Canadians May and Dearing claim gold medal

CHULA VISTA, California, October 5, 2014 – Canada’s Garrett May and Dan Dearing used strong defense to defeat their compatriots Cam Wheelan and Mike Plantinga, 2-1 (20-22, 21-14, 15-11) for the men’s gold medal of the NORCECA Beach Volleyball Tournament in Chula Vista at the U.S. Olympic Training Center on Sunday

It was the first victory for May and Dearing and for a Canadian men’s team on the NORCECA Tour this season.

“We play each other all the time and we know each other so well,” May said. “We knew it was going to be a battle and those are the best kinds of matches.”

May’s solid digging and Dearing’s tough blocks proved to be a winning combination.

“Our game plan was to have a solid defense,” Dearing added. “We wanted to slow the game down so we could focus on every single point. I think that helped us a lot, especially playing in the heat of the day.”

May and Dearing also beat Wheelan and Plantinga in the first match of pool play, 21-19, 21-17.

Wheelan and Plantinga, who have played at the NORCECA Chula Vista tournament for three straight years, had their best finish with the silver medal.

Derek Olson and Avery Drost of the United States took the bronze medal. The team lost a tough semifinal battle to May and Dearing, 18-21, 21-17, 17-15. However, they came back to defeat Puerto Rico’s Roberto Rodriguez and Erik Haddock, 21-16, 21-18, avenging an earlier pool play loss to the Caribbean team.

MEN

SEMIFINALS: May/Dearing (CAN1) d Olson/Drost (USA2), 2-1 (18-21, 21-17, 17-15); Wheelan/Plantinga (CAN2) d Rodriguez/Haddock (PUR), 2-1 (21-15, 13-21, 15-13); BRONZE MEDAL: Olson/Drost (USA2) d Rodriguez/Haddock (PUR), 21-16, 21-18; GOLD MEDAL: May/Dearing (CAN1) d Wheelan/Plantinga (CAN2), 20-22, 21-14, 15-11.