Tag: Ecva

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 27, 2024:  Female referees- Monique Martis and Chesley Augustine Antigua inked their names in the annals of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA), when they were the two who officiate in the 2024 Men’s Final.

The historic occasion came in Senior Men’s Championships at the YMCA Sports Complex, as it was the first that two female referees were officiating in a Men’s gold medal match.

Delighted that they were part of a first, they expressed their views with a sense of gratitude, humility and honour.

Monique Martis

“It felt very honouring, because in my ten years as a referee, it is the first time I was actually paired up with another female, so that was a happy moment for me”, Martis said.

Martis however revealed that she felt some jitters knowing the importance of the match, its intensity and the raucous crowd.

“Once the match started and I did what I had to do, everything got easy, I felt calm and relaxed. All in all, it was a great honour and we both enjoyed and we did what we had to do at our best”, Martis commented

Chesley Augustine

“I am honoured, this is the second time refereeing a Men’s Final. The progress is there and I am grateful for the opportunity to be part of this historic accomplishment”, she related.

Not moved by the magnitude of a Men’s Final, Augustine said she kept her poise.

“You are in Antigua and Barbuda, home country, you know everyone was there for the home team, but I was not overawed by what was going on around me, because I had to concentrate on the match, shut out the noises and do the best in the most impartial manner”, she commented.

Augustine, who has two years of refereeing under her belt, noted that she never envisaged herself in that position.

Augustine who recently captained the St Marteen team in the women’s segment of the 2024 Senior ECVA Championships, revealed: “I always wanted to be a player, but I now realize that age and the body is not keeping up, so am pursuing a different direction in Volleyball”.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 27, 2024:  Antigua and Barbuda’s captain – Adrian Constant had the accolade of MVP bestowed on him when the 20e 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships concluded here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

Apart from the prestigious individual award, Constant accepted the trophy as the Best Opposite and Best Scorer.

Other Awards

Best Server: Jamarie James (Antigua and Barbuda)

Best Receiver: Joseph Clercent (St Lucia)

Best Setter: Jamie Noel (Grenada)

Best Outside Hitters: Joseph Clercent and Sheldon Descartes (St Lucia)

Best Middle Blockers: Bill Frederick and Ethan Boland (Dominica)

Best Digger and Best Libero: Yashid Auguiste (Antigua and Barbuda)

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 27, 2024:  Antigua and Barbuda withstood any challenge thrown by Dominica, to walk off the court at the YMCA Sports Complex, as gold medalist of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships.

In a final filled with twists and turns, ebbs and flows, Antigua and Barbuda won 3-1(25-18, 17-25, 25-18, 25-15).

The win was more than gold for Antigua and Barbuda, as they also earned the right to represent the ECVA at the next Continental Championships.

Playing unbeaten after six matches, a pleased Head Coach of the Antigua and Barbuda team- Karl Williams dedicated the title to the “people of Antigua and Barbuda”.

Williams disclosed that the mission to reach as winners started three months ago. “This started in August, we had our travails, but we stuck it out and here we are celebrating tonight”, the Antigua and Barbuda Head Coach related.

Joining him in praising the efforts of his team, was Captain- Adrian Constant. “It was a lot getting here; we had a lot of things to deal with and as a group we stuck it out, we stayed together. We lost players on the way, but we did it again, that is to retain the title”, Constant commented.

Although losing when it mattered most- Head Coach of Dominica- Brian Gavlas bestowed superlatives on his players. “This team is a great bunch of guys. They evolved throughout the tournament to the end. I am proud of them, and we were prepared to give a good show, but some situations happened and prevented us from doing it”, Galvas expounded.

He thinks that his team was better than what was unveiled in the title match.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 27, 2024:  St Lucia crossed the line over Grenada, to take the bronze medal match, 3-2 (23-25, 25-23, 25-22, 15-25, 15-8), in the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

In a ding down tussle for the third spot, Grenada charged out to win the first set. But St Lucia restored parity, taking the second, and was in the ascendancy at the end of the third. However, Grenada refused to give in and ran away with the fourth.

With the sets levelled at 2-2, Grenada could retain the momentum from the previous set, allowing St Lucia to take the tie – breaker.

Havern Brown – Head Coach of St Lucia, although he would have preferred the gold medal, was content with the bronze. “As I said from the start, we had a lot of young guys, so for them to get a bronze, I am satisfied”. Brown said. He however, accepted that there is a lot to be done, for his unit to be once again the powerhouse in the ECVA region.

Meanwhile, Captain- Joseph Clercent, and the elder statesman of the St Lucia team, expressed that it was his honour to bring along the young players. “It gives me great pleasure to have these young players playing around me. I am here to teach them, and I am here to show them”, Clercent reiterated.

Meanwhile, finishing with three wins and three losses, Grenada’s Head Coach- Peer Nassier, gave the overall performance of his team, as seven out of ten. According to Nassier: “We tried very hard throughout the tournament, but it was the consistency that faltered us a little bit, but we continued to improve”. Nassier felt that the improvements were incremental, resulting in a reduction in the number of errors in the matches.

Similarly, Grenada’s Captain- Darren Oxford, believed that they can leave the championships with their heads held high. “We have a lot of things to be grateful for and this experience is for us to go back to the drawing board and come better next time”, Oxford assessed.

Next up is the big one, as Antigua and Barbuda face Dominica in the gold medal match.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 27, 2024: Covering all their bases, Dominica put together an efficient performance to blank Grenada, and waltz into the final of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

Winning 3-0(25-18, 25-19, 25-23), meant that Dominica chalked up their fifth win in as many matches. Dominica thus will play Antigua and Barbuda in the decisive match.

At stake is the opportunity to be crowned ECVA champions, with the higher stake being the organization’s representatives at the next Continental Championships.

With a place in the final assured, Dominica’s Manager- Ithoma James said that patience was the mantra in getting past Grenada, who deemed it a “balanced team”.

“We took our time. We made sure that we did everything well; We have a few players that are really not known yet but we can go to them every time that we need points and we were very good at executing”, James informed.

James believes his team plans to take that same tenacity and will to win, when they oppose Antigua and Barbuda.

Gracious in their defeat, Grenada’s Assistant Coach- Javin Noel thought that his team lacked the fight needed in a crucial match such as a semi-final.

“Both teams came to fight, both teams came into win, but at the end of the day it is the team who wanted it more”, Noel conceded.

Despite not reaching the final, Noel related, “This team has come a long way and they have definitely improved”.

The Assistant Coach opined that in general, the sport of Volleyball is an upward trajectory in Grenada.

But all is not lost for Grenada, as they will play St Lucia in the bronze medal match that precedes the Final.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 27, 2024:  Keeping calm when things were against them, Antigua and Barbuda was able to carve out their destiny, to close out St Lucia, and reach the final of 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

In a battle of wits and poise, Antigua and Barbuda came first, trumping 3-1(25-22, 16-25, 25-21, 27-25).

It was a not clinical performance by the Antiguans, as they extended their unbeaten run in the championships to five successive wins.

Appraising his team’s performance in the semi-finals, Karl Williams, the Antigua and Barbuda Head – Coach was cautious, noting that the mission is still incomplete.

“We played a very good team in St Lucia, we didn’t expect it to be easy; It wasn’t easy, but most importantly, was the victory. We are halfway there, one more game to go, then we would have completed the mission”, Williams related.

Heading into the title match, Williams opined, “We expect to come and represent; we expect to come and play our game and as long as we can play our game, we will be successful”.

For St Lucia’s Captain- Joseph Clercent, it was a match that they lost, rather than they were beaten.

“We lost the game in our attack and we had a few errors in our blocking; we had relatively good passing in the game, so we needed more consistency in our attack. We did not clean up our errors enough or we would have won that game”, Clercent analysed.

Antigua and Barbuda awaits the winner of the other semi-final, that features Dominica and Grenada.  

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 26, 2024:  St Lucia formalized their semi-final place with a disciplined win versus St Maarten in the final preliminary round match of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex,

Despite some stumbles along the way, and rear -guard action from St Maarten, St Lucia prevailed 3-0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-23).

As the scores reflected, St Lucia had to dig deep in the third set to prevent the match being extended, as St Maarten was their own undoing, committing several unforced errors.

It meant that St Lucia finished the preliminaries with three wins and one defeat, whilst St Maarten had two wins and the same number of losses.

With a crack at the title, St Lucia’s Head Coach – Harven Brown projected that their loss to Dominica will be the lone hiccup, thus, they are focused on winning their next two matches.

“Let me just say that last night versus Dominica, we had our one bad game for the tournament. We tweaked a few things, we strategized and came out with a different approach tonight, so it feels good to be in the semi-finals and we are going all the way”, Brown advanced.

St Lucia plays Pool A winners – Antigua and Barbuda in the semi-finals.

Meanwhile, St Maarten’s Head Coach- Clayton Holiday, gave an average mark to his team’s output overall in the four matches.

“With the juniors in the team, I would say that they gave it a good effort, it is just that they fell short of their focus and concentration in crucial times, but the principles that I find they could have done, just that they were not consistent enough”, Holiday assessed.

Holiday a deep evaluation will be made of the team’s performance, and the necessary programmes will be put in place in the St Maarten Volleyball setup.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 26, 2024: It started as a battle between the unbeaten teams in Pool A of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

But when the last point was scored, it was Antigua and Barbuda that kept the spotless run intact with a 3-1 (25-13, 20-25, 18-25, 22-25) over Grenada.

Antigua and Barbuda finished top of the pool, with Grenada- second, as both head into the semi- final.

