T&T withstands Jamaica test in quarterfinals 

PORT-OF-SPAIN, AUGUST 8, 2014: Host Trinidad and Tobago withstood an attacking onslaught from Jamaica’s Jamion Hartley to earn a 25-20, 25-21, 21-25, 25-21 in the second of two quarterfinal  matches of the 15^th Caribbean Zonal Volleyball Association (CAZOVA) Men’s Championship at the Jean Pierre Complex, Mucurapo.

Leading the way for the 2010 champions, and 2012 runners-up T&T was Simon Blake with 18 points while Ryan Stewart got 14, MIkheil Hoyte 12, captain Nolan Tash ten and Marc-Anthony Honore, eight in the balance attack.

On the other side of the net, Hartley was almost a one-man demolition team with his tournament best 28 points which was highlighted by 27 kills while Nathan Murdock, was the next scorer in double-digits with 11 points.

In a match plagued by errors, 28 by T&T and 30 for Jamaica, the host managed to hold a slim edge on spikes (52-51) while dominating on blocks, 12-5, but was outscored on aces, 2-3.

Following another heart-breaking loss, Jamaican captain Dellan Brown expressed his frustration with his team coming up short in another tight match-up.

Brown said, “Once again we failed to get over the final hurdle. We were in with a chance in all the sets we were beaten, but we just could not get the result we wanted.

“Our backs were against the wall in this match and the guys stepped up so I must give them credit for the total effort,” added Brown.

An elated Tash said it was a well deserving victory for his team.

“We knew after the loss to Barbados we needed to stepped up or game and tonight I must say the guys did a great job.

“We now have a meeting with Bahamas who took our title from us two years ago in US Virgin Islands, but we are confident we will be able to get a repeat of 2010 when we came out on top in the semifinals on the way to the title.”

Steve David, Jamaica coach said, “Again I cannot fault the guys for the effort. They played with a lot of heart, but unfortunately we did not get the win. We had a few problems with our blocking, but our attacks were very good tonight.”

Gideon Dickson , “Today it was a better game by our mentally and credit to the guys for that.

“We worked on a few things in training and I was very pleased to see that the guys executed the game plan to perfection and now we can look forward to another meeting with Bahamas.”