Guadeloupe cruise in CAZOVA 

PARAMARIBO, Suriname, October 30, 2016: Guadeloupe cruised to a 25-12, 25-21, 25-16 triumph over Turks & Caicos when the first round of the CAZOVA zonal qualifying series for the 2018 FIVB Men’s World Volleyball Championship continued here today at the Anthony Nesty Indoor Sports Hall.

Although the eventual winners had to be jet-lagged after technical difficulties on their flight resulted in them arriving not long before the match, they were they were never really threatened by the rank outsiders as the teams began their campaign in the four-team Group B competition.

The inexperienced bunch of Turks & Caicos players, many of them over the age of 30, were still proud of their performance. After staying close until double figures in the first set, they were in contention until the middle of the second, won seven of nine points from 19-9 down in the third and later saved three match points before the inevitable end came.

“It was a learning experience, I really appreciated how the players tried to gel on the court,” said coach Donnovan Garvey, while skipper Isaiah Gardiner pointed out that “there were some parts when the team fell apart, but we ended up coming back together. We got all of the rust out of us now and are ready for the next match (against Suriname tonight).”

Guadeloupe’s coach Olivier Ishmael stated: “My guys are a little tired, they moved slowly because we arrived late. We have a second match today and we’ll see how they perform.”

Captain Loic Couchy agreed that his players are not 100 per cent and expects a much tougher battle against Jamaica, four-set winners over hosts Suriname in the first match of the straight round-robin tournament.

The top two finishers tomorrow night will advance to the second round of NORCECA qualifying for the next World Championships in Bulgaria and Italy.