Analysing his team’s performance versus Grenada, Head Coach of the Antigua and Barbuda- Karl Williams, it was that time to make a “statement”.

“We came out to stamp our authority. We came out to make a statement. It started out with the statement but somewhere along the line in Volleyball sometimes things happen, but I am happy for the victory” Williams assured.

The Antigua and Barbuda Head Coach, is looking forward to the new challenge when they play in the semi-finals.

Accepting that his team was beaten on the night, Peer Nasseir- Head Coach of Grenada conceded: “Hats off to Antigua they were able to serve us off the court. We struggled with our service reception and from that they were able to make runs and win the match.

Going into the semi-finals against Dominica Nasseir acknowledged: “We need to be working on our consistency”.

Nasseir underlined though that his team is prepped for their battle with the domineering Dominicans, who won all their matches in Pool B.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 25, 2024:  Bermuda completed their sojourn in the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championship here at the YMCA Sports Complex, with a 3-0 (26-24, 25-12, 25-13) win over the British Virgin Islands.

It meant that the Bermudans ended the championship with a 2:2 win/ loss ratio.

Summing up his team’s efforts, Head Coach of Bermuda- Michael Smith assessed: “I thought the team played really well. We had a solid game plan coming into the tournament, just wanting to work on the fundamentals, play our game, as a simple game of Volleyball and I think the guys really did that”.

Looking to the future of Volleyball in Bermuda, Smith proffered: “We have a bunch of young guys coming up, their first time here, so they know what they are up against, they can go back, we would look at films and see what we need to improve on”,

On the other hand, the British Virgin Islands, who had no wins from their four matches, but their Head Coach- Stephen Payne believes they can fix that in the very near future.

Payne thumbed, “Technically, we need to be more sound and more consistent”, but believed that in the very short term, and with the right programmes based on analyses, they will be turning the corners.

Meanwhile, Mikey Joseph, the British Virgin Islands’ Co- Captain, also sees positivity ahead.

“What we have to do is have that mindset of a higher level of play. We have been up and down, but now that a lot of the younger guys have had that experience, we will be reminding them to keep that mindset, keep that mindset”, Joseph projected.

Bermuda finished third in Pool A, while the winless British Virgin Islands ended in fifth place in the five- team pool.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 26, 2024:  Dominica finished the preliminary round of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex, by topping Pool B.

A painless 3-0(25-7, 25-5, 25-7) win over Saba, saw Dominica ending with a 4:0 win/ loss ratio.

In sheering dominance, Dominica allowed Saba into the match, as they executed their plays with consummate ease.

In his assessment of his team’s final preliminary round match, Dominica’s Head Coach- Brian Galvas said: “We executed, we put a lot of pressure on the team today and that was reflective in the score. If you can control your own side and can execute, you have a really good chance against any side”.

Ahead of the semi-finals, Gavlas added: “Our intention coming here was to make the playoff round and we accomplished that; our intention is to get better after each match”.

But whilst Dominica glowed in all matches in the preliminary round, for Saba, it was the reverse, as they lost all four matches.

This tale left Saba’s Head Coach- Kemaul Lee stating: “Throughout the tournament, we had some patches where we played well, especially against Anguilla, but we were just not consistent with the fundamentals of the game”.

Lee, however, assured that work will be done in Saba to ensure that a better showing is had in ensuing championships.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 25, 2024:  Efficient execution in all facets of the game, saw Dominica carving out a 3-1(25-23, 25-17, 23-25, 25-20) over St. Lucia, to lead Pool B of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

St. Lucia though pushed Dominica in each of the sets, as neither relented, as they fought for supremacy.

In the end, it was the power of the Dominica hitters, sprinkled with deft touches that made the difference.

Delighted with the win, Dominica’s Head Coach- Brian Gavlas, thumbed his team’s analyses of the St Lucians’ play and strategized accordingly.

“We put them in trouble with our serves. We were pretty disciplined with our blocking and defence. Our guys did a good job. In general, we executed what we wanted to do very well”, Galvas reasoned.

Also, underlining that it was their superior strategy that helped them cross the line, Dominica’s Captain- Yahn Florent commented: “We looked at their games and from photos. We analyzed the game plan, and we stuck to the game”.

Florent though wanted his team to be unblemished.

“It is very nice to have one over their head. It was not the win we wanted. We wanted a 3-nil victory”, Florent insisted.

Accepting defeat, but not throwing in the towel, St. Lucia’s Head Coach- Hervan Brown, thinks it is not all done for them.

“The tournament is not over, we are still going to win”, Brown assured.

His evaluation however, thumbed their service errors that attributed to their loss. 

“We had a terrible serving game and I think that is where we lost the game”, Brown pointed out.

Brown iterated that they will fix what needs to be fixed in their upcoming match.

In other Pool B results on day four saw Anguilla having a 3-0 (25-15, 25-9, 25-17) win over Saba and St. Maarten also defeated Saba 3-0(25-10, 25-14, 25-7).

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 25, 2024:  Antigua and Barbuda looked out of it after losing the first sets to Bermuda, but found the will in Pool A of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

As such, Match 13 proved to be thus far the most thrilling, as Antigua and Barbuda triumphed 3-2(24-26, 25-27, 25-19, 25-14, 15-9)

Antigua and Barbuda thus levelled with Grenada, who also has three wins from as many matches.

The two will now battle for top spot in the pool, when they square off in Match 19.

Assessing his team’s come from behind effort, Head Coach of Antigua and Barbuda- Karl Willliams was proud of his charges’ response to the Bermudans early dominance.

“I had all the confidence in the world for the guys. What am happy for, is we were pushed, and we showed resilience that is within this team”, Williams related.

Williams revealed that tactically adjustments were made, when the chips were down with them.

“Within our two and a half months of training, we would have tried different systems. Tonight, one wasn’t working and we made the adjustment”, a smiling Williams said.

Adrian Constant- Antigua and Barbuda’s Captain, was also in praise with his teammates recovery after being two sets down.

“We were lackadaisical early in the game. We made some changes which really worked and impacted the game. In the third set we realized that if we sit and play Antigua’s style of Volleyball, they can’t beat us”, Constant reported.

Michael Smith- Head Coach of Bermuda heaped accolades on his players, despite surrendering a two- set advantage, and having only one substitute at his disposal.

“We knew coming in that we didn’t have a lot of subs, so we tried to be as tactical as we could. Our passing was phenomenal. We executed as well as we could. We are holding our heads high after this” Smith said.

He though underscored the extreme heat was also a defining factor in the match.

“We got pretty tired. The guys were pretty sweaty. At the end of the third, it was pretty dangerous. There was sweat everywhere. I am proud of the guys”, Smith commiserated.

The other Pool A result on day three, saw Grenada defeating St Eustacius 3-0(26-24, 25-19, 25-17).

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 24, 2024:  The race for the top spot in Pool A of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championship here at the YMCA Sports Complex, remains a tight one.

This, as Antigua and Barbuda, as well as Grenada, remain the teams to stay perfect in that pool.

They have both stitched together performances that have led them to dispose of their opponents with some level of ease.

After defeating Bermuda 3-1 on day one of the championships, Grenada added the British Virgin Islands to its list, as they also won 3-1(14-25, 25-12, 25-9, 25-21), to win match six.

Likewise, Antigua and Barbuda, added another 3-0 win, as they too are 2:0 in win/loss ratio, when they saw off the British Virgin Islands, 25-11, 25-19, 25-19 in match nine.

As a consequence of the results, the race for the top position is now on.

Summing up the two wins and ahead to the upcoming matches, Antigua and Barbuda’s Head Coach – Karl Williams gave a philosophical outlook.

“We are nowhere. We have two wins, but we have to get at least four more. We have to play smarter; we have to play stronger, so our next game is our first game”, Williams reasoned.

Grenada’s Head Coach- Karreem Salhab believes his team has rid themselves of the “jitters” that affected them in the two previous matches.

Looking ahead, Salhab said: “We try to take it one step at a time. Next, we have St Eustacius. We have to do our homework and come prepared to play them”.

Other Pool A results saw Bermuda defeating St Eustacius 3-0(25-11, 25-18, 25-14) in match seven.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 24 2024:  Dominica and St. Lucia have taken the lead in Pool B of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

This as both have recorded two wins to stay as the unbeaten outfits in Pool B.

Dominica beat Anguilla 3-1(19-25, 25-13, 25-11, 25-11) and versus St Maarten, it was also 3-1 (25-21, 27-25, 19-25, 25- 18).

Meanwhile, St. Lucia has been more efficient, beating their two opponents by 3-0 margins.

Thus, St. Lucia had a 25-10, 25-9, 25-10 win over Saba and versus Anguilla took the match 25-16, 25-19, 25-21.

Reflecting on their sojourn thus far in the championships, Dominica’s Captain- Yahn Florent, pointed to late starts.

 “We have been having a late start. We have to warm up in order to get the momentum going”, Florent related.

Despite not being as clinical as they want, Florent said that withstanding the inconsistencies at times, the team is prepared for the battle ahead.

“We know we have more tough matches to come. We have some injury issues, but we are prepared to play through the pain”, a resilient Florent expressed.

Meanwhile, St. Lucia’s Head Coach- Hervan Brown, assessing his team’s output in their two matches, highlighted: “What I have been doing is working my bench getting a feel for what the tournament has to offer. I know what I am doing in the next game”.

The St. Lucia Head Coach said that he used the two matches to mix and match with some of his younger players as well as tighten on some of the errors in an anticipation of stiffer competition in the remaining matches.

