Dominicans survives scare from Bahamas

GATINEAU, Canada, June 16, 2011 - The Bahamas nearly pulled a major upset but finally fell to the Dominican Republic in five sets (25-20, 25-14, 22-25, 23-25, 15-12) on Thursday in a consolation quarterfinal at the Pan Am Cup men’s volleyball tournament.

The Dominicans advanced to the consolation semifinal against a loser from the championship quarterfinals later tonight.  Bahamas heads to the ninth place match on Friday against Panama.

Luis Pedro Garcia led the winners with 17 points while Elnis Palomino added 16 and Eduardo Concepcion 15.  Princtanique Wilson of Bahamas led all scorers with 21 while his teammates Renaldo Knowles added 20 and Byron Ferguson 15.

‘’There are never easy matches in this tournament,’’ said Jacinto Campechano, head coach of the Dominican Republic.  ‘’We were definitely looking for a better performance but we are happy with the win.’’

‘’I can live with a loss like this,’’ said Bahamas head coach Raymond Wilson.  ‘’Our guys showed a lot of pride coming back like they did.’’