T&T captain Channon Thompson scored in double-figures but it was not enough as the “Calypso Spikers” ended round-robin Pool A play at the Second Women’s Under-23 Pan-American Volleyball Cup after a 17-25, 13-25, 17-25 loss to Mexico at the Jose Oliva Razzeto Coliseu, Ica, Peru on Tuesday night.
Following straight set defeats at the hands of host Peru (7-25, 15-25, 18-25) and Argentina (14-25, 10-25, 16-25) in their first two matches, the in-experienced T&T line-up, coached by senior men’s team setter Saleem Ali was desperate for a better showing.
And they managed to acheived some measure of success as Mexico struggled more than necessary in the early stage of the match against T&T girls who had a better defensive showing than in previous matches.
In the end, Mexico which used all 12 players in the match were too much for T&T and won in 68 minutes behind its huge advantage in kills, 43-17 margin and more effective showing in serves, 6-3.
Despite the loss, T&T controlled the blocking category with 10-5 advantage but committed more errors (21) than Mexico (17). For the winners, middle-blocker Patricia Valle had a team-high 12 points, comprising 11 kills while opposite Andrea Rangel and Lisbeth Sainz added nine each in the win.
The France-based Thompson, who was the “Most Valuable Player” of the recently concluded Senior Caribbean Championship held and won by host T&T also registered 12 to lead her team and she got support from fellow senior team player Makila York, with nine and the pair of Marisha Herbert and Destiny Leon, with four apiece.
Commenting on the loss, Thompson expressed siome satistaction with the improvement shown by her team-mates so far.
She said, “In general I feel satisfied with my team’s effort, we are a young team and we need more experience”.
Ali added, “The team’s growth is possible with more practice and more matches, this is what we want to obtain from the tournament”.
With the win, Mexico ended with a 1-2 record and a quarterfinal meeting with Pool B second placed Colombia (2-1) while T&T has bye today and will return to action tomorrow against one of the quarterfinal losers, in the fifth to eighth semifinal.
In the other Pool A match, Peru had a spectacular comeback over Argentina 22-25, 25-27, 25-22, 29-27, 15-11 to end with a 3-0 record and an automatic semifinal spot.
Peru also claimed the only South American ticket available to the 2015 age-group FIVB World Championship
Cuba also secured in the semifinals after it battled past defending champions Dominican Republic 27-25, 25-23, 25-19 to top Pool B with a 3-0 mark while the latter was third, after a 1-2 record. And in the other Pool B match, Colombia finished with victory over Costa Rica 25-23, 25-21, 25-18 at Mauro Mina Coliseum in the city of Chincha.
results
Group A:
Monday:
Argentina bt T&T 25-14, 25-10, 25-16
Peru bt Mexico 22-25, 25-23, 23-25, 25-23, 18-16
Tuesday:
Mexico bt T&T 25-17, 25-13, 25-17
Peru bt Argentina 22-25, 25-27, 25-22, 29-27, 15-11
Group B: Monday:
Colombia bt Dominican Republic 20-25, 25-19, 22-25, 27-22, 15-6
Cuba bt Costa Rica 25-10, 25-15, 25-15
Tuesday:
Colombia bt Costa Rica 25-23, 25-21, 25-17
Cuba bt Dominican Republic 27-25, 25-23, 25-19
Today’s matches:
Quarterfinal - Ica:
13- Colombia vs Mexico, 5.30pm
14- Argentina vs Dominican Republic, 8pm
Tomorrow:
Fifth to Eighth classification - Chincha:
15- T&T vs Loser 13 or 14, 7pm
16 -Costa Rica vs Loser 13 or 14, 9pm
Main Draw semifinals - Ica:
17 - Cuba vs Winner 13 or 14, 5.30pm
18 - Peru vs Winner 13 or 14, 8pm
Saturday September 13:
Classificatiion 7th - 8th - Chincha
Loser 15 vs Loser 16, 6pm,
Classification 5th - 6th, Chincha,
Winner 15 vs Winner 16, 8pm
Finals - Ica:
Loser 17 vs Loser 18, 6pm
Winner 17 vs Winner 18, 8pm