The dominant team in the pool will be decided, as Dominica and St. Lucia meet in the two teams’ next match.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 23, 2024:  Grenada and Antigua and Barbuda ticked the boxes sufficiently, thus earned wins in Pool A of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championship here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

Grenada had a 3-1 (19-25, 25-22, 25-20, 26-24) win over a shorthand Bermuda, while Antigua and Barbuda strode to a 3-0 (25-13, 25-11, 25-21) triumph over St Eustacius.

Before taking charge of the match, Grenada took time to get their passes together, but found their mojo as the match wore on.

Meanwhile, Antigua and Barbuda had it all their way as St Eustacius offered little answer to their relentless spiking from different zones on the court.

Assessing their teams’ first outing in the championships, here are the comments from the Head Coaches and Captain.

Grenada’s Captain- Darron Oxford: “It was a good performance altogether, but there are a couple key aspects of the game that we need to focus on moving on in the tournament, which are our first pass and blocking at the net”.

Oxford revealed that with the new coach, who has implemented a new system, where they have a large squad to cater for the compact nature of the championships.

Bermuda’s Head Coach – Michael Smith: “We tried to play as technical a game as possible… We are really working on the fundamentals. We have a really young team, and these guys played really well… We are going to try to play technically sound throughout the tournament and hopefully come up with some wins”.

Antigua and Barbuda’s Head Coach- Karl Williams: “We have been practicing for a while, running certain plays and executing them and I am happy to see those plans executed tonight”.

Williams said that despite the 3-0 win, they are going to look critically at the match and do further evaluation for their next match.

St Eustacius’ Head Coach- Patricio Bridgewater: “I tip my hat to them (Antigua and Barbuda) … They took over the whole thing, they played a beautiful game. I think (though) that the team (St Eustacius) can do better than this”.

Bridgewater cited fatigue and the presence of one setter at his disposal, proving a deficiency.

The next Pool A match features Grenada versus the British Virgin Islands.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 23, 2024:  Ten teams stashed into two pools are chasing after the gold medal and a place in the Continental Championships, in the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

In Pool A are Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands and Saint Eustatius. Pool B consists of St Lucia, St Maarten, Dominica, Anguilla and Saba.

The championships will see a total of twenty matches in the preliminary round.

Opening day sees three matches set for decision, with six matches carded for day two, three and four.

The playoffs, third place and gold medal match take place on day five, Sunday, October 27.

Commencing are Grenada and Bermuda, who play Match one in Pool A.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 22, 2024:   St Lucia’s Kerin Neptune was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Women’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

Neptune, who helped her team win the championships, was also named one of two Best Outside Hitters. She shared the other Best Outside Hitter accolade with Rayana Regis of Antigua and Barbuda.

Other awardees

Best Opposite – Kayley Hamilton (Bermuda)

Best Middle Blockers – Tyna Williams (St Lucia) and Kwansia Carr (Antigua and Barbuda)

Best Setter- Cindy Wilson (St Lucia)

Best Libero – Rosemarie Simon (Antigua and Barbuda)

Best Scorer – Rayana Regis (Antigua and Barbuda)

Best Receiver – Rosemarie Simon (Antigua and Barbuda)

Best Digger – Tenayestlgni Joseph (St Lucia)

Best Server –  Natalie Gazzard (Bermuda)

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 22, 2024:   In dominating style, St Lucia stopped Bermuda in their tracks to take the gold medal in the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Women’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

St Lucia, winners of the title in 2022, maintained their hold on the top spot, outlasting the Bermudans 3-0 (25-10, 25-22, 25-19).

Bermuda threatened on occasions in the second and third sets with slender leads, but St Lucia showed their experience and will to win, thwarting the momentums.

Having suffered at the hands of Bermuda in the preliminary phase of the championships, St Lucia avenged the 2-3 loss, by winning in straight sets.

Apart from claiming gold, St Lucia earned the right to be ECVA’s representative at the 2025 Continental Championships.

St Lucia’s Head Coach- Kendell Charlery, while accepting that Bermuda was a formidable foe, believed his team was superior.

“It is a great feeling to win to retain the title. Bermuda gave us a run for our money in the first round, but we were hungrier. They (Bermuda) played pretty good in the final, but we came out with fire”, Charlery opined.

Charlery disclosed that it was a deliberate plan to go hard at Bermuda from the start of the decisive final.

“That was the plan. We stopped their attackers, and we did that from the very first ball. We took a lead from each and every set and we tried to maintain it and that was the game plan”, Charlery revealed.

Winning the title and looking ahead to the next sojourn, Charlery commented: “It means a lot. We have a good group of good players back home who are ready to train for the Continental Championship. We have some pretty young players coming up”.

Losing Coach of Bermuda- Shalae Rae was happy with the overall performance with her team.

“I am proud of the team. Tonight we came up against a good team. We are a young team with a good future. We did a check on the stats with our team and the average age is 19.9 years”, Rae commented.

The Bermuda Head Coach underscored that going back with a silver medal serves as a good fillip for the team as well as Volleyball in her country.

Final Standings: 1. St Lucia 2. Bermuda 3. Grenada 4. Antigua and Barbuda 5. St Maarten 6. Anguilla

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 22, 2024:  With a display of consistency, team spirit and sticking to the fundamentals Grenada stitched together a solid performance to beat Antigua and Barbuda and most importantly take the bronze in the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Women’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

Grenada showed intent from the first whistle, winning the first two sets 25-23, 25-19, but Antigua and Barbuda rebounded to win the third set 25- 22.

However, the Grenadians ensured that there was no repeat of their match up in the preliminaries, when Antigua and Barbuda won the five-setter, by taking the third set, 25-19.

In the process, Grenada reversed the 3-2 defeat they suffered earlier in the championships.  

It was Grenada’s fourth successive win, whilst Antigua and Barbuda suffered their third loss in succession.

Delighted that his team was able to finish on the podium- Head Coach of Grenada, Raphael Braithwaite said: “Credit must go to my team for coming back from two defeats and win four on the trot and we will be returning to Grenada with bronze and that is good for our Volleyball”.

Brathwaite said that the success can only spur other women to be part of Volleyball in Grenada.

Not deflated that his team faltered when it mattered most, Antigua and Barbuda’s Head Coach- Olsen Joseph, was still high in players for the efforts of his team.

“I think the girls put up a fight but they were a bit nervous, but Grenada wanted it more than we did, so they showed that they wanted it and they claimed it”, Joseph contended.

He thinks though that the youthfulness of the team, is an investment for the future of Antigua and Barbuda’s Volleyball.

“It is a young group of girls so I understand it is a challenge for them and experience for them as well, so they have two years to get it right and keep working on their game, and get themselves ready for pressure”, Joseph claimed.

Before the third place match, St Maarten had a 3-0 (25-14, 25-17, 25-17) win over Anguilla.

Bermuda and St Lucia play next in the gold medal match.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 21, 2024:  Bermuda and St Lucia will play in the gold medal match of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Women’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

Additionally, apart from being crowned champion, the gold medallist will get a chance to represent the ECVA at the Continental Championships in 2025.

Both Bermuda and St Lucia earned the right to get a crack at the title, as they finished the six – team preliminary round, with a 4:1 win/loss ratio.

On the other hand, the two enter the title match coming off different results in their last preliminary round matches.

Bermuda was beaten 3-0 (22-25, 23-25, 23-25) by Grenada, while St Lucia had to come from a set down to stave off Antigua and Barbuda, winning 3-1(17-25, 25-23, 26-24, 25-17).

St Lucia ended the preliminary round winning 14 sets and lost 4, while Bermuda won 12 sets and 6.

Now, it is all to play for, and the two camps have expressed confidence going into the final.

Putting the loss to Grenada behind them, Bermuda’s Head Coach- Shalae Rae underscored that the final is what counts.

Noting that her team used the Grenada match strategically, Rae disclosed that it should serve them in good stead in the gold medal match.

“We found this to be a learning experience because we know who our best servers/ receivers are going to be, so what we have learned from this game is how we can use this opportunity to our strategic advantage in our gold medal match”, Rae explained.

St Lucia’s Head Coach – Kendell Charlery: We have a score to settle… We lost to Bermuda in the preliminary round, but we are better now, as we have tidied up some of our mistakes and I think we have a good show up, in defending our title”.

When the two teams met in the preliminary phase, Bermuda trumped 3-2.

Preceding the gold medal match, Anguilla and St Maarten play for fifth and sixth places, while Grenada and Antigua and Barbuda rumble for the bronze medal.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 21, 2024:  Grenada and St Lucia, both were in winners’ row during the morning session, on day four of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Women’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

However, their wins were in contrasting styles, as Grenada was taken the distance by St Maarten, while St Lucia had a straightforward win over Anguilla.

For Grenada, it was second time lucky, as they came out on the better side of their five- setter duel with St Maarten, as they both battled to the end.

Grenada trumped 3-2(20-25, 25-17, 21-25, 25-16, 16-14), while St Lucia won 3-0 925-17, 25-13, 25-9).

Day four results placed the championships in a tough battle for the other spot, as St Lucia and Antigua and Barbuda will be seeking to join Bermuda in the title match.

St Lucia and Antigua and Barbuda, thus are in a must win scenario in Match fifteen, the final encounter in the preliminary round.

Preceding them will be Grenada and Bermuda, in the penultimate Match fourteen.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 20, 2024:  Bermuda shut out the cacophony of noise and the shenanigans and focused on what was before them on the court, to beat Antigua and Barbuda 3-1(25-20, 25-23, 21-25, 25-16) in the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Women’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

In a clash of the two unbeaten teams, as this was reflected in the competitive nature of the first three sets, before Bermuda closed out the contest in the fourth.

