Somner.

Tuzo, who is playing a full season with Storm after completing her studies at York University in Canada, is now hoping her side can maintain their position as league leaders.

“We didn't even start with our usual line-up,” Tuzo said.

“Despite that, we were still able to win, which is commendable for us. I’m hoping that come early next year after the Christmas break, we can persevere and fight for the title.“

Storm captain Debré Evans was delighted with the win, which was made all the sweeter by beating players she looked up to.

“Growing up we all looked to many players from Phoenix and their style of play, so Tuesday’s win was a full circle moment,” she said.

“It’s so refreshing to know that our training has ultimately paid off. Credit to them, they are a hard team to beat, but it just shows that we want to potentially win the league.”

Heat captain Kianté Lightbourne has backed her team to bounce back stronger following the defeat.

“It’s a tough pill to swallow and in my time at the club we have not lost a league match,’’ she said.

“I think we all were up late reflecting on the match and it’s testament to our mindset. We want to win so falling short doesn’t really sit right, but we will fix that.”

The champions are missing Danielle Raynor, the top goal shooter from last season, who is out because of a knee injury.

“We obviously missed Danielle as her presence in the circle is immense and her shooting percentage is unrivalled,” Lightbourne said.

“For any game you want to have all your players available. We didn’t take care of our possessions so we made it really hard for ourselves. We got the turnovers we needed and we got back within one, but it was just not meant to be with the final result.

“The Storm players are younger, but I don’t think that is the reason they came away with the win. What is important to us now is really integrating our youth talent into our senior squad, and we also have to use the experience within our squad to our advantage.

“We aren’t trying to make a habit of losing matches so we just have to look at what we learnt from that match and take it forward to our next one. The season has only just begun for us. We’ve only played three matches, and we still have a lot more matches to come.”

Heat face another tough assignment on Saturday against Tigers, the team they beat to the title last season.

“It’s unfortunate really as this match happened on our training day, so we don’t have the opportunity to get court time together before our next game,” Lightbourne said.

“But we know what we have to do. After Saturday we will be looking forward to the new year. We know what we need to do and that starts with taking it one match at a time.”