Costa Rica finishes 9th at the XI Women’s Pan American Cup – Volleyball News
Costa Rica and Trinidad & Tobago had a tough competition in the final match for the 9th position at the XI Women’s Pan American Cup on Thursday.
CRC started the match on a good note and secured first set, 25-19. The Trinidadians responded right away and tied the game score by winning second frame (25-21). The see-saw battle continued and Costa Rica retook the lead with third-set win, 25-15. The match
entered fourth flight, while ambitious Trinidad team did not allow CRC to achieve match points. They saved the match points by claiming fourth set (25-20). Costa Rica was forced to appear in the fifth decisive set, which turned out be a success story for CRC.
Trinidadians dropped the final set 6-15 and acknowledged the better status of Costa Rica.
Costa Rica settled for ninth position in the tournament after winning the classification final. UACJ sports hall in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico set up the field of play for the thrilling encounter. Around 150 spectators came to watch the match.
Verania Willis from Costa Rica was named the top-scorer of the match as she added team-high 14 points. She added 10 points on successful attack attempts and added four blocks. Willis was followed by Karen Cope with 13 points. Moreover, Angela Willis and
Paola Ramirez helped CRC with 10 points each.
Likewise, Krystle Esdelle and Kelly Ann Billingy put up a great struggled for T&T. They finished with 16 points apiece and shared the top-scorer's spot.
“We had to find our rhythm of game, we were lucky enough in the fifth set to find it, and also the balance to avoid errors, that was the key,” said Costa Rica’s Coach Xavier Perales after the match. The Head Coach of T&T Francisco Cruz stated: “I think the
match was won by the team who made the fewer mistakes, we lost it with a lot of errors, almost 37, but have to keep on working one more year.”
CRC Captain Verania Willis was overjoyed with the sense of accomplishment. She congratulated the team for giving out a winning performance against Trinidad & Tobago. For Esdelle, it was more of a learning experience. She said that the tournament created
a great opportunity for her team to learn and improve.
The XI Women’s Pan American Cup started of July 11 and now it has reached its end. The medal matches are scheduled to take place on Friday, while the closing ceremony will be held on Saturday.
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