Daneil Williams continued his reign as the undisputed local men’s beach volleyball king after he paired with new playing partner and fellow national indoor player Nathanael Noreiga to claim the Fourth Leg of the T&T Volleyball Federation Beach Volleyball Circuit at the National Beach Volleyball Centre, Saith Park, Chaguanas on Saturday.
The reigning national champion along with Daynte Stewart who was fifth at the recently concluded Commonwealth Games in Australia, Williams and Noreiga competing for the first time outlasted new duo Stewart and Marley Davidson in a gripping final 21-17, 15-21, 15-11.
When the ten-team tournament served off earlier in the day, Williams and Noregia swept aside Devaughn Martin and Evlon Pounder 21-12, 21-12 and Kareem Thomas and Kurt Edwards 21-17, 21-13 to top Pool A with a 2-0 record while Stewart and Davidson, who are using the tournament as part of their Youth Olympic Games Qualifiers preparations battