Dominican Republic delights home fans with 3-0 win in the first match – Volleyball News
Using the emotional support of local fans, the home team of Dominican Republic gave out a winning performance and edged out visiting Trinidad and Tobago on Monday.
It was the opening match of VII Men’s Pan American Volleyball Cup for both teams. Dominican Republic dominated the opponents and claimed 3-0 (25-13, 25-19, 30-28) victory in 1 hour and 25 minutes. The Ricardo Arias sports hall in Santo Domingo hosted the match.
José Miguel Caceres of Dominican Republic was named the top-scorer of the match. He played amazingly well and totalled match-high 19 points. His teammate Elvis Contreras also played an instrumental role in Dominican Republic’s success. He contributed 17 points and settled for second best-scorer’s position.
Marc and Nolan of T&T played well and went into double-figure score, while rest of players could not go higher than four points.
The hosts came out firing in the first frame and set tone for a great competition. With the help of good serves from Caceres and Elnis, Dominican Republic created a strong impression on the competitors. Trinidad & Tobago suffered frequent set-backs and lagged behind. Marc and Sean of T&T threw their hands in the way of swinging shots from home attackers, in order to save crucial points. They put up a good effort, but could not get the real form to dismiss opponents’ attacks. Opening set of the match covered its length in 20 minutes and Dominican Republic bagged success, 25-13.
In the following set, T&T players showed a great fighting spirit. They formed good combinations and scored well. The visitors improved in the second set, but still it was not enough to outdo the pumped-up hosts. Dominican Republic captured second set 25-19 and extended its lead to 2-0.
It became a “do or die” situation for T&T in the third set. The guests played to their full potential and tried to save the match points. However, the hosts closed third set with a margin of two points and settled for 3-0 victory in the match.
“The boys had commented about the rivalry and about their ever present winning attitude and that’s why we prepared the individual tactic to zone five and thus weakening the strength of their best attackers, so we did many points through that position because my very disciplined team met that goal,” said Cuban Osiel Vasquez, the coach of Dominican Republic.
The skipper of home team, José Caceres praised the efforts put by Trinidadians. He stated: "because they are very brave and play with great courage. We are like brothers, but on the court there is a nice rivalry. To start with a win is very important for us, as it increases our self esteem".
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