Cuba and Mexico settled for final combat at Bicentennial Beach Volleyball Cup, Mexico
The men’s duos from Cuba and Mexico enjoyed the limelight for their brilliant performance in the Bicentennial Beach Volleyball Cup semi-finals on Sunday, 17th August, 2010. The North & Central America and Caribbean Confederation (NORCECA) organized
this fabulous activity for both genders. In the men’s section, 10 teams from Mexico, USA, Cuba, Canada, Guatemala, Puerto Rico and Costa Rica made their presence felt on the sand. The hosts played with four teams and tried their metal in the tough competitions.
The Mexican players demonstrated great effort in front of local fans and received huge applause for the hard work.
Two out of four pairs, could survive until the “final four” stage. The internationally renowned pair of Juan Virgen and Aldo Miramontes represented the home country in semi-final against U.S. hotshots Marcin Jagoda and Michael Diehl. The Mexicans dismantled
American’s power and clinched a slot in the final-match. Likewise, in the second semi-final, Cuba’s Yoendri Kinderlan and Sergio Gonzales clashed with brothers Ulises and Lombardo Ontiveros who played under the tag of Mexico 2. Cuba thrashed a straight sets’
defeat on them and confirmed their ambition for playing in the final match.
Mexico 1 vs. USA 1 (21-9, 21-14)
The home-team opened the match on the right foot. The Mexican pair was fully prepared for the kill and they brought in excellent plan to dismiss American competitors. The arena was totally filled with local enthusiasts, who gathered to watch the native men
fighting for honour. The good start enabled Mexico to build a strong early lead in the game. The pressure automatically started building up on American duo and it affected their ball reception. They threw their hands up in the air to block the powerful spikes
but the ball mostly landed in their court.
Miramontes/Virgen put a combined effort and formed good chemistry to raise their score. The difference of points stretched and Mexicans pushed U.S. pair behind. The first set was covered by Mexicans in leaps and bounds. They quickly contributed points in
their score and finished the first set with 21-9 victory.
After dropping the first set, U.S. players struggled to create the chances of playing in the next set but it was conditional. They needed to secure victory in second set, in order to survive up till next stage. However, things didn’t work for them and their
efforts went futile. They were put up with a pumped-up Mexicans, who were all set to win the match. The home-team continued producing quality shots and took their score to the last verge. Mexico outplayed USA by posting 21-14 in second set and declared semi-final
triumph. The duo kept their hope alive to get their hands on the title-trophy. Nonetheless, they were still one step far from the success.
Cuba vs. Mexico 2 (19-21, 31-29, and 15-9)
The second semi-final brought the powerhouse Cuban studs in front of another Mexican pair. The match was surely a great display of courage by both teams and it took different colours during the play. Ulises/Lombardo of Mexico followed the footsteps of their
country mates and launched their authority over Cuban duo in the first set. With a delivery of powerful serves and floaters, they dominated Caribbean side and sidelined them with a score of 21-19 in the opening set.
The first set was secured by Mexican pair and they kept on hitting in the same direction. The following set was also overwhelmed by strong spikes of Lombardo. Cuba put great effort to break the rhythm of opponents and hit superb shots but the situation remained
unchanged. The see-saw battle continued and score crossed limit of 25. Finally, Cuba made a difference and put an end to the long tiring set at 31-29 after a close fight. After that, Cuba never stopped and didn’t allow the Mexican pair to raise their heads
again. The protagonists ruled the game and dug up 15-9 victory of Mexico in third set. Cuba won the semi-final and successfully diminished the chances of “all Mexican final”. Cuba celebrated semi-final victory and reserved a berth in the final showdown.
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