It is obvious that highly respected volleyball coach Andrew Culpepper spends many days strategising how to maintain Deacons’ championship status in the men’s game.
What is not known is how many sleepless nights the former Barbados standout player spends trying to decode why his Division 1 women’s team underperform so often.
Even if all of the other Division 1 teams combined, they could not match Sentry Insurance Brokers Deacons, player for player, in height, fitness or experience.
Boasting the two current national setters even forced Deacons to get a special dispensation from the Barbados Volleyball Association so that Taymar Maynard could play in Division 2.
However, on Monday night, Deacons, who surrendered their knockout title earlier in the year, failed to press for the league title as they were plastered by Chargers.
Chargers, the defending champions, won 25-19, 23-25, 25-20, 25-22 at the Garfield Sobers Sports Complex.
Chargers had captured the knockout title this season.
Only six-footer Annette Chapman and, to a lesser extent, Fabia Greaves and Mona Crawford played with any level of consistency for Deacons.
Two other six-footers, Julia Lewis and Danielle Evanson, bled points regularly.
The consistency of Chargers veteran Sharon Bovell and the awesome attack of St Lucian Dania Hamilton, along with an aggressive Avara Brown, proved too potent for a Deacons’ team that seems to lack self-belief. Â
With the setting duties being shared between young Akeila h Blenman and Canadian Ellen Barwise, Chargers also found great support in captain Thonya Joseph and Akeila Phillips.
Libero Katrina Alleyne returnedto Chargers’ line-up to play one of her better matches. She also provided a humorous incident for the spectators as she attempted to save a ball in the third set but the ball ended up in the stands and her hitherto impressive hairstyle went askew.
Earlier, Division 1 newcomers British American Insurance Jackson fought from two sets down to stop Carefree Toners 21-25, 25-14, 20-25, 25-17, 15-10.
Former Toners/Deacons/Chargers player Anthazia Mason and former Friendly Hall/Chargers/Toners player Talya Layne starred for the Jackson Jaguars.