Hence, Bermuda marched to their fourth straight win, and with a match in hand, has all but booked a place in the final.

Revealing that they were well prepared for what the Antiguans had to throw at them, Bermuda’s Head Coach- Shalae Rae, in an expression of accomplishment, said, “The mood is ecstatic…We know Antigua was the team to beat… We prepared for it and we are thrilled that we pulled it off”.

She shared that they were mentally prepared for the battle, given the home support for the Antiguans.

“We had a lot of team talk… We talked about strategies to overcome the crowd… There is going to be heckles. It is gonna be loud … It is gonna be annoying … We need to overcome that, bring your energy to overcome that”, Rae related.

Joining Rae in assessing the big effort by the Bermudans was team Captain- Kaylee Trott, who confirmed: “We didn’t think it will be easy by any means … We had to make a big effort to keep our energy up… Our bench really helped with that”.

On the other hand, reviewing his team’s first loss, Antigua and Barbuda’s Head Coach- Olsen Joseph summed up, “It was a little hard one … It was a lot of mistakes on our end, we need to work on improving that”.

Joseph disclosed that although they had strategized against the technically strong Bermuda team, they were not able to execute as planned.

“We tried to put the taller blockers on the main attackers but we were unable to get it stop”, the Antigua and Barbuda Head Coach conceded.

For Rosemarie Simon, the Antigua and Barbuda Captain: “I am a little disappointed that we lost the game … I have seen Bermuda play throughout the tournament and I know that they are a technically inclined team, so I knew it would have been a fight but I knew that our team could have played a little bit better”.

A confident Simon believes her team can and will rebound in their remaining matches.

Match eleven involves St Lucia and St Maarten.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 20, 2024:  A rejuvenated Grenada team was in a no -nonsense mood when they faced off against Anguilla in match nine of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Women’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

Bent on making amends for their two previous defeats, Grenada was switched on from the first whistle, and at the close of the match, was celebrating their 3-0 (25-16, 25-9, 25-19) win.

Grenada’s attacks and defenses could not be matched by the Anguillans.

The win for Grenada was welcomed by their Coach- Raphael Brathwaite and Outside Hitter-Thornia Mitchell.

For Brathwaite, he owes the win to his team being well rested and putting behind the losses in their two previous matches.

“We had a very good game against Antigua and

As a team we had one motive so we came here with the motivation to win… We came to execute and we executed

Personally, for Mitchell, who was a standout in the match, joined in Brathwaite’s assessment of the team being well rested, hence their output against the Anguillans.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 20, 2024. Antigua and Barbuda extended their unbeaten run, but not without a bump on the way in the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Women’s Tournament here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

Facing the ever- improving St Maarten team, the Antiguans had to dig deep at times to eke out the 3-1 (25-21, 25-23, 23-25, 25-14) win.

In the process, Antigua and Barbuda notched up their third successive win, joining Bermuda who also has three wins.

On the other side of the court, it was St Maarten’s third straight defeat, but had the consolation of winning their first set.

Antigua and Barbuda’s success thus far, was embraced by Head Coach Olsen Joseph, although cautioning that it was “one match at a time”.

In his assessment of the win, Joseph admitted: “This one was a bit challenging because one of my main players that I would have come in as a sub, got injured before coming to the court, so I had to mix and match”.

Joseph is riding the positives coming from the three wins, hoping that the momentum will take them to the title match.

Not disgraced by his team’s string of losses, St Maarten’s Head Coach- Dimitri Beauperthuy, lauded his charges for their continued improvements.

“I am extremely proud of the performance… This is what I expected from the team… I believe in the first and second sets, we missed the opportunity based on our service”.

Likewise in high spirit was St Maarten’s Captain- Chelsey Augustine, who said, “I am pleased how my teammates came out; I mean really came out, when they really needed to”.

Augustine strongly holds the view that the continued improvements in the championships shown by the team augurs well for the sport of Volleyball in St Maarten.

Next up, Grenada and Anguilla meet on Match nine.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 19, 2024: Bermuda again showed why they have emerged as one of the favourites to go all the way in the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Women’s Tournament here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

A straightforward 3-0 (25-17, 25-16, 25 -21) over Anguilla left Bermuda perfect from three matches, and in pole position for one of the two top places at the end of the preliminaries.

On the other hand, Anguilla, after three matches, has a solitary win, but has conceded twice.

Smarting after their hard- fought win over St Lucia in their previous match, the Bermudans were all round better than their opponents, showing prowess and poise especially whenever Anguilla sought to take the upper hand.

The overall effort of the Bermuda team, pleased their Head Coach- Shalae Rae.

“We keep positioning ourselves well… We came here wanting to win and that hasn’t changed and having a three- nil record can only help us going into the final games”, Rae stated.

Despite the win, Bermuda’s Captain- Kaylee Trott said there were some anxious moments.

“We were not playing our true game at the beginning… It took a little while to find our footing and when we found it, we were in a grove and we are hoping to start the next game right off the bat, playing our game”, Trott related.

Coach of Anguilla- Jason Liburd, thumbed, “passing” and “setting”, for his team’s demise.

“We had issues passing… The setting was (also) really the problem why we couldn’t really get over the hump, but not being able to fix the passing in the situation, was our downfall”, Liburd bemoaned.

A dejected Anguilla’s Captain Rikiesha Leveret, acknowledged that losing the match, left her “down”.

This as she felt, “I feel we could have played a better game… We just needed the passes and that’s a crucial part of the game… To get the passes up to get the play going; if there are no passes, there is no play”.

Despite the disconsolateness, Leveret still has faith in her players, to rebound in the remaining matches.

Match eight pits Antigua and Barbuda against St Maarten.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 19, 2024: In a thrilling match, Antigua and Barbuda triumphed in five sets, 3-2 (18-25, 25-18, 20-25, 25-20, 15-10), in the sixth encounter of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Women’s Tournament, held at the YMCA Sports Complex.

On several occasions, both teams tied and exchanged leads, alternating set wins, but it was Antigua and Barbuda who prevailed over Grenada in this exciting five-set match.

Antigua and Barbuda was indebted to the crowd support that rallied around them when the chips were down, as Grenada clawed back ever so often in the contest.

However, the two teams were guilty of incurring errors at critical points of the match, giving advantage to each other.

Antigua and Barbuda thus, after two matches is unbeaten, while Grenada remained winless, also after the same number of outings.

Following the nerve wracking, energy sapping match, Olsen Joseph, the triumphant coach on the night, said that nerves on the part of the younger players, allowed Grenada back in the match.

“The younger players that we have, the nerves got the better of them as they tried not to make any mistakes and that caused them to make mistakes”, Joseph opined.

Meanwhile, Rosemarie Simon, Captain and Libero of the Antigua and Barbuda team commented, “We did not expect to play five sets, but the mode of the game changed… I think we weren’t settled enough, then we (eventually) found our footing, and tried to work together as a team”.

Simon said that they will be drawing on the match as a fillip to condition themselves to go to five sets, so “we can know what the strengths and weaknesses are, with the combinations we have”.

Match number seven features Bermuda and Anguilla.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 19, 2024:  In a match that had all the elements of a true duel, Bermuda came from set down to register an epic win over pre – championship favourites St Lucia.

When the last ball dropped, it was Bermuda that had improved their status with a 3-2 (15-25, 25-19, 18-25, 25-21, 15-9) win in the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Women’s Championships here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

The win put the Bermudians to a 2: 0 win/ loss ratio in the six- team championships, whilst St Lucia goes 1:1.

The humdinger of a contest, saw both teams not giving much, neither asked for any benevolences, fighting tooth and nail, to gain ascendancy and supremacy.

Bermuda’s Head Coach- Shalae Rae, who was smiling from ear to ear, in a post- match remarked: “Nothing like a win that you really had to work for …We came in pretty blind, but watched the warm up and adjusted the game as we went along”.

Rae added, “We had a team that was really, really tired… St Lucia was giving us a run for our money, they had big blocks, strong attacks and we had to adjust and when they scored points they earned those points, so it was our job to clean up our mistakes, clean up our serves and we also had to make some strategic adjustments”.

Rae thought that the timely insertion of 15- year-old Olivia Gazzard, a setter, was one of the turning points of the match to their advantage.

Delighted with the historic win, Bermuda’s Captain- Kaylee Trott said of team mates, “They held their ground and were able to get back up out of our rot fast after that first set and am really proud of them …We plan to keep the same momentum for the rest of the championships”.

Contrarily, the countenance of St Lucia Head Coach- Kendell Charlery was glum.

A disappointed Charlery apportioned blame on the defeat to “a procession of errors” on his team’s part.

“Defensive errors cost us many points at crucial times in the game…The game exposed many areas that we need to tighten up on moving forward in the competition”.

Whilst congratulating Bermuda on a “job well done”, St Lucia’s Captain- Cindy Wilson “We played our game very slowly… At times we became very complacent but we look forward to doing a better job in our upcoming games”.

The championships continue with Grenada facing Antigua and Barbuda.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 18, 2024:  Antigua and Barbuda recorded a workmanlike 3-0 (25-8, 28-26, 25-18) to get the home crowd going, in match two of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Women’s Tournament, here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

After winning the first set with some ease, Antigua and Barbuda met a roadblock in the second set, as the Anguillans displayed character and intent.

However, the Antiguans recalibrated in the third set to hold on to win and set themselves in good stead for the remainder of the tournament.

