USA’s Keeter & Barnes and Martinez & Connor top the NORCECA U23 Championship podiums in Punta Cana
Cuba’s Gomez & Veranes and El Salvador’s Guardado & Guardado take men’s silver and bronze, respectively
Paniagua & Olivo please the home fans with women’s silver, Cuba’s Drik & Paret complete the podium
Two teams from the United States of America won the gold medals at the NORCECA U23 Beach Volleyball Championships in Punta Cana. Ayden Keeter & Carson Barnes claimed the men’s title, while Isabella Martinez & Ella Connor triumphed in the women’s competition. Cuba’s Damian Gomez & Eblis Veranes took the men’s silver, while El Salvador’s Yoel Guardado & Christopher Guardado celebrated the bronze. Fans from the Dominican Republic cheered on Crismil Paniagua & Darlenys Olivo as they secured silver for the host nation on the women’s side. The bronze went to Cuba’s Maykelin Drik & Mileidy Paret.
After losing to El Salvador’s Guardado & Guardado, the USA’s Keeter & Barnes finished Pool C runners-up, but then went on without losing a set through the rest of the tournament. In the semifinals, they claimed a 2-0 (21-10, 21-15) win over Dominican Republic’s George Alexander Wilmore & Rolvin Maldonado, and in the final, they achieved a 2-0 (21-18, 21-18) victory over Cuba’s Gomez & Veranes.
The pair from Cuba reached the semifinals without dropping a set along the way, but then it took them three sets to overcome Guardado & Guardado for a 2-1 (21-12, 19-21, 15-10) tie-breaker win on the way to the gold medal showdown. Guardado & Guardado of El Salvador bounced back with a 2-0 (21-9, 21-17) sweep of the bronze medal match against Wilmore & Maldonado.
Men’s results and standings
The men’s 2024 NORCECA U23 Beach Volleyball Championship podium in Punta Cana (Photo credits: NORCECA)
In the women’s tournament (pictured in the main photo; credits: NORCECA), USA’s Martinez & Connor cruised through the competition without any losses, winning all their matches in straight sets. Their victorious quest was crowned with an emphatic 2-0 (21-8, 21-15) sweep of the final against home favourites Paniagua & Olivo.
The two semifinals were also resolved in straight sets, with Martinez & Connor achieving a 2-0 (21-17, 21-11) win over Cuba’s Drik & Paret, and Paniagua & Olivo defeating Costa Rica’s Laura Valentina Molina & Aliza Aguilar by a narrow 2-0 (21-19, 21-19). The bronze medal match, however, unfolded as an epic three-set battle, in which each of the sets was decided by the narrowest of margins, 2-1 (19-21, 24-22, 16-14) in favour of Drik & Paret.
Women’s results and standings
The women’s 2024 NORCECA U23 Beach Volleyball Championship podium in Punta Cana (Photo credits: NORCECA)
16 men’s and 15 women’s teams, representing 15 different countries, took part in the continental U23 event in Punta Cana.
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Publish date : 2024-10-14 22:33:00
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Author : theamericannews
Publish date : 2024-10-15 09:48:10
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