# 2018–19 Melbourne Stars WBBL season

The 2018–19 Melbourne Stars Women's season was the fourth in the team's history. Coached by David Hemp and captained by Kristen Beams, they finished seventh in the regular season of WBBL|04 and failed to qualify for the finals.

## Squad

Each 2018–19 squad featured 15 active players, with an allowance of up to five marquee signings including a maximum of three from overseas. Under a new rule, Australian marquees were classed as players who held a national women's team contract at the time of signing on for their WBBL|04 team.
Personnel changes included:
* Holly Ferling joined the Stars, having spent three seasons with the Brisbane Heat where she was the first-ever player signing.
* After winning two championships as a member of the Sydney Sixers, Angela Reakes made a move interstate to sign with Melbourne.
* Nicola Hancock joined the Stars, having played previous seasons with the Hobart Hurricanes and the Melbourne Renegades.
* Hayleigh Brennan departed the team and subsequently signed with the Perth Scorchers.
* In August 2018, Emma Kearney confirmed her decision to quit cricket and instead focus on her AFL Women's career.
* In September 2018, Gemma Triscari announced her retirement from the WBBL.
* New Zealand player Katey Martin replaced England marquee Georgia Elwiss, who was unable late in the season due to national team commitments, for two matches.
The table below lists the Stars players and their key stats (including runs scored, batting strike rate, wickets taken, economy rate, catches and stumpings) for the season.
| No. | Name | Birth date | Batting style | Bowling style | G | R | SR | W | E | C | S | Notes |
| Batters ||||||||||||||
| 00 | Mignon du Preez | 13 June 1989 | Right-handed | – | 14 | 266 | 109.46 | – | – | 3 | – | Overseas marquee |
| 34 | Georgia Elwiss | 31 May 1991 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 12 | 129 | 96.26 | 3 | 7.97 | 4 | – | Overseas marquee |
| 2 | Katie Mack | 14 September 1993 | Right-handed | Right-arm leg spin | 11 | 90 | 79.64 | – | – | 3 | – | |
| 21 | Katey Martin | 7 February 1985 | Right-handed | – | 2 | 17 | 54.83 | – | – | 0 | – | Overseas marquee (replacement) |
| 8 | Angela Reakes | 27 December 1990 | Right-handed | Right-arm leg spin | 14 | 221 | 100.45 | 0 | 18.00 | 3 | – | |
| All-rounders ||||||||||||||
| 15 | Makinley Blows | 12 December 1997 | Left-handed | Right-arm medium | 3 | 4 | 80.00 | 0 | 14.66 | 0 | – | |
| 14 | Elly Donald | 17 September 1997 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| 76 | Erin Osborne | 27 June 1989 | Right-handed | Right-arm off spin | 14 | 249 | 103.31 | 9 | 6.39 | 3 | – | |
| 3 | Annabel Sutherland | 12 October 2001 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium fast | 14 | 123 | 93.89 | 7 | 6.80 | 4 | – | |
| Wicket-keepers ||||||||||||||
| 4 | Nicole Faltum | 17 January 2000 | Right-handed | – | 8 | 14 | 87.50 | – | – | 4 | 3 | |
| 67 | Lizelle Lee | 2 April 1992 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 14 | 276 | 136.63 | – | – | 4 | 0 | Overseas marquee |
| Bowlers ||||||||||||||
| 26 | Kristen Beams | 6 November 1984 | Right-handed | Right-arm leg spin | 6 | 2 | 66.66 | 6 | 7.09 | 2 | – | Captain, Australian marquee |
| 9 | Holly Ferling | 22 December 1995 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium fast | 14 | 20 | 125.00 | 11 | 7.90 | 1 | – | |
| 44 | Nicola Hancock | 8 November 1995 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium fast | 14 | 37 | 90.24 | 13 | 8.09 | 3 | – | |
| 13 | Alana King | 22 November 1995 | Right-handed | Right-arm leg spin | 14 | 78 | 88.63 | 15 | 6.74 | 8 | – | |
| 7 | Chloe Rafferty | 16 June 1999 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium fast | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |

## Ladder

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR |
| 1 | Sydney Sixers (RU) | 14 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 20 | 0.509 |
| 2 | Sydney Thunder | 14 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 19 | 0.479 |
| 3 | Brisbane Heat (C) | 14 | 9 | 5 | 0 | 18 | 1.118 |
| 4 | Melbourne Renegades | 14 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 15 | −0.079 |
| 5 | Perth Scorchers | 14 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 | −0.476 |
| 6 | Adelaide Strikers | 14 | 5 | 8 | 1 | 11 | −0.336 |
| 7 | Melbourne Stars | 14 | 5 | 8 | 1 | 11 | −0.905 |
| 8 | Hobart Hurricanes | 14 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 4 | −0.364 |
* The four top ranked teams qualified for the semi finals

