The experienced duo of duo of Shari Matthews and Julia Lewis combined for 35 points on Tuesday night as six-time champions Barbados, overcame a nervous start to defeat Guadeloupe in four sets in their Pool A opener. The game was the curtain-raiser of the the 14th Senior Women's Caribbean Zonal Volleyball Association Championship (CAZOVA) at the Richard "Ranchee" Charles Gymnasium, Kingshill, St Croix , US Virgin Islands. The Barbadians, previous winners in 1993, 1994, 1995, 1998, 2000 and 2002, and featuring the experienced trio of Julia Lewis, Anica Woods and Shari Matthews recovered from losing the first set to secure a 16-25, 25-18, 28-26, 25-17 in one hour 28 minutes. Matthews ended with 20 points and Lewis added 15 for the Bajans who held a 9-6 edge on serves but were out blocked 5-10.
For Guadeloupe, captain Isabelle Acina had a team-high 19 points and Meliza Bernard-Fayolle, 11. Reigning three-time champions, T&T served of its defence and quest for a fourth title overall last night against Guadeloupe in Group A from 8 pm, while Jamaica also got its first taste of competition in Group B versus Bahamas, two hours earlier. Today, the round-robin phase of the competition will conclude with T&T meeting Barbados from 6 pm and USVI against Jamaica two hours later. At the end of the round-robin series, the top team in each group will qualify automatically for the semifinals carded for Saturday while the second and third placed teams will play in cross-over quarterfinals tomorrow to determine the two other semifinalists. The finals and third placed play are carded for Sunday.
14th Women's CAZOVA Championship:
Pool A: T&T, Barbados , Guadeloupe
Pool B: USVI, Bahamas , Jamaica
Remaing fixtures
Group A:
Today (Thursday): T&T vs Barabdos, 6 pm
Group B:
Today (Thursday): USVI vs Jamaica , 8 pm.
Quarterfinals (July 27)
2nd A vs 3rd B, 6pm
2nd B vs 3rd A, 8pm
Classification (July 28):
Fifth & Sixth, 4 pm
Semifinals, 6 pm & 8 pm
July 29:
Third place, 6 pm
Final, 8 pm.
