St Lucia takes gold in commanding fashion

GROS ISLET- St Lucia, April 28, 2013 -  St Lucia topped  Pool J of the Second Round of the NORCECA Zone of the 2014 FIVB  Men’s World Championships Qualifications , clinically dismissing Haiti 3-1  (27-25, 25-13, 17-25, 25-20)  to advance to  the third round.

This step clears another pathway as they quest to be among five from NORCECA Confederation to head to Poland for next year’s grand finale.

Taking charge of the St Lucians’ score sheet on the night was once again the combination of Joseph Clercent whose account stood at 24 points and Julian Bissette, who registered 18 points.

Haiti’s tally saw Emmanuel Fritz Emmanuel accounting for a match-high 28 points while Ralph Adolphe added 14.

A fired Bissette also played another role as he was the main cheer leader on the court with frequent shouts of motivation, when the Haitians were clawing their way back into the contest.

An overjoyed and triumphant coach, Kendall Charlery said: “There is nothing to describe the way I feel … We are excited and elated for this win, which takes us into the next round”.

Charlery praised the Haitians for being a formidable opposition, but thought their hunger for the title made the difference.

Meanwhile, Captain of the St Lucia team, Dayne Williams believed that his team brought its best game on the night.

“It was totally different St Lucia; St Lucia has worked too hard for too long for this, as it is the first time we are reaching the third round  and we are happy,” an elated Williams exclaimed.

He said that in the championship game, they were a unified bunch and that carried them through.

Coach of Haiti Joseph Yves Larrieux reckoned his players were outplayed by a superior St Lucia team on the night.

Larrieux said that his team will stay in training as they await the outcome of the five other pools, to ascertain if they are among the four best second places, who will also get a berth in round three.