Australia defeated Great Britain 50-48 in the bronze medal match, avenging a loss in the opening group stage match.
The match had been hard fought throughout, with the two nations finishing level in each of the first three quarters.
It was a pair of Great Britan turnovers early in the fourth that defined the match, allowing Australia to sneak ahead by two.
It held the lead throughout the quarter as the side’s offences held up for most of the period.
A desperate Great Britain failed to score again late in the quarter and it was enough for Australia to hold on for bronze.
The result was a sweet one for the reigning world champion Steelers, who missed out on a medal at the Tokyo Games.
Earlier in the tournament, Australia had progressed through its group B fixtures with two wins and one loss, opening its campaign with a 55-58 loss to Great Britain, before earning wins over host France, 55-53, and Denmark, 53-49.
The Steelers found themselves in a semi-final tie with Japan, who had topped group A undefeated.
Australia earned a crucial break of possession after Japan’s Katsuya Hashimoto couldn’t progress out of the backcourt in time.
It was an advantage the Australians held until the final four minutes of the game, when the Japanese forced a turnover of their own, putting the game back on level terms.
The teams traded tries in the dying minutes, but the Steelers had the chance to seal the game in the final seconds, calling a timeout with the scores level and 14 seconds on the clock.
Unfortunately for Australia, Japan managed a crucial steal coming out of the timeout, forcing a three-minute overtime.
The sides continued to execute offensively in overtime but it was the Australians who blinked first, giving up a turnover with 59 seconds on the clock, allowing Japan to jump ahead and hold on for a 52-51 victory.
In wheelchair rugby, players are graded into seven classes from 0.5 to 3.5, with lower numbers indicating a player possesses less functional mobility.
Teams are capped at 8.0 points across the four players on the court, with each female player increasing the cap by 0.5.
McQuillan, a 0.5 rated player, is part of Australia’s most used line-up for the tournament, alongside Beau Vernon (0.5), Ryley Batt (3.5) and Chris Bond (3.5).
This foursome was the Steelers’ go-to line-up in four of the five games at the Paralympics including the semi-final and final.
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