TIJUANA, Baja California, May 30, 2008.- Canada took advantage of an erratic night by Cuba  combined with a big offensive job of Tammy Mahon and Emely Cordonier and won in five sets in the nightcap of Pool B.

The Canadians defeated the four-time champions of the Pan American Cup by score of 20-25, 25-19, 21-25, 25-12, 17-15.

Cuba started dominating the match and looked like it was going to be an easy night, but the Canadians never gave up and kept their composure although the Cubans took the first set. Canada had a strong reaction in the next two sets and dominated in the fourth.

The fifth set was a battle between Mahon and Cordonier for Canada and Yuslieni Herrera and Yaima Ortiz for Cuba with the Canadians prevailing at the end with very effective attacks and well organized reception.

“It was a very intense match, but I am glad with the job executed by my players,” said Naoki Miyashita, the coach of Canada. “The victory is a big motivation for us to keep working hard the rest of the Cup.”

“It was totally a team effort,” said Mahon. “All the players contributed to this victory against a team like Cuba which always is strong.”