The pairs of Jessica Castagne-Hay/Skye La Fon (women) and Elyon Cyrus/Joshua Burnley (men) secured the top spots in the T&T Volleyball Federation (TTVF) Trinbago Beach Volley Tour Under-21 Division at Saith Park, Chaguanas, on Sunday (JAnuary 18).
Castagne-Hay and La Fon ended the two-day tournament with an unbeaten record, capped off by their defeat of Sarah Mohammed and Kyla Quinton in the title match, 21-9, 21-14.
In the main draw semifinals, Castagne-Hay and La Fon beat Jodelle Brumant and Xmara Phillip 21-16, 21-11, while Mohammed and Quinton topped Sarah Smith and Kaitlyn Rampersad 21-14, 21-14.
Brumant and Phillip ended with the bronze medal following their 24-22, 21-10 triumph over Smith and Rampersad.
When the group stage took place on Saturday, Castagne-Hay and La Fon rallied past Aliyah Urquhart and Jenissa Morrison 21-16, 16-21, 15-10 and Ali Pantin and Lily Tang 21-17, 21-18, while Pantin and Tang beat Aliyah Urquhart and Jenissa Morrison 21-19, 21-13 in Group A.
In Group B, Mohammed and Quinton had wins against Smith and Rampersad 21-9, 21-14; Kamil Banfield and Raylece Hart 17-21, 21-13, 15-8; and Brumant and Phillip 19-21, 21-19, 17-15 to qualify directly for the semifinals.
Brumant and Phillip won against Banfield and Hart 19-21, 21-10, 15-10; and Smith and Rampersad 21-9, 18-21, 15-13 for a 2-1 record, while Smith and Rampersad then avoided the cellar spot via their victory over winless Banfield and Hart 21-19, 21-13.
In the quarterfinals, Castagne-Hay and L Fon humbled Banfield and Hart 21-11, 21-5; Smith and Rampersad held off Pantin and Tang 21-14, 23-21, and Brumant and Phillip outlasted Urquhart and Morrison 19-21, 21-16, 15-8, while Mohammed and Quinto received a bye.
In the fifth to eighth semifinals, Banfield and Hart edged Pantin and Tang 21-18, 25-23, while Urquhart and Morrison got a bye.
Urquhart and Morrison then won the fifth-place playoff against Banfield and Hart 17-21, 21-12, 15-10, while in the battle for seventh, Pantin and Tang toppled Smith and Rampersad 24-22, 21-10.
<Cyrus/Burnley secure men’s Under-21 crown>
In the Under-21 Men’s Division, Cyrus and Burnley were declared winners of the four-team round-robin by virtue of a better points differential ratio over the Under-23 winners, Josiah Jankey and his brother Jeremiah, and Rayon Dickson/Michael McCarthy.
This after all three teams ended with 2-1 win-loss records, with the duos of Cyrus and Burnley, and the Jankey brothers also finished with identical 4-2 sets won to sets lost records, with Dickson and McCarthy at 4-3.
In the round-robin, Cyrus and Burnley swept past Dickson and McCarthy 21-12, 21-15 and Darion Sparks and Josie Cedeno 21-0, 21-0 by default but went under to the Jankey brothers, 16-21, 15-21.
The Jankeys also eased past Sparks and Josie Cedeno 21-15, 21-19 but were upstaged by Dickson and McCarthy 18-21, 18-21, with the latter pair also battling past Sparks and Cedeno 21-13, 12-21, 15-10.
When it came down to the points differential, Cyrus and Burley had a 115-69 points-won to points-loss for a ratio of 1.667 to the Jankey’s 120-107 at 1.121, with Dickson and McCarthy third at 0.959.
