Suriname edge Curacao in classic

KRALENDIJK, Bonaire, June 22, 2018 – The first match in the history of the CAZOVA (Caribbean Zonal Volleyball Association) Under-23 Women’s Championship turned out to be a classic here tonight at the Jorge Nicholas Sports Hall, Bonaire.

After five enthralling sets, Suriname finally triumphed on their fourth match point 21-25, 25-20, 25-19, 19-25, 16-14 to deny their gritty rivals from Curacao.

They needed all of 110 minutes to cross the finish line, but Suriname could have gotten the job done in straight sets had they not suffered two major meltdowns.

After leading 20-15, they lost eight points in succession and won one of the last 11 to wave goodbye to the first set.

And after cutting a five-point deficit to two at 16-14, they lost all the next 11 to signal a deciding set.

Coach Victor Lesperans chalked it up to the fact that many of his players are inexperienced, but was impressed by the way they were able to bounce back.

After their heart-breaking first-set loss, Suriname won seven consecutive points from ten-all to virtually get back on track.

And even when they got very nervous and squandered three straight match points at 14-11 in fifth, they reset again and closed it out with yet another spike from brilliant Sigourney Kame.

The captain stated that she was more concerned with inspiring her inexperienced teammates than her individual statistics and expects the squad to perform better tomorrow when they oppose Aruba at 6 p.m.

Curacao captain Sharnesca Esclodina and coach Gilbert Paulina were on the same page as they did not want to dwell on the heart-breaking defeat.

They are well aware of the fact that they play twice – against United States Virgin Islands (at 9.30 a.m.) and Bonaire (at 8 p.m.) – tomorrow and are already thinking about the future.

The format for this inaugural tournament is straight round-robin and the champions will be crowned on Sunday night.

This is the first international tournament to ever take place in the tiny Caribbean island of Bonaire.