The scorching sun?might have sapped some of the energy of the players but at the end of day one, all of the top seeds were in control of their pools in the second annual Nissan Warrens Sports Club Beach Volleyball Classic which was held at Brandons last Sunday.
Defending champions Daran Gill and Jamaican Mark Lewis topped Group A after rolling over Victor Griffith and Sheldon Roach and Kyle Browne and Ronald Rice. With travel commitments forcing the team of Elwyn Oxley and Gregory Gill to make a last-minute withdrawal from the tournament, Gill and Lewis can expect their biggest threat to come from Kengie Matthews and Winston Gittens.
Matthews and Gittens will start the second week top of Group B while the women’s Group C is being controlled by Sharon Bovell and St Lucian Dania Hamilton while Group D is topped by A1 Beckles of Talya Layne and Shennel Pooler.
The junior athletes also put on some impressive plays in the intermediate men and women.
In the men’s Shaquille Carrington and Mario Sargeant defeated Shamar Bishop and Paul Doughty 21-9; Shane Freeman and Jamar Thompson crushed Ashan Jordan and Hakeem Clarke 21-5; Nathaniel McClean and Ammuniki Wood stopped Atiba Best and Carlos Cyrus 21-15 and Best and Cyrus rebounded against Carrington and Sargeant 22-20.
Freeman and Thompson also defeated Andriy Stapleton and Adam Niles 21-16 after Niles and Stapleton fell to Jabarry Goodridge and Stephen Packer 21-14, with McClean and Wood beating Dishop and Doughty 21-14.
Among the women’s, NK Ballers, comprising Nicole Austin and Kim Beckles crushed T&A Ballers of Amber Alleyne and Sylvia Morris 21-5; Stooges of Nesah Yearwood and Janelle Payne stopped Juniors II, Ashley Callender and Rhea Carter 21-10.
California Girls of Melissa Williams and Stacey Atherley edged Juniors II, 22-20; NK Ballers lost to Juniors I of Janina Mayers and Deandre Small, 21-13 while California Girls stopped the Stooges at 21-19.
The action will continue at Brandons on Sunday before climaxing on May 19 with all of the finals and the after party jam on the beach. (KB)
