The women's league continued with a full programme last weekend.

At the bottom end of the standings, Honey Athleta beat Loyola Allcare Insurance but lowly Starlites Sports Experience were never a threat for leaders Hibs Medsea. Luxol, meanwhile, kept the pressure on the leaders thanks to their victory over St Andrew's.

In a balanced match, it was Athleta who had the best finish to clinch their third victory in the championship.

Athleta settled down first but Loyola improved to share the exchanges till half-time - 22-15. An 8-1 run at the start of the third quarter saw Athleta extend their lead to 30-16 only for Loyola to hit back strongly in the closing minutes and reduce the gap to 34-24.

Loyola's recovery continued as the last ten minutes got underway. They were only a point behind, 39-38, but were unable to match Athleta's strong finish as the latter potted five successive points to secure a 44-38 win.

With captain Lucienne Bezzina back in the team after a long absence, Hibs took control right from the jumpball to open a comfortable 38-10 lead by half-time.

Starlites were never in the match and the champions rolled on for their 11th consecutive victory, 72-28.

Luxol moved back into the runners-up spot in the standings. Against St Andrew's, they never looked back after obtaining the first eight points, going on to change ends 26-11 ahead.

Despite playing without chief scorer Steffi DeMartino, Luxol increased the tempo after the interval to finish 56-34 winners.

Standings: Hibs 22 (11-0), Luxol 20 (9-2), Depiro 19 (8-3), Loyola 15 (4-7), St Andrew's 15 (4-7), Athleta 14 (3-8), Starlites 11 (0-11).

Top scorers: K. Agius (Depiro) 259, L. Sciberras (Athleta) 198, S. Pace (Depiro) 186.

Next fixtures: Friday, 19.45 Louis Borg Cup final (1st leg) Hibs vs Depiro. Sunday, second leg at 14.30.

Men's Louis Borg Cup final: Sunday 16.15 Siġġiewi vs Luxol. Second leg: March 7.