Buoyed by the win, it was a happy Head Coach of Antigua and Barbuda- Olsen Joseph.

“It was a nice little experience for the first game, we have some little things that we have to work out but all in all it was okay”, Joseph stated.

Joseph however disclosed that the issue of communication on the court among players will be addressed, as according to him, “We need to be more focused on what we are doing”.

Meanwhile, Antigua and Barbuda’s Captain- Rosemarie Simon proffered: “I am excited, because over the years, Anguilla has been a team that fights to the end and we expected, however, with our rounded team, we had service going for us and we were working together”.

“In the second set, we got a little bit flustered, committing little errors, but we came out in the third set adamant that we were going to execute and that was exactly what we did”, Simon added.

In his commiseration, Head Coach of Anguilla, Jason Liburd believed that had the nervy second set gone their way the outcome could have been different.

“The first set was like a warm up; the second I think we should have won and the third set was not out of hand… It was a disappointing end to the match, but I think we would learn from here”, Liburd assessed

Reflecting on her team’s overall performance, Anguilla’s Captain – Rikiesha Leveret, commented, “After we lost the first set, our coach was on the side encouraging us …So for the second set we were prepared, as we saw who were serving, who were attacking and we were able to talk about it on the sideline and become better”,

Both Liburd and Leveret assured that they possess the attributes to play better and get positive results in their ensuing matches.

Match three sees Bermuda taking on St Maarten.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua and Barbuda, October 18, 2024:  St Lucia completed an uncomplicated 3-0(25-20, 25-9, 25-10) dismantling of Grenada, in match one of the 2024 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Senior Women’s Tournament, here at the YMCA Sports Complex.

St Lucia though had to fight hard to ward off a busy Grenada team in the first set, but found their groove thereafter, whilst Grenada’s energy dropped appreciably.

As such, St Lucia made the full use of the court attacking the Grenadians from different areas, forcing them into errors.

Commenting on his team’s win, St Lucia’s Head Coach- Kendell Charlery assessed:” We were a little bit cold but all in all in the end, we showed our muscle and at the same time, maintained our composure”.

Despite winning the contest with some ease in the end, Charlery thought a “better start” was needed by his players.

Joining Charley in the assessment of the opening match, St Lucia’s captain Cindy Wilson, whilst commending the overall performance of the team, noted, “It feels good; we came prepared, we stuck to our game plan, and gained the victory”.

The sentiments from the Grenada camp were understandably different.

Conceding that his team did not play their best Volleyball on the night, Head Coach of the Grenada outfit- Raphael Brathwaite related, “There is not much to be said because of the standard at which these girls could play, it is hard to find some positive…Not that we are making excuse, but it was a case of tiredness… Having said that, I expect a better showing in the next match, because we are a better team than what was put out here tonight”.

Similarly, Grenada’s Captain- Ezia Paul concurred, “The thing about the ladies, is when we are up there, we are up there but once we go down it is hard to bring back the team”.

Paul promised to lead from the front and endeavour to motivate her team mates in the remaining matches.

Match two pits Antigua and Barbuda versus Anguilla.

St. JOHN’s  ANTIGUA , July  10,  2022 – Antigua and Barbuda did not wilt under the pressure and  came from two sets down to win 3-2(23-25, 23-25, 25-18, 26-24, 15-11)  over St Lucia, and  emerge as champions of the 2022 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships.

It was an eruption of joy by players and spectators when the final point was attained for Antigua and Barbuda, at the YMCA Indoor Facility.

But, the eventual winners looked dead and buried after being down two sets to nil, but some tactical adjustments, saw them surging back from the third set, whilst St Lucia began to mount their errors.

Antigua and Barbuda’s scoring was led by Adrian Constant who hit 20 points. Aiding him were Jamarie James and Cairon Davis, who both scored 15 points.

For St Lucia, Tevin St Jean scored 20; Sheldon Descartes- 17 and Anfernee Ferdinand  had 12.

On the night, Antigua and Barbuda were proficient on Blocks, winning 22-9. St Lucia though won on Attacks 46-43 and Serve aces 6-2.

Winning the title, was welcomed by Antigua and Barbuda’s Head Coach- Fitzroy  Benjamin.

With a smile from ear to ear, Benjamin disclosed the formula used to subdue the St Lucians.

“ We changed the line- up, by taking our number seven (Cairon Davis), our tallest player and putting him in the middle… He was able to get some good blocks from the second set onwards and that helped us”. Benjamin related.

He also listed apparent fatigue amongst the St Lucians as well as the vociferous Antigua home support, which contributed to them rebounding from the third set.

“ They were looking tired and began dinking the ball low so our defence stepped … We had the home crowd behind us and that helped us big time”, Benjamin added.

For the St Lucia Head Coach- Terry Verdant, it was a case of his team did not get their game together on the big occasion.

“They were not blocking and were rushing the game and even when they went to the front court, they did not focus on the position of their opponents and that would have worked against us”, Verdant analysed.

He however praised his players for their efforts in spite of not crossing the final.

Final standings: 1. Antigua and Barbuda 2. St Lucia  3. St Maarten 4. Grenada 5. St Vincent and the Grenadines 6. Bermuda 7. St Kitts and Nevis 8. Dominica 9. Anguilla.

St. JOHN’s  ANTIGUA , July  10,  2022:  Antigua and Barbuda’s Adrian Constant was named the Most Valuable Player in the 2022 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships.

The left handed Constant, who plays in the Opposite position, was also named Best Opposite and Best Scorer.

Speaking soon after receiving the awards, Constant said that he does not set out to gain personal accolades, as he is more focused on the team’s accomplishments.

“ I only set goals to be consistent and help my team”, Constant admitted.

He however embraced the awards.

“But it feels really good, as it just shows all the work that I have put in, with coaches, without coaches is paying off”, the MVP commented.

Other awardees

Best Setter

Jahmal Small – St Vincent and the Grenadines

Best Outside Hitters

Jamarie James – Antigua and Barbuda

Sheldon Descartes- St Lucia

Best Middle Blockers

Tevin St Jean – St Lucia

Ethan Bolan – Dominica

Best Server

Yahn Florent- Dominica

Best Spiker

Ethan Bolan – Dominica

Best Receiver

Yashid Auguiste – Dominica

Best Libero

Shevon Gludd – Grenada

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July  10,  2022 –  St Maarten conjured up skills and determination, to record a straightforward 3-0 (25- 23, 25-14, 25-20)  win over Grenada and take the bronze medal in the 2022 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships here at the YMCA Indoor Facility.

Thus, St Maarten put the disappointment of losing to Antigua and Barbuda in the semi-final, to be sharper and more efficient in all components of the game, while , who lost to St Lucia in the other semi-final, never found any momentum.

Leonardo Jeffers led St Maarten’s scoring with 12 points. For Grenada , Jerron Phillip had 13 points.

St Maarten finished with a 4:2 win/ loss ratio, while Grenada secured three wins and the same number of losses.

Head Coach of the St Maarten outfit, Clayton Holiday, was happy that his team was able to finish on a high.

Satisfied, that his charges were able to rebound after their loss in the semi -final, Holiday quipped,” Coaches lose games, players win games”.

Looking back on his team’s triumph over the Grenadians, Holiday stated: “ I really wanted to play against them in the semi- finals, but I am happy that the guys closed off  the championships, the way they did”.

Evaluating his team’s performance in the championships, Holiday summed up, “Overall, considered we are not seen as one of the top brass and look at what we have done  going through the preliminaries and clinching the third place 3-0;  I am very proud”.

JOHN’S, Antigua, July 9, 2022 – St Lucia kept the unbeaten run in the 2022 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships, with a 3-2 ( 26-28, 25-22, 23-25, 25-21, 15-12) win over Grenada in the semi -final the YMCA Indoor Facility.

St Lucia’s win though was punctuated with some nervy moments, as the pugnacious Grenada team did not let up on the well drilled unit.

Sheldon Descartes and Anfernee Ferdinand, both registered 17 points each for St Lucia and Tevin St Jean added 16.

For Grenada, Darron Oxford had 19 points; Dwane Walcott – 15 and Akim Andrews- 14.

Despite losing, Grenada was more clinical in Attacks, making good 62 of 150, while St Lucia had 49 of their 133 counted.

St Lucia though was outstanding in Blocks, as they registered 16 to Grenada’s 8. It was Grenada the won the Serve aces, 6-4.

But St Lucia’s Head Coach- Terry Verdant, while happy for the win, was not entirely convinced with the output of his charges on the court.

“ We won but we did not do what we suppose to be doing, but I am confident going into the final, but we have to play to win and lessen some of the mistakes that we made here in the semi- finals against Grenada”, Verdant underscored.

In the case of Grenada’s Coach- Raphael Braithwaite, he believed his players were good on the night, but fell short.

“ My boys, their heads may be down, but I am really satisfied that we came out of the semi-finals as winners, despite not reaching the final and I personally, am not disappointed coming in third or fourth”, Braithwaite assessed.

He thought that experience carried St Lucia over the line.

“They came out and played a good game as you can see they are more experienced that we are…Congratulations to St Lucia”, Braithwaite submitted.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 9, 2022 –  Antigua and Barbuda advanced to the gold medal match of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships, with a 3-1 ( 22-25, 25- 21, 25-22 , 27-25)  hard fought battle against  St Maarten, here at the YMCA Indoor Facility.

Going into the semi- final as the first place in Pool A, Antigua and Barbuda was put on the back foot in the first set by a St Maarten team that drew on all their experiences.

