Canada looks composed in final win of the women’s challenger
 

CHATEAUGUAY, Canada, June 02, 2019 - Canada concluded its Women’s Challenge Cup tournament with a 3-0 (25-21, 25-20, 25-20) win over Puerto Rico at the Sportplex in Chateauguay, Quebec, Canada.  The host team won both of its matches and advances to a Volleyball Nations League qualification tournament.

The win was even sweeter, as Canada lost the same tournament last year in Edmonton, Alberta, in five sets to Puerto Rico.

Today, Kiera Van Ryk, also the Canadian university female athlete of the year (USports), led scoring in the match with 16 points, followed by Alexa Gray with 12. Paulina Prieto Cerame was top scorer for the losing side with 10 points.

Head coach Tom Black, who is new to the Canadian team this year, said: “I was really proud. The team has come so far in the past month, and to come out undefeated on our home court to a quality team in Puerto Rico is something they should really be proud of….  I saw more confidence today than yesterday (against Mexico). I thought we played a pretty composed match, except for a couple of spurts.  We’re only going to get better, and this lets the players know they are doing the right things and they can be successful.”

The gym was packed each today with fans, as this was the only international match held in this area of Quebec in many years. They were entertained by the matches, and Volleyball Canada’s mascot, “Pepper.”

Athlete quotes:

Megan Cyr, captain of the Canadian team: “We just know the work we’ve put in these last four weeks, and we trust in our preparation.  When it comes down to the match, we just perform and have fun.  This sets us up for a great summer of good competition.”

Stephanie Enright, captain of the Puerto Rican team: “I am just happy that we came to battle at the end and that we didn’t give up.  We tried to improve our game, but we never found rhythm in our match. The summer is long (and includes the Pan Am Cup, Pam Am Games and Olympic qualification tournament), so we will learn from this one.  It’s a young team, and we can get better.”

Round Robin

Puerto Rico def. México 3-0 (25-20, 25-12, 25-15)

Canada def. México 3-0 (25-14, 25-16, 25-17)

Canada def. Puerto Rico 3-0 (25-21, 25-20, 25-20)

Note: for the first time ever, NORCECA TV made its web cast available in English, French and Spanish.