Success story of Canadian Women’s duo in Guatemala – Volleyball news
The Canadian Women’s duo of Heather Bansley and Elizabeth Maloney seized the gold medal at the NORCECA Beach Circuit on Sunday, April 10.
Out of 17 women’s duos on board, the Canada-1 team proved to be best of all and clawed its way to the top. They were challenged by American counterparts in the final showdown of the tournament. Grin Grey and Jennifer Snyder tagged as USA-2 clashed with the
Canadian musketeers. The match lasted for two sets, while Bansley/Maloney carved their names as winners by posting 21-18 and 21-16 in two consecutive sets.
The duo of Bansley/Maloney totally rocked the podium on Sunday. They appeared in the quarter-finals and dug up success, while playing against Costa Rican Team. They successfully booked a slot in the semi-finals. The semi-final was a tight affair between
Canadian and Mexican teams. Nonetheless, the pumped-up duo of Bansley/Maloney secured the slot in final match by winning semi-final in three sets. They received huge applause and appreciation from spectators on account of their mesmerising performance.
Quarter-finals
The Canadian team of Bansley/Maloney defeated Ingrid Morales and Natalia Alfaro of Costa Rica in the quarter-final match. They posted 2-0 (25-23, 25-17) victory over Costa Ricans.
The opening set of the quarter-final was a heated competition. Long rallies were exchanged and both teams played with best of their strategies. The Canadian team added points with their killing spikes and deadly aces.
On the other hand, the Costa Rican side resisted in full force and did not miss a chance to score a point. The score shifted up with a narrow gap of points. By hook or by crook, the Canadians got a perfect kill to end the first set at 25-23.
The success in opening set was a competitive edge for the Canadian team. They entered the second set of the game with a lot of confidence. The opponents played under pressure and failed to put up with the heavy strike. On contrary, Bansley/Maloney played
fast and easily picked up a lead. They put up a combined effort and captured second set with the help of 25-17.
Semi-final
In the semi-final, the duo of Bansley/Maloney was really put up with a great challenge. The Mexican Martha Revuelta/Diana Estrada staged a good fight and tried to make things a little complicated for Canadian opponents.
Bansley/Maloney opened the match on a good note. They hit nice spikes and dominated the opposite. The Mexican players played with good tactics but could not avoid the loss of first set (15-21). After dropping the opening set, Mexican hit back strongly and
stormed the opponents’ half with ground-breaking shots.
The spirited effort of Revuelta/Estrada brought positive results and they tied the score at 1-1. The Canadians returned in the game in third set and broke the tie by sending 15-10 on board.
Final showdown
After a lot of hard work, the duo of Heather Bansley and Elizabeth Maloney paved its way to the final encounter of the NORCECA Beach Circuit in Guatemala. Joining them from the other side were American Grin Grey and Jennifer Snyder. The two teams demonstrated
a stellar performance in the most influential match of the tournament.
The Canadian duo was destined to be the victorious team and they managed to push the rivals behind. They settled for the final victory by polling 21-18 and 21-16.
Heather was totally overjoyed with the gold medal victory. She stated, “We struggled at the beginning of the day, but we were patient in the final match and it worked well for us.”
Bronze medal match
In the third place match, teams from Cuba and Mexico descended the court. Cuban team was comprised of Ion Canet and Niriam Sinal, while the Mexican team had Revuelta and Estrada. The former proved to be too good for victory as they posted 21-18 and 21-16
in two consecutive sets. The duo of Cuba was honoured with bronze-ware.
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