Female volleyballers on a quest for regional glory

Ten female volleyballers are off to Grenada, seeking to qualify for the second round of the NORCECA Group for the 2014 World Championships and for the East Caribbean Volleyball Association (ECVA) Championships.{{more}}

The Vincentian hopefuls will be locking horns with power house St Lucia, St Eustatius and host Grenada, today, Friday and tomorrow, Saturday.

Following the round robin format, the first and second places square off for the top spot, with the third and fourth places competing for the bronze medal.

Coach of the St Vincent and the Grenadines team Marlon Williams told SEARCHLIGHT last Tuesday, during a practice session at the Girls’ High School hard court, that his charges are looking forward to the outing with positive expectations.

“First, we are looking to qualify for ECVA by getting to the finals and see what happens from there,” Williams projected.

Williams sees St Lucia as the biggest threat in the Vincentians’ pathway.

Notwithstanding this, Williams said: “On any day anybody can beat anybody; but if I am to say that one team that we are looking forward to play is St Lucia, as over the years, the battles with St Lucia, both male and female have been legendary.”

Zooming in on his team, Williams stated, “Our strength is in our spiking and some good attackers and our back court defence is coming along.”

Williams, though, cited the hectic nature of the tournament, having to play two matches per day as a factor, but thinks his team is prepared for this.

The coach revealed that of the ten players making the final cut, only two are relatively new to senior national representation; however, they have played at the Windward Islands Schools’ level.

Apart from Williams, the Vincentian management team is completed by Manager, Brian Burke.

The top three teams from the group advance to the second phase of the World Championship Qualifiers in 2013, with the first and second places heading to the ECVA Finals set for later this year. (RT)