ROAD TOWN, Tortola, October 15, 2023. St. Kitts and Nevis are through to the final of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) U23 Male Championship, after beating St. Maarten 3 sets to 1, in a keenly contested match 22. The final scores were 25-17, 21-25, 25-21 and 25 15.
St. Kitts and Nevis takes on St. Vincent and the Grenadines in the final later today, at 8 p.m.
Both captains showed tremendous skills to lead their sides and captain Zendai Richards amassed twenty-one (21) points to emerge as the match’s top scorer. Captain Rajheem Meulens of St. Maarten tallied thirteen (13) points for his team.
St. Kitts and Nevis established an early lead by the first technical timeout. St. Maarten showed resilience and fought back. The scenario repeated itself at the second technical timeout, St. Kitts and Nevis in the lead, and St. Maarten clawed back. In the latter portion of the set St. Kitts and Nevis asserted themselves, with some sharp attacks, to close out the set.
St. Maarten held the advantage at the first technical timeout. They piled on the advantage with some tough services, forcing errant passes from their opponent. St. Kitts and Nevis further exacerbated the situation by gifting several points to St. Maarten via service errors. By the second technical timeout, they had built a sizeable lead. St. Maarten staved a furious response from St. Kitts and Nevis at the end of the set to equalize.
Set number three was an exciting tussle between both teams. St. Maarten held the lead at the first technical timeout, but St. Kitts and Nevis strung together several attacks that put them in front at the second technical timeout. St. Maarten responded and reeled off four straight points, led by their captain, to give them a three-point advantage. St. Kitts and Nevis then stormed back with six straight points to build a lead and ultimately take the set.
St. Kitts and Nevis sped out the gates in the fourth set and there was little response from St. Maarten. At each technical timeout St. Kitts and Nevis enjoyed a sizeable lead. The pressure of requiring a herculean effort to rescue the match was too much for St. Maarten and a service error at match point sealed the outcome for St. Kitts and Nevis.
“We executed our game plan of serving tough for the most part of the match and we recognize that there are several aspects that we need to improve on heading into the final. But we will celebrate this victory for the time being,” captain Zendai Richards of St. Kitts and Nevis stated.
“Our passing betrayed us at throughout the match. However, we will resume the fight in the bronze medal match later,” captain Rajheem Meulens of St. Maarten expressed.
The bronze medal match will between St. Maarten and Dominica, at 6 p.m., this evening.
The final between St. Kitts and Nevis and St. Vincent and the Grenadines is at 8 p.m.
The matches can be viewed live at:
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