Deacons women are the new queens of junior volleyball knockouts, but their men lost their crown to some “newly hatched” Blackbirds when the finals were played at Carlton on Saturday night.
UWI Blackbirds, led by Omar Sealy and the high jumping Jason Hendy, came from a set down to stun Deacons 15-25, 26-24, 25-22, 25-23. Setter Daneal Marshall displayed great choice selection in feeding the ball to Hendy and Sealy as they scored the unexpected shocker over a strong Deacons’ unit.
Sadly, Deacons’ setter Patrick Oxley found his team in a hole after a strong start from Malcolm Martindale and former Barbados captain Elwyn Oxley. With the Blackbirds taking flight in the close second set, Oxley then played a horrible game which saw his team struggling to get away from UWI.
Even Oxley’s feared ground defence looked ordinary as Hendy and Sealy, who work in security at the Cave Hill campus, turned the keys to lock away the Goddard Enterprises Limited Knockout Cup.
Libero Tisha Solis, who helped UWI to take Warrens’ senior knockout crown in 2017 with her passing and defence, was just as impressive on the men’s team. Ironically, Deacons’ female libero Marissa Dowell provided just as good support for her struggling team.
In the women’s final, Dowell’s all-round play helped Deacons to defeat Chargers in straight sets 25-16, 25-19, 25-21. A tremendous start from the experienced Nadia Griffith pushed Chargers on the back foot.
However, Griffith’s game went into terminal decline although Chargers struggled with the inconsistency of setter Michaela Cossey and attackers, former national Janette Browne and Daneka Headley.
Dowell proved to be the cohesive force for Deacons as southpaw Kandia Shorey and Asha Yearwood held firm to stymie a late fightback from Chargers and to slide home to another volleyball crown. (KB)
