Instead of going into this weekend's bye on the back of a win, the Southerners have to settle for a 1-2 record three weeks into the competition.
In a match in which the Challenge Trophy, the competition's version of the Ranfurly Shield, was at stake, the Steel was right in it until the final six minutes.
The key moment came when the Steel was 57-55 down, with seven minutes left on the clock.
Steel goal attack Te Paea Selby-Rickit missed a chance to pull to within one goal, but it appeared Fever defender April Letton knocked the ball out of bounds.
However, umpire Josh Bowring ruled it Fever ball and the home side went on a 4-0 run to win its third straight game to start the season, a franchise first.
Much like the season-opening loss to the New South Wales Swifts in Invercargill a fortnight ago, the Steel was guilty of not capitalising on hard-earned turnovers.
Despite Steel defender Storm Purvis having another fine game in the goal keep bib, snaffling six of her side's 12 intercepts and adding a pass deflection, the turnovers were rarely converted into goals.
Purvis had her hands full defending 1.93m shooter Caitlin Bassett, but more than stood up to the challenge.
The Steel trailed for the majority of the match, only briefly leading early in the first and third quarters.
Trailing 34-31 at the half, the Steel opened the third quarter with a 7-2 run on the back of Phoenix Karaka and Shannon Francois intercepts.
But the Steel could not build on its 41-40 lead with seven minutes left in the third quarter. Instead, Steel goal shoot Jhaniele Fowler-Reid was penalised for taking steps, sparking a 4-0 run by the Fever.
Selby-Rickit, who landed 11 of her 17 attempts on goal and turned the ball over three times attempting to feed Fowler-Reid long, took a knock to the back midway through the first quarter.
She played through it until late in the third quarter, before Sophia Fenwick briefly replaced her.
Captain Wendy Frew told the Otago Daily Times from Perth yesterday the Steel would be ''unstoppable'' once it started making turnovers count at the other end.
''It's still a work-on for us,'' she said.
''We've just got to keep trying to tick the boxes at training and trying to improve on the things we need to from each week going into the next round.''
Frew said ''the girls were pretty disappointed'' with the loss, but thought they showed ''great'' character and heart against a more clinical opposition. In just her third ANZ Championship start, wing attack Gina Crampton again provided good service to the circle, particularly impressing with a bunch of perfectly weighted passes to Fowler-Reid.
Former Steel defender Erena Mikaere, a 1.93m goal keep and the first New Zealander to play for an Australian-based franchise, made her first start for the Fever in an attempt to counter Fowler-Reid's 1.98m frame.
The Steel arrives home this afternoon and will train this week, despite its next game against the Northern Mystics being almost a fortnight away.
''A week away from the game playing at this level is tough,'' Frew said.
''We just need to make sure we train hard as a unit, make sure we are pushing each other on the court, make sure we are capitalising on the turnovers we are getting and individually stepping up that few percent that will hopefully get us some wins on the board.''
ANZ Championship scores
Fever 67: Caitlin Bassett 50/57, Natalie Medhurst 17/18
Steel 60: Jhaniele Fowler-Reid 47/51, Te Paea Selby-Rickit 11/17, Sophia Fenwick 2/2
Quarter scores: 1st, 17-15; 2nd, 34-41; 3rd, 51-45.