However, the home team rallied back in the other three sets to finally cross the line and a place in the final.

Again, Antigua and Barbuda’s Captain- Adrian Constant was almost unstoppable, as he poured in 30 points. He was ably assisted by Jamarie James, who contributed 22 points.

For St Maarten, Reigmar Vallies had 18 points, Rajheem  Muelens– 14 and Leonardo Jeffers- 13 points.

Antigua and Barbuda was more proficient on Attacks, winning 61 of their 117, while St Maarten made good 44 of their 115.

Likewise, the Antiguans were better on Blocks 10-5, however, St Maarten aced 7 serves to Antigua and Barbuda’s -2.

Antigua and Barbuda’s Constant who led from the front in many aspects of the semi- finals,  remarked in a post -match interview, “  It was a roller coaster game for us emotionally, because at times the other team was completely out of it and we were on top and there were times they were on top of us and we were out of it”.

Constant thus praised the home crowd’s response in his team’s time of need.

“ The crowd kept us 70/80% and we just needed to find the other 20”, Constant related.

Looking forward to the final versus St Lucia, Constant quipped: “ When you are in the final, you are expected to win”.

Joining Constant in lauding the performance of the Antigua and Barbuda team was Rosemarie Simon, the Assistant Coach.

A happy Simon said:” My players came into the semi- final with a mission and that was to leave and go to the final and we did that”.

“ There were times when we were down and we had to pull the guys back together, but overall they played a splendid game”, the female Assistant Coach commented.

Anticipating that Antigua and Barbuda will trump St Lucia, Simon projected that her team has what it takes to go all the way and take gold.

And, in spite of losing the match, St Maarten Head Coach- Clayton Holiday, was high in praise for his team.

Holiday assessed: “ I  am proud of the way they played… My guys did well … It is regrettable that they ran short of courage to press on when we took the lead, but I must give them credit from rebounding from the previous match against St Lucia… We made some changes which panned out well”.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 9, 2022 – St Vincent and the Grenadines  and  St Kitts and Nevis took the minor places  in the 2022 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships Facility.

St Vincent and the Grenadines dismissed Bermuda 3-0 ( 25-20, 25-10, 25-20) to gain the fifth spot.

Daryl Franklyn scored 15 points and Ronaldo Franklyn registered 14 for St Vincent and the Grenadines, with Tyler Hurdle scoring 9 for Bermuda.

Meanwhile while St Kitts and Nevis edged out Dominica  3-2 (25-17, 19-25, 25-13, 17-25, 22-20), to cop the seventh place in the nine team championships.

For St Kitts and Nevis, the joint leading scorers were Nage Hendrickson and Zendai Richards, who both had 16 points. Dominica’s Yahn Florent had 21 points for his team.

Daryl Franklyn- SVG’s Captain

Reviewing their final match, Franklyn said: “ All we needed was some adequate rest as you in the beginning of the competition, we played basically three matches in the less than 24 hours and that took a toll us”.

“ Placing fifth was not the position we expected, because we were the defending champions, but I see great things in the future for the team, as most are under 25 , so just have to regroup and come back stronger”, Frankly proffered.

St Kitts and Nevis Head Coach- Richard Swan

“ It has been a learning experience for many of these young guys that we have and they have learnt… They have learnt how to take better care of their bodies… They had two games in one day and playing four matches  in less than 36 hours , but they fought had and we were able to gain two wins from our five matches and that is commendable for our team”, Swan reflected.

Bermuda’s Head Coach- Robert Saraiva

“ I think we put it all on the court… My guys went out there and gave it their all and I am proud of all of them”, Saraiva said.

Dominica’s Head Coach- Ericson LeBlanc

“ I am not disappointed in my team… We have not played competitive Volleyball as a country in about four years and we are basically building back a brand of Volleyball over the years with  youths because the youths are the future … We are building back… Throughout the region, there is a rebranding of Volleyball as almost every team is starting over with fresh players and those who are hungrier will take it”, LeBlanc commented.

St Vincent and the Grenadines had 2 win and 2 losses; Bermuda registered three wins and two losses, while St Kitts and Nevis won two matches and lost three. Dominica did not register a win from their four matches. 

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 9, 2022:   Antigua and Barbuda to close out the preliminary phase of the 2022 Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships, with a 3-1 ( 22-25, 25- 11, 25-20 , 25-11) trumping over St Kitts and Nevis at the YMCA Indoor Facility.

The win gave Antigua and Barbuda a semi- final berth from Pool A.

Grenada, Antigua and Barbuda and Bermuda, all finished with a 3:1 win/loss ratio, however,  Antigua and Barbuda topped Pool A, with Grenada – second and Bermuda – third.

Antigua  and Barbuda’s Captain- Adrian Constant ensured there was no letting up, as he led from the from pouring in 23 points. He was assisted by Jamarie James, who had 11 points.

For St Kitts and Nevis, Nage Hendrickson contributed 12 points.

Reacting to his team’s win Constant said in a post -match interview: “ We have achieved what we had set out to do and that was to reach the semi- finals and getting to the semi- finals, means that you are one of the good teams”.

Constant said that his team is mentally prepared for the semi- final challenge.

Meanwhile, Rosemarie Simon, Antigua and Barbuda’s Assistant Coach, said that her team came with one mission to dominate St  Kitts and Nevis, hoping to win 3-0.

According to Simon: “ The guys got a little flustered, but pulled ourselves together and win the game and into the semi- finals”.

Simon underscored that the players generally rise to the big occasions and she foresees no exception in the semi- finals.

Antigua and Barbuda  will play second place in Pool B, St Maarten, while Pool B winner- St Lucia takes on Grenada, in the semi- final match ups.

In the case of St Kitts and Nevis, who ended Pool A with a solitary win and three losses, their Captain- James Matthew commended his players for their output.

“ I am impressed with the guys because it is a young and inexperienced team, and we are prepared to develop the talents we possess and come stronger next time”, Matthew commented.

The next  match is the championships, is the play off fixture for the seventh and eighth places, featuring St Kitts and Nevis and Dominica. St Kitts and Nevis ended fourth in Pool A, likewise Dominica in Pool B.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 8, 2022 – Grenada beat the previously undefeated Bermuda 3-0 ( 25-20, 25-22, 25-17) to remain perfect in Pool A of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships at the YMCA Indoor Facility. 

Darron Oxford continued his rich vein of scoring form with 11 points for Grenada. For Bermuda, Tyler Hurdle scored 10 points. 

Bermuda won the Blocks segment, 7-5, with Grenada trumping the serve aces, 9-7. 

For Grenada’s Head Coach- Raphael Braithwaite, it is seldom that his team is able to put together three wins on the trot. 

“ This is not normal for us to start that well, but I welcome it puts us basically in the semi-finals”, Braithwaite remarked. 

Whilst lauding the efforts of his players, Braithwaite that Bermuda brought the game to them, but they were able to respond in like manner. 

Braithwaite is looking forward to his team’s match up versus home team Antigua and Barbuda which he plans to use as a rehearsal for the semi- finals. 

His opposite number- Robert Saraiva believe that the defeat was a “ humble pie”, taken them down from the ecstatic feelings from their two previous winning outings. 

“ It cannot all go well, but we have to keep our heads up and prepare for our next match against St Kitts and Nevis and hopefully we can get maximum points and bid strongly for s semi- final place”, Saraiva commented.  

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 8, 2022 – St Lucia registered a 3-1( 25- 20, 25-18, 28-30, 25-17) triumph over St Maarten to book the top place in Pool B of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships at the YMCA Indoor Facility.

St Lucia took one hour and 53 minutes to complete the win, thus ended the Pool flawless, trumping all three matches.

There were four players who were double figures contributors for St Lucia.

Sheldon Descartes scored 18 points; Tevin St Jean- 16, Anfernee Ferdinand- 13 and 10 came from Darnel Eudoxie.

Scoring the bulk of the points for St Maarten were Rajheem Meulens with 17 and 13 were scored by Riegmar Valies.

St Lucia’s Head Coach- Terry Verdant, despite the margin of victory, was not satisfied with the various passages of play.

“ We struggled a lot in the reception in the third set and although we were able to make amends in the fourth set, overall we have to improve in this area in our semi- final match”, Verdant emphasised.

Clayton Holiday, Head Coach of St Maarten  after the match stated: “ We were unable to put it together in this the last preliminary match… We had a break in between the matches and that did not work for us … We start again in the semi-finals and I believe the guys have what it takes

Holiday said he, his coaching staff and players are ready and raring for whosoever are their semi- final opponents.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 8, 2022 –   St Kitts and Nevis got off the mark with a 3-1(25-27, 25-16, 25-18, 25-11)  win over Anguilla in Pool A of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships at the YMCA Indoor Facility. 

Anguilla jumped out at the Kittians, to win the first set, but lost their way in the other three sets that followed. 

Accounting for St Kitts and Nevis’ scoring were Zendai Richards and Aziel Belle, who registered 22 and 21 points, respectively. 

For Anguilla, the lead scorer was Captain Calvin Samuel, who recorded 13 points. 

St Kitts and Nevis led on Blocks 5-4 and service aces, 7-5. 

It was a win that was welcomed by St Kitts and Nevis’ Head Coach- Richard Swan, who was delighted in the efforts on the court by his charges. 

“ I was excited to see our players knowing how to compete… We struggled and got frustrated a little bit in set one, but stayed composed in the other sets and at the same time gained greater confidence”,  Swan analysed.  

Swan was also happy that the players were bettering their skills during the match. 

