TRINIDAD and Tobago were dethroned in their quest to capture the female crown for the fifth time in succession when the Caribbean Junior Volleyball Championships concluded Saturday night in Guadeloupe.
Although this country’s girls had walked away champions in five of the six editions of the bi-annual tournament, their demise was not surprising as they had also lost their previous encounter against Guadeloupe in the one-week competition.
And T&T went into the title match with the added disadvantage of being without the services of vice-captain, Delicia Pierre, who was injured in their straight-set semi-final triumph over Bahamas the night before.
The hosts defeated T&T 25-22, 25-22, 25-19 to end the tournament unbeaten from six matches, while Bahamas battled back from two sets down to edge Martinique 22-25, 19-25, 25-15, 28-26, 15-12 for the bronze medal.
Playing in the tournament for the very first time, French Guiana defeated Martinique 20-25, 34-32, 25-14, 20-25, 15-10 for the boys’ under-20 crown.
The result must have been tough for the T&T players to handle, as they had led French Guiana by two sets to love and had three match points at 24-21 in the third before crumbling in the semi-final clash.
T&T’s boys, who have never claimed the title and lost all their matches to finish in the cellar position two years ago, took the bronze on Friday with a four-set triumph over Guadeloupe.
