Canada defeated Puerto Rico 3-1

COLORADO SPRINGS, USA, August 24, 2019 – Canada overcame a first-set lost to beat Puerto Rico 22-25, 25-17, 25-17, 25-21 on Saturday in the NORCECA Continental Cup at the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center.

Canada finished the tournament 1-2. Puerto Rico finished 0-3.

Canada led Puerto Rico in attacks (58-47), blocks (11-8) and aces (4-3). Canada scored on 24 of Puerto Rico’s errors and committed 22.

Canada had four players in double figures led by Kiera Van Ryk with 19 points on 17 attacks and a match-high two aces. Shainah Joseph added 17 points on 16 attacks and one ace.

Canada’s Jennifer Cross scored 14 points on eight attacks and a match-high six blocks.

Puerto Rico’s Paulina Prieto Cerame led all scorers with 21 points on a match-best 19 kills and two blocks.

Canada captain Megan Cyr

“We were so hungry for a win. This was our last chance pretty much of the summer. I know a lot of girls are tired; they’ve been on the road all summer, but we just came together and left everything out on the court.

“I’m really proud of the team. I think every day we just made the goal to get two percent better the next game, and I really feel like we did that. We grew with each match.

“Our hitters were on fire this match. From the opposite, Shainah Joseph, was on fire. Everybody was…our passing, defense, it was a really awesome team effort.”

Canada coach Shannon Winzer

“That’s the best game we’ve played this weekend. I think our middle-setter connection was so much better and it opened up some room on the pins for our hitters. We were dialed in for the whole four sets, and it was awesome to finish the tournament on a high like that.

“We’ve got a lot of young players. We’ve got a few inexperienced players. I think that they get better every day is really promising as a coach. The big thing for us in Canada right now is building our depth. It shows we have a really bright future. I’m pretty excited about that.”

Puerto Rico assistant coach Oswald Antonetti

“It’s sad for the girls because I’m sure they wanted to win a match before they left. They really played hard against Dominican Republic and the U.S., and tonight we really though that we had them. Canada played really well on the block, covering the hitters and playing defense overall, very inspiring. We’re going to learn from this and keep going.”