## Fixtures

All times are local time
* Match 2 1 December 2018 13:50 Scorecard
| Sydney Sixers 7/165 (20 overs) | v | Melbourne Stars 3/166 (17.2 overs) |
| Alyssa Healy 70 (47) Nicola Hancock 4/22 (4 overs) | | Lizelle Lee 102 (56) Dane van Niekerk 1/22 (3 overs) |
* Melbourne Stars won by 7 wickets (with 16 balls remaining) CitiPower Centre, St Kilda Umpires: Mattis van Eck and Michael Graham-Smith Player of the match: Lizelle Lee (Melbourne Stars)
* Sydney Sixers won the toss and elected to bat
* Broadcast by Seven Network and Fox Cricket
* Match 6 8 December 2018 14:00 Scorecard
| Hobart Hurricanes 6/158 (20.0 overs) | v | Melbourne Stars 5/159 (19.5 overs) |
| Heather Knight 82* (55) Annabel Sutherland 2/30 (4 overs) | | Erin Osborne 67 (46) Hayley Matthews 2/23 (4 overs) |
* Melbourne Stars won by 5 wickets (with 1 ball remaining) West Park Oval, Burnie Umpires: Darren Close and Jeremiah Matibiri Player of the match: Erin Osborne (Melbourne Stars)
* Melbourne Stars won the toss and elected to field
* Match 10 9 December 2018 10:30 Scorecard
| Hobart Hurricanes 6/196 (20 overs) | v | Melbourne Stars 124 (16.5 overs) |
| Smriti Mandhana 69 (41) Alana King 2/22 (3 overs) | | Angela Reakes 31 (24) Heather Knight 3/10 (3 overs) |
* Hobart Hurricanes won by 72 runs West Park, Burnie Umpires: Darren Close and Jeremiah Matibiri Player of the match: Smriti Mandhana (Hobart Hurricanes)
* Hobart Hurricanes won the toss and elected to bat
* Match 13 15 December 2018 10:00 Scorecard
| Melbourne Stars 9/124 (20 overs) | v | Perth Scorchers 2/125 (19 overs) |
| Georgia Elwiss 26 (24) Emma King 2/12 (3 overs) | | Elyse Villani 52* (49) Erin Osborne 1/19 (4 overs) |
* Perth Scorchers won by 8 wickets (with 6 balls remaining) Casey Fields, Melbourne Umpires: Dale Ireland and Mattis van Eck Player of the match: Heather Graham (Perth Scorchers)
* Perth Scorchers won the toss and elected to field
* Match 16 16 December 2018 10:00 Scorecard
| Perth Scorchers 7/90 (20 overs) | v | Melbourne Stars 6/91 (15.3 overs) |
| Nicole Bolton 36 (44) Kristen Beams 3/13 (3 overs) | | Katie Mack 33 (31) Hayley Jensen 2/16 (3 overs) |
* Melbourne Stars won by 4 wickets (with 27 balls remaining) Casey Fields, Melbourne Umpires: Dale Ireland and Mattis van Eck Player of the match: Katie Mack (Melbourne Stars)
* Melbourne Stars won the toss and elected to field
* Match 21 19 December 2018 13:45 Scorecard
| Melbourne Stars 7/132 (20 overs) | v | Brisbane Heat 0/138 (10.5 overs) |
| Angela Reakes 30 (30) Jess Jonassen 3/17 (4 overs) | | Grace Harris 101* (42) Georgia Elwiss 0/8 (1 over) |
* Brisbane Heat won by 10 wickets (with 55 balls remaining) The Gabba, Brisbane Umpires: Steven Farrell and Stephen Dionysius Player of the match: Grace Harris (Brisbane Heat)
* Melbourne Stars won the toss and elected to bat
* Match 23 21 December 2018 16:00 Scorecard
| Adelaide Strikers 7/144 (20 overs) | v | Melbourne Stars 6/145 (19.3 overs) |
| Sophie Devine 46 (36) Erin Osborne 2/16 (4 overs) | | Erin Osborne 54* (45) Danielle Hazell 2/27 (2.3 overs) |
* Melbourne Stars won by 4 wickets (with 3 balls remaining) Karen Rolton Oval, Adelaide Umpires: Harry Singh and Eloise Sheridan Player of the match: Erin Osborne (Melbourne Stars)
* Melbourne Stars won the toss and elected to field
* Match 26 23 December 13:20 Scorecard
| Adelaide Strikers 3/172 (20 overs) | v | Melbourne Stars 9/153 (20 overs) |
| Sophie Devine 95 (60) Annabel Sutherland 1/17 (3 overs) | | Mignon du Preez 33 (27) Sophie Devine 5/41 (4 overs) |
* Adelaide Strikers won by 19 runs Adelaide Oval, Adelaide Umpires: Claire Polosak and Eloise Sheridan Player of the match: Sophie Devine (Adelaide Strikers)
* Melbourne Stars won the toss and elected to field