“During the match, we got better, the players learnt as they went along and that is what I want to see… They learn and improve and do so rapidly”, Swan advanced. 

Likewise pleased with his team’s efforts, was Anguilla’s Head Coach- Jason Liburd. 

“ We were able to take a set and that was commendable and all along there was evident improvements among the players and that is what I am pleased for coming out to a competitive tournament like this”, Liburd related. 

He assessed that from the four matches played by Anguilla, it was all about “upward movement”. 

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 8, 2022 – Antigua and Barbuda inflicted a 3-0 ( 25-21, 25-18, 25-21) defeat on the high -flying Grenada in match 15 of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships at the YMCA Indoor Facility. 

The decisive match in Pool A, saw the home team never allowing Grenada a foot hold in the match. Antigua and Barbuda, buoyed by home support pressed gas from the get go, and never looked back. 

Led by the left -handed Adrian Constant, with 17 points and Jamarie James- 14 points, Antigua and Barbuda, won an additional 11 points on Blocks. 

For Grenada, Darron Oxford, came away with 15 points. 

The win though set up Antigua and Barbuda’s final match against St Kitts and Nevis, is critical to the two teams that will advance to the semi- finals from the Pool. 

Head Coach of the Antigua and Barbuda team, Fitzroy Benjamin heaped praises on his charges for the execution of the game plan. 

“The guys did well with proper execution of the game plan”, Benjamin lauded.  

Going into some technicalities, Benjamin informed, “ We tried not to go into the centre line and hit the back court , but we had some difficulties in stopping their middle blocker”.  

On the downside, Benjamin lamented, “We have some serving errors which we must correct going forward”. 

But for Head Coach of Grenada- Raphael Braithwaite, the intensity of the championships, affected them.  

“Not to make any excuses, but we had a very hard game against Bermuda and that took a toll on the players as the tiredness showed up in this match”, Braithwaite explained.  

On the other side, according to Braithwaite, “ Antigua and Barbuda came out and had a very good game… I must say it is the best they have played in the championships so far and they caught us struggling to find consistency”.  

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 8, 2022 –   Bermuda ensured that there were no more hiccups, as they pushed for a semi- final berth, by stopping St Kitts and Nevis 3-0 ( 25-21, 25-12, 25-14) in Pool A  of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships at the YMCA Indoor Facility. 

Bermuda thus ended the preliminary phase with a 3:1 win/loss ratio, while St Kitts and Nevis, with a game in hand, has one win and two losses.  

The pair of Tyler Hurdle and Eron Woods, each registered 14 points for the Bermudans, while for St Kitts and Nevis, the topscorer was Aziel Belle, with 11 points.  

Putting his team’s efforts into perspective, Head Coach of Bermuda, Robert Saraiva, stated, “It was a slow start… We had to get the engine warm before start kicking off”. 

Saraiva accepted that at times, St Kitts and Nevis caused them a few anxious moments, but “give it away at some crucial moments”.  

Meanwhile, Kyle Hamilton, the Bermuda team’s  Captain remarked, “It is an incredible feeling… We started off a little bit slowly, but we told one another we can go forward and win this match with a 3-0…We want to get the medal round and that is what we are playing for”.  

In review of his team’s efforts, Head Coach of St Kitts and Nevis- Richard Swan, apportioned defeat on the strengths of the Bermuda team, as well as his team’s deficiencies. 

“ Bermuda was a solid team; They practically served us off the court  and we never found a rhythm and struggled badly with our ball control and it was always trying to battle back”. Swan summed up. 

“We gave then easy opportunities to score and we did not keep the pressure on them”, Swam added. 

Despite the loss, Swan is hopeful for a better showing in their final match up against Antigua and Barbuda. 

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 7, 2022 – St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), ended the preliminary round of Pool B with a 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-20 ) triumph over Dominica of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships at the YMCA Indoor Facility.

The best scoreR for St Vincent and the Grenadines was Ronaldo Franklyn who had 20 points and for Dominica, Keaun Reefe had 6 points.

SVG thus ended the Group stage with a 2-1 win-loss ratio.

Coach of the St Vincent and the Grenadines team – Eardley Martin said that it was good for the team to deliver a win, amidst the travails.

“ We ended it with a win in our preliminary round, and to do so 3-0 against Dominica gives us an outside chance still for a  fight semi- final place”, Martin reasoned.

He said that they will await the outcome of the St Lucia versus St Maarten match, as it can go down to points and sets, depending on the margin among the teams.

Martin noted that should St Lucia beat St Maarten in straight sets, will set up the application of the permutations.

Losing Dominica Head Coach, was evidently disappointed that his charges did not execute his plans.

“We came in with a game plan, which was to go through the middle because, I have noticed that St Vincent and the Grenadines does not defend well through the middle, but unfortunately my team did not carry out that plan and there is where we lost the match

LeBlanc  further disclosed that  he insisted that the St Vincent and the Grenadines team was tired, hence called on his players to capitalize on this.

“I told them that the St Vincent and the Grenadines team was tired as they had little sleep and had had already played two matches, whilst we only played one, but the guys got excited, did not capitalize on this… They lost focus and lost the match”, LeBlanc recalled with disappointment.

ST JOHN’S,  Antigua, July 7, 2022 – Grenada took down a youthful St Kitts and Nevis 3-0 ( 25-21, 25-22, 25-16), as the two got their Pool A campaign going, in the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships, here at the YMCA Indoor Facility. 

Darron Oxford scored a game high 12 points for Grenada and for St Kitts and Nevis, Aziel Belle scored 9 for his team. 

Grenada outdid St Kitts and Nevis in Blocks, 7-3 and had 37 successful attacks,  as against St Kitts and Nevis’ 10. 

Oxford, speaking on behalf of his team said that it was good to get a win under their belt from the start. 

“ It is a good feeling to get this first win… We had the right energy coming into this game… We realise also that we were a bit more experienced than the Kittians, which seem to be a young team”, Oxford related.  

He however, said that his team is bracing for the anticipated “opposition” from the other teams in Pool A.  

Accepting that his team lacks experience at this level, St Kitts and Nevis Coach- Ricard Swan said:  “  We have a bunch of young players who are getting their first exposure at this level and for me they did a good job… They came out hard, but there are a lot of things we need to work on”. 

Rating his team’s performance versus Grenada, Swan stated: “ I will put it down the middle, about 5 or 6 out of 10, but as I said, we are here to develop the young talent that we have…. Get them to look at the other teams and gain the experience”. 

St Kitts and Nevis Captain- James Matthew sees playing alongside the bunch of new players as “ inspirational”. 

Despite the youthfulness of the team, Matthew is hoping that they learn fast, and at leave an impression on the tournament. 

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 7, 2022 – Bermuda came from  two sets down to beat Antigua and Barbuda  3-2 in a Pool B humdinger of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships at the YMCA Indoor Facility. 

The host, bolstered by partisan home support, won the first two sets, 25-22, 25-20, but Bermuda took the third 27-25 and the fourth 28-26, to set up a grand stand finish. 

Bermuda took the early lead in the decisive fifth set, and held their nerve to win 15-11.

The top scorers for Bermuda were  Kyle Hamilton who had 18 points; Eron Woods- 16 points and Ryan Davies – 13 points. 

For Antigua and Barbuda, Adrian Constant scored 28 points and Jamanie James had 21 points.  

A delighted Bermuda Head Coach- Robert Saraiva in assessment of the match, related: “ The Antiguans did not let up on us and with the crowd behind them it put a lot of pressure on us… But we just fought back, we did not have anything lose… We came here to do the best we can and we proved that in this match, especially in the last three sets”.  

Equally elated for the come from behind win was Bermuda’s Captain- Kyle Hamilton, who gave his piece. 

“We were a little nervous with the home support, so we came out in the third set and said we were going to give it our all… We were able to take it to five sets and eventually won”, Hamilton beamed with joy. 

A dejected Head Coach of Antigua Barbuda- Fitzroy Benjamin, thumbed the loss of momentum on his team’s defeat. 

“We started off well, but the players lapsed with their passing and at times were flat footed and allowed Bermuda to get back into the game”, Benjamin noted. 

Meanwhile, Constant- Antigua and Barbuda’s team, believed that his team mates paid too much attention on things which did not go their way, hence lost focus during the last three sets. 

Constant though wants to see his team refocus for the other matches.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 7, 2022- Bermuda stuck to the basics, to register a 3-0 ( 25-15, 25-22, 27-25) win over Anguilla in match four of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships at the YMCA Indoor Facility.

Leading Bermuda’s scoring was their captain- Kyle Hamilton, who registered 11 points, while Hamilton’s opposite number – Calvin Samuel, had 8 points for his team.

Team wise, Bermuda led in Attacks, 30-14, but registered 41 errors, in contrast to Anguilla’s 40.

For coach of the Bermuda team- Robert Saraiva, it was simply getting the job done.

“ We came here to play our basic game… We did not try anything fancy  we stuck to what we know just the fundamentals, hence we try to build on everyone focusing on the basics “, Saraiva assessed.

Noting that it was good to be back in the fray, Saraiva added, “ We have not been to one of these tournaments for quite a while, so we will be making the best of the experience and obviously, like the other teams, we are here to win”.

Team leader- Hamilton in assessing the win said: “It was a good victory for us a  team I was pleased with our services and our passing… We will be looking to build on this victory in our other matches”.

Meanwhile, Anguilla’s Coach- Jason Liburd: “ I must say that we played a lot better than in our first match versus Antigua and I felt we should have won the last two sets but some unforced errors cost us the match”.

