T&T’s men second ranked team of Collin Bernard and Fabien Whitfield were the only bright spark on a disappointing day of results for the locals when the 11th and final leg of the NORCECA Beach Volleyball Circuit served off under sunny conditions at Maracas Bay, yesterday. Playing in a three-team pool, Bernard and Whitfield shook off an opening loss to USA-A pairing Nicolas Lucena and Theodore Brunner 12-21, 14-21 to outlast El Salvadoreans, Luis Morales and Franklin Flores 21-10, 18-21, 15-10 to take second spot in the pool and a spot in the round-of-16 against Pool F runners-up, Nicaraguans, Ruben Mora and Gerson Contreras. However, this was only confirmed after Lucena and Brunner stopped the Central Americans, 21-14, 21-13 in the final pool encounter.
The top ranked local men’s team of Simon Blake and Daneil Williams had a tough day in Pool E, losing both their matches, first against Canada-B, Christian Redmann and Maverick Hatch, 13-21, 15-21 and then against Costa Ricans, Bryan Monge and Zlatko Pisculis, 18-21, 18-21. Last year on home soil at Mission Beach, Toco, Williams and Whitfield created by securing T&T's first ever beach volleyball medal, bronze. The top four ranked men’s team of Mexico, Canada-A, USA-A and Puerto Rico all topped their respective pools with 2-0 records and advanced straight to the quarterfinals It was a much bleaker affair for the local women’s teams of Nancy Joseph and Ayana Dyette, fourth at home last year as well as Apphia Glasgow and Kinisha Marshall as they ended the first day with 0-2 records each and have no chance of qualifying to the main draw knockout.
In Pool A, both Heather Hughes and Lane Carico (USA-A) and St Lucians Dania Hamilton and Samantha Mann ended the first day with 2-0 records ahead of their group decider on Saturday.
Canada-A duo Jamie Broder and Kristina Valjas and Sarah Day and Kaitlin Nielsen of USA-B also made 2-0 starts in Pool B for last-eight spots while Jamaicans Kai Wright and Shedeiky Hamilton and USA-B pair, Sarah Day and Kaitlin Nielsen ended with 1-1records ahead of their clash to determine the second qualifier from the pool. Mexicans Bibiana Candelas and Marta Revuelta also enjoyed a 2-0 start in Pool C to seal a quarterfinal spot with Cayman Islands’ Cristin Alexander and Jessice Wolfeden as well as Canada-B’s Heather Bansley and Caleigh Whitaker still in the mix to join them with 1-1 records each at the end of day one. And in Pool D, Puerto Rico’s Dariam Acevedo and Vanessa Velez and Costa Ricans, Natalia Alfaro and Karen Cope also qualified at the end of the first day with 2-0 records. Matches continue today from 9 am, with competition ending tomorrow.
DAY ONE RESULTS
Men: Pool A—Lombardo Ontiveros/Juan Virgen (MEX) bt Richard Campbell/Duncan Hamann (CAY) 21-4, 21-15
Richard Campbell/Duncan Hamann (CAY) bt Kyle Brown/Sheldon Roach (BAR) 21-16, 22-20
Lombardo Ontiveros/Juan Virgen (MEX) bt Kyle Brown/Sheldon Roach (BAR) 21-8, 21-13
Pool B—Chaim Schalk/Benjamin Saxton (CAN-A) bt Shavar Bryan/Roje Hutchinson (JAM) 21-8, 21-13
