Lixnaw's U17s managed the windy conditons well in the first half of last evenings County Championship quarter-final clash with Ballyheigue to take a healthy 5-11 to 0-5 lead at the break. Playing with pace and energy, Lixnaw opened with a fine series of points from distance before 3-pointers from Michéal Heaphy and Matthew O'Flaherty helped created a sizable gap between the teams. The visitors continued to exert pressure, force turnovers and drive forward but Ballyheigue threatened at times also and a couple of goalline saves were needed to to keep the home team goalless at half-time.

Ballyheigue opened the second half brightly and a scramble in the Lixnaw square saw the seasiders snatch a valuable goal back. Lixnaw bounced back quickly however and Darragh O'Sullivan, capped off a fine evening with his second goal of the game to steady the ship. Both sides battled well in what was a sporting contest throughout with second-half honours largely even before a series of late points for Ballyheigue showed what they were capable of. 

Lixnaw's performance overall was very encouraging. There was plenty of skill on show, with Mark McElligott, Ivan Conway and Gavin O'Keeffe showing well but the continuous effort of the entire team was the most pleasing aspect. A number of whom played through injury and illness and showed their mettle. 

Both sides were missing key players on the night and certainly the scoreboard presents a picture which is unreflective of the competitive rivalry that exists between the two teams. Lixnaw now move on to the County Championship semi-final in a couple of weeks. Tralee Parnells are also through after their quarter-final win against St. Brendans. Kenmare/Kilgarvan came through their preliminary round against Kilmoyley also last evening but there are still a few outstanding fixtures before the other two semi-finalists are known.