“ This is what we came here for and we are achieving our goal, that is to get better and better with every match”, Liburd indicated.

Match five of the tournament pits St Maarten against St Vincent and the Grenadines in Pool B.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 7, 2022 – Grenada saw off Anguilla 3-0 (25-17, 25-17, 25-20) in Pool A of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships, here at the YMCA Indoor Facility. 

The win put the Grenadians 2:0 in their win/ loss ratio, having defeated St Kitts and Nevis in their opening match. 

For Grenada, Darren Oxford and  Nikel John, both scored 7 points each, while for Anguilla, the lead scorer was Calvin Samuel with 16 points. 

Raphael Braithwaite, Head Coach of the Grenada outfit,  was complimentary on his players’ execution of their duties in the match. 

“ We made it simple… We did not allow the Anguillans to get into the match… All in all,  it was a good win for the team, and hopefully we can continue in this vein”, Braithwaite related after the encounter. 

The Grenada Head Coach though anticipates stiffer competition in his team’s upcoming matches. 

“ We have to continue to prepare as we expect more challenges in the matches to come”, Braithwaite projected. 

Meanwhile, sticking to his mantra of “ improving”, Head Coach of the Anguilla team- Jason Liburd, believed his script continues to stay true to form. 

“ As I said from the start, we are here to improve and that is taking place and this is evident from the improved score line in each match”, Liburd supported. 

ST JOHN ‘S, Antigua, July 6, 2022 – St Lucia and arch rivals St Vincent traded points and sets, but St Lucia finally trumped 25-22, 18-25, 25-23, 15-13, in an epic battle of the Saints, as Pool B  of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships heated up at the YMCA Indoor Facility.

With no quarter given and none asked, Asmond Franklyn made good of 28 points for the Vincentians, while his team mates Jahmal Small and Jamaar Cropper each registered 14 points.

Tevin St Jean had 11 points for St Lucia, to be his team’s top scorer.

St Vincent and the Grenadines outdid St Lucia in Blocks 11-8 and Serves 5-2. But it was St Lucia who conceded fewer errors- 38 to St Vincent and the Grenadines’ 47.

A beaming St Lucia Head Coach Terry  Verdant was bubbling for the win.  

“ I am feeling great, because in our last two outings, St Vincent and the Grenadines had beaten St Lucia and for me that was not normal so I had to take revenge tonight”, Verdant said.

Stating that his team made some adjustments during the match, Verdant commented: “We tried to play an easier game, because at the beginning we were trying to rush the game… In addition,  we noticed that they wanted the ball cross court, so began to block them inside”.

Verdant’s opposite number – Eardley Martin was gracious in defeat.  

According to Martin, “The guys played their hearts out … Playing St Lucia is never always easy… We know each other and there will always be that type of intensity between the two”.

Martin believed that despite the loss , he is confident of his players resetting and coming back stronger in their remaining matches.

“We started the competition and we are going to end it”, Martin projected of a St Vincent and the Grenadines versus St Lucia final.

Match four in the tournament features Anguilla and Bermuda in Pool A.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 6, 2022 – Nine teams divided into two Pools  will battle for honours in the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships here at the YMCA Indoor Facility. 

In Pool A are St Kitts and Nevis, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda,  Grenada, and Bermuda, with St Vincent and the Grenadines, St Lucia, Dominica and St Martin stashed in Pool B. 

The robin format serves off today, Wednesday July 6, with three matches.  

Serving off the Championships will be the Pool B fixture between Dominica and St Martin from 1800hours today. The encounter between Antigua and Barbuda and St Kitts and Nevis follows from 2000hours, with St Vincent and the Grenadines meeting St Lucia from 2200hours.  

The intense championships the host six matches on Thursday July 7  and Friday, July 8. 

On Saturday, July 9, the last Pool A match is carded, along with the two semi-finals featuring the two top place finishers from each Pool., along with the play offs for the minor places- 5^th/6^th places as well as the 7^th/8^th.  

Sunday hosts the grand finale involving the two semi- finals winners . The play off for the 3^rd/4^th spots, precede the Final. 

The Championships will be played under strict covid- 19 guidelines , inclusive of no shaking of hands among players; regular sanitizing of all match balls and minimal physical interaction of teams.  

It is the first time since 2019, that the ECVA  is hosting any of its championships. 

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 6, 2022 –  St Maarten dug deep to beat Dominica  3-2, as Pool B  of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships got going here at the YMCA Indoor Facility.

St Maarten thus defeated Dominica 25-23, 22-25, 22-25, 25-23, 15-9, in a ding- dong tussle for early honours.

Leading the scoring for St Maarten was Riegmar Valies with 18 points and Lenoard Jeffers recorded 17 points.

Dominica’s Captain- Yahn Florent was the leading scorer for his team with 25 points,

In  a post -match interview St Maarten Head Coach – Clayton Holiday assessed: “My guys started off well, but lost a little focus, eventually they walked back into their game and they did what was necessary …It was a case about mind over matter, as we had the will power to win”.

The St Maarten Head Coach said that he detected a flaw in the Dominica’s play, in which they had difficulty in dealing with balls in position one, and his team exploited this to good effect

Meanwhile, St Maarten Captain- Leonard  Jeffers stated, “  It was a wonderful game… We came up with a well- balanced team, having experienced players and new ones and the coaches did a phenomenal job by bringing in the right players at the right time, causing the team to mesh perfectly… I cannot complain”.

Looking forward to the rest of the tournament,  Jeffers said “ We can only get better.

For Dominica , Florent said, “ I thought we had it but our service and passing let us down”.

Facing their next opponents, Florent is cognisant of the abilities of the St Vincent and the Grenadines team, but said that they will be looking to correct their flaws in order to stay in contention for a semi- final berth.

Joining Florent in reviewing his team’ first match, Head Coach- Ericson Le Blanc reported : “ It is always disappointing when you lose, but on the night the other team wanted it more than we did … We have to go back to the drawing board ad take some decisions so going forward in the next game we can do better”.

Match two in the tournament is in Pool A, pitting Antigua and Barbuda versus Anguilla.

ST JOHN’S, Antigua, July 6, 2022 –  St Maarten dug deep to beat Dominica  3-2, as Pool B  of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships got going here at the YMCA Indoor Facility.

St Maarten thus defeated Dominica 25-23, 22-25, 22-25, 25-23, 15-9, in a ding- dong tussle for early honours.

Leading the scoring for St Maarten was Riegmar Valies with 18 points and Lenoard Jeffers recorded 17 points.

Dominica’s Captain- Yahn Florent was the leading scorer for his team with 25 points,

In  a post -match interview St Maarten Head Coach – Clayton Holiday assessed: “My guys started off well, but lost a little focus, eventually they walked back into their game and they did what was necessary …It was a case about mind over matter, as we had the will power to win”.

The St Maarten Head Coach said that he detected a flaw in the Dominica’s play, in which they had difficulty in dealing with balls in position one, and his team exploited this to good effect

Meanwhile, St Maarten Captain- Leonard  Jeffers stated, “  It was a wonderful game… We came up with a well- balanced team, having experienced players and new ones and the coaches did a phenomenal job by bringing in the right players at the right time, causing the team to mesh perfectly… I cannot complain”.

Looking forward to the rest of the tournament,  Jeffers said “ We can only get better.

For Dominica , Florent said, “ I thought we had it but our service and passing let us down”.

Facing their next opponents, Florent is cognisant of the abilities of the St Vincent and the Grenadines team, but said that they will be looking to correct their flaws in order to stay in contention for a semi- final berth.

Joining Florent in reviewing his team’ first match, Head Coach- Ericson Le Blanc reported : “ It is always disappointing when you lose, but on the night the other team wanted it more than we did … We have to go back to the drawing board ad take some decisions so going forward in the next game we can do better”.

Match two in the tournament is in Pool A, pitting Antigua and Barbuda versus Anguilla.

ST JOHN ‘S, Antigua, July 6, 2022 – St Lucia and arch rivals St Vincent traded points and sets, but St Lucia finally trumped 25-22, 18-25, 25-23, 15-13, in an epic battle of the Saints, as Pool B  of the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association( ECVA) Senior Men’s Championships heated up at the YMCA Indoor Facility.

With no quarter given and none asked, Asmond Franklyn made good of 28 points for the Vincentians, while his team mates Jahmal Small and Jamaar Cropper each registered 14 points.

Tevin St Jean had 11 points for St Lucia, to be his team’s top scorer.

St Vincent and the Grenadines outdid St Lucia in Blocks 11-8 and Serves 5-2. But it was St Lucia who conceded fewer errors- 38 to St Vincent and the Grenadines’ 47.

A beaming St Lucia Head Coach Terry  Verdant was bubbling for the win.  

“ I am feeling great, because in our last two outings, St Vincent and the Grenadines had beaten St Lucia and for me that was not normal so I had to take revenge tonight”, Verdant said.

Stating that his team made some adjustments during the match, Verdant commented: “We tried to play an easier game, because at the beginning we were trying to rush the game… In addition,  we noticed that they wanted the ball cross court, so began to block them inside”.

Verdant’s opposite number – Eardley Martin was gracious in defeat.  

According to Martin, “The guys played their hearts out … Playing St Lucia is never always easy… We know each other and there will always be that type of intensity between the two”.

Martin believed that despite the loss , he is confident of his players resetting and coming back stronger in their remaining matches.

“We started the competition and we are going to end it”, Martin projected of a St Vincent and the Grenadines versus St Lucia final.

Match four in the tournament features Anguilla and Bermuda in Pool A.