* Broadcast by Seven Network and Fox Cricket
* Match 34 29 December 14:50 Scorecard
| Melbourne Stars 130 (19.5 overs) | v | Melbourne Renegades 9/131 (19.5 overs) |
| Lizelle Lee 36 (26) Amy Satterthwaite 3/16 (3 overs) | | Amy Satterthwaite 37 (33) Holly Ferling 2/14 (3 overs) |
* Melbourne Renegades won by 1 wicket (with 1 ball remaining) Marvel Stadium, Melbourne Umpires: Daryl Brigham and Mattis van Eck Player of the match: Amy Satterthwaite (Melbourne Renegades)
* Melbourne Renegades won the toss and elected to field
The Melbourne Renegades recorded the second one-wicket victory in the league's history when Lea Tahuhu, a fast bowler not known for her batting ability, hit the winning single off leg-spinning Stars captain Kristen Beams with just one ball to spare. Courtney Webb, on 21 not out, was the set batter at the non-striker's end.
* Match 39 1 January 14:50 Scorecard
| Melbourne Renegades 5/149 (20 overs) | v | Melbourne Stars 7/101 (20 overs) |
| Sophie Molineux 78* (54) Holly Ferling 2/30 (4 overs) | | Georgia Elwiss 22 (25) Molly Strano 3/25 (4 overs) |
* Melbourne Renegades won by 48 runs Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne Attendance:11,136 Umpires: Greg Azzopardi and Daryl Brigham Player of the match: Sophie Molineux (Melbourne Renegades)
* Melbourne Stars won the toss and elected to field
* Played as a double-header before a men's BBL match
* Match 42 5 January 14:00 Scorecard
| Sydney Thunder 3/92 (9.2 overs) | v | Melbourne Stars |
| Harmanpreet Kaur 21* (16) Holly Ferling 2/25 (3 overs) | | |
* No result Blacktown International Sportspark, Sydney Umpires: T Penman and Marc Nickl
* Sydney Thunder won the toss and elected to bat
* Match abandoned due to rain
* Match 45 6 January 14:00 Scorecard
| Sydney Thunder 6/122 (20 overs) | v | Melbourne Stars 9/117 (20 overs) |
| Nicola Carey 39* (32) Annabel Sutherland 2/17 (4 overs) | | Angela Reakes 33 (38) Maisy Gibson 3/22 (4 overs) |
* Sydney Thunder won by 5 runs Bankstown Oval, Sydney Umpires: T Penman and Roberto Howard Player of the match: Nicola Carey (Sydney Thunder)
* Melbourne Stars won the toss and elected to field
* Match 50 10 January 12:50 Scorecard
| Melbourne Stars 88 (19.5 overs) | v | Brisbane Heat 3/91 (8.4 overs) |
| Mignon du Preez 27 (35) Delissa Kimmince 4/18 (3.5 overs) | | Jess Jonassen 34* (14) Annabel Sutherland 1/23 (3 overs) |
* Brisbane Heat won by 7 wickets (with 68 balls remaining) The Gabba, Brisbane Umpires: David Taylor and Claire Polosak Player of the match: Sammy-Jo Johnson (Brisbane Heat)
* Brisbane Heat won the toss and elected to field
* Broadcast by Seven Network and Fox Cricket
* Match 56 14 January 14:50 Scorecard
| Sydney Sixers 92 (19 overs) | v | Melbourne Stars 5/96 (16.4 overs) |
| Alyssa Healy 35 (21) Kristen Beams 3/11 (3 overs) | | Erin Osborne 34* (29) Marizanne Kapp 2/9 (4 overs) |
* Melbourne Stars won by 5 wickets (with 20 balls remaining) Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne Umpires: Daryl Brigham and Donovan Koch Player of the match: Alana King (Melbourne Stars)
* Sydney Sixers won the toss and elected to bat
* Broadcast by Seven Network and Fox Cricket

## Statistics and awards

* Most runs: Lizelle Lee – 276 (equal 19th in the league)
* Highest score in an innings: Lizelle Lee – 102* (56) vs Sydney Sixers, 1 December 2018
* Most wickets: Alana King – 15 (equal 10th in the league)
* Best bowling figures in an innings: Nicola Hancock – 4/22 (4 overs) vs Sydney Sixers, 1 December 2018
* Most catches (fielder): Alana King – 8 (equal 5th in the league)
* Player of the Match awards:
** Erin Osborne – 2
** Alana King, Lizelle Lee, Katie Mack – 1 each
* Stars Player of the Season: Alana King