Eargenell De Cuba/Mitchel Daniel (ARU) bt Shavar Bryan/Roje Hutchinson (JAM) 21-10, 21-15
Chaim Schalk/Benjamin Saxton (CAN-A) bt Eargenell De Cuba/Mitchel Daniel (ARU) 24-22, 21-19
Pool C—Nicolas Lucena/Theodore Brunner (USA-A) bt Fabien Whitfield/Collin Bernard (TTO-B) 21-12, 21-14
Fabien Whitfield/Collin Bernard (TTO-B) bt Luis Morales/Franklin Flores (ESA) 21-10, 18-21, 15-10
Nicolas Lucena/Theodore Brunner (USA-A) bt Luis Morales/Franklin Flores (ESA) 21-14, 21-13
Pool D—Roberto Rodriguez/Eric Haddock (PUR) bt Clyde Akaamba/Roberto Joval (SUR) 21-6, 21-6
William Sanchez/Luis Castillo (DOM) bt Clyde Akaamba/Roberto Joval (SUR) 21-14, 21-12
Roberto Rodriguez/Eric Haddock (PUR) bt William Sanchez/Luis Castillo (DOM) 21-16, 21-13
Pool E—Christian Redmann/Maverick Hatch (CAN-B) bt Daneil Williams/Simon Blake (TTO-A) 21-13, 21-15
Christian Redmann/Maverick Hatch (CAN-B) bt Bryan Monge/Zlatko Pisculis (CRC) 21-16, 21-14
Bryan Monge/Zlatko Pisculis (CRC) bt Daneil Williams/Simon (TTO-A) 21-18, 21-18
Pool F—Ruben Mora/Gerson Contreras (NCA) bt Luis Garcia/Erick Garrido (GUA) 14-21, 21-19, 15-12
William Montgomery/James Drost (USA-B) bt Coen Caesar/Joseph Clercent (LCA) 21-10, 21-19
Ruben Mora/Gerson Contreras (NCA) bt Coen Caesar/Joseph Clercent (LCA) 21-17, 21-15
William Montgomery/James Drost (USA-B) bt Luis Garcia/Erick Garrido (GUA) 21-8, 21-11
William Montgomery/James Drost (USA-B) bt Ruben Mora/Gerson Contreras (NCA) 21-13, 21-14
Luis Garcia/Erick Garrido (GUA) bt Coen Caesar/Joseph Clercent (LCA) 21-12, 21-12
Women: Pool A—Heather Hughes/Lane Carico (USA-A) bt Apphia Glasgow/Kinisha Marshall (TTO-B) 21-9, 21-2
Samantha Mann/Dania Hamilton (LCA) bt Brenda Allen/Shanicia Dyer (SKN) 21-14, 21-11
Samantha Mann/Dania Hamilton (LCA) bt Apphia Glasgow/Kinisha Marshall (TTO-B) 11-21, 21-3, 15-12
Heather Hughes/Lane Carico (USA-A) bt Brenda Allen/Shanicia Dyer (SKN) 21-4, 21-12
Pool B—Jamie Broder/Kristina Valjas (CAN-A) bt Sarah Day/Kaitlin Nielsen (USA-B) 21-17, 21-19
Shedeiky Hamilton-Barnes/Kai Wright (JAM) bt Nancy Joseph/Ayana Dyette (TTO-A) 21-18, 21-14
Sarah Day/Kaitlin Nielsen (USA-B) bt Nancy Joseph/Ayana Dyette (TTO-A) 21-7, 21-10
Jamie Broder/Kristina Valjas (CAN-A) bt Shedeiky Hamilton-Barnes/Kai Wright (JAM) 21-14, 21-19
Pool C—Cristin Alexander/Jessica Wolfeden (CAY) bt Jamie Farley/Laurie Bachler (ISV) 21-19, 22-20
Marta Revuelta/Bibiana Candelas (MEX) bt Heather Bansley/Caleigh Whitaker (CAN-B) 21-19, 24-22
Marta Revuelta/Bibiana Candelas (MEX) bt Jamie Farley/Laurie Bachler (ISV) 21-15, 21-18
Heather Bansley/Caleigh Whitaker (CAN-B) bt Cristin Alexander/Jessica Wolfeden (CAY) 21-7, 21-7
Pool D—Dariam Acevedo/Vanessa Velez (PUR) bt Shari Matthews/Anicia Wood (BAR) 21-18, 19-21, 15-8
Karen Cope/Natalia Alfaro (CRC) bt Nikita Campbell/Shanique Deshong (VIN) 21-9, 21-13
Dariam Acevedo/Vanessa Velez (PUR) bt Nikita Campbell/Shanique Deshong (VIN) 21-7, 21-6
Karen Cope/Natalia Alfaro (CRC) bt Shari Matthews/Anicia Wood (BAR) 21-14, 21-9