STOURPORT Ladies completed the first half of the Investec Women’s Conference West season with a 2-1 win over Olton on Saturday.

Defeat would have cut the Wyre Forest outfit adrift in the relegation zone, but a second win of the season keeps them firmly in the hunt for survival.

They now head into the mid-season break third from bottom in the table.

Stourport dominated the opening 20 minutes of the game creating numerous chances, including a converted short corner on seven minutes by Sarah Cavendish.

While the home side continued to threaten, chances went begging and Olton came back into the game when Katie Brough struck clinically from a well-worked short corner to level the scores in the 25th minute.

This brought Olton back into the game and they finished the half as the stronger team, and looking more likely to take the lead.

Five minutes into the second half, Erin Preece received a second yellow card, putting Stourport down to ten women for the rest of the game.

Playing out the remainder of the game with ten women to try and secure a draw looked Stourport’s best hope, but the team soaked up some early pressure before managing to play their way back into the game.

Despite the numerical disadvantage, they finished the game strongly and won a short corner just before the final whistle.

When Cavendish’s shot was charged down, the ball was calmly brought down by captain Katie Miller whose scuffed finish found its way through the Olton ‘keeper to secure an unlikely win for the home side.

The Seconds got the better of Birmingham University in Midlands Division Two 2-1, Liz Warne and Gill Moss on target, while the ladies’ Thirds were edged out 1-0 by Bromsgrove in their Worcestershire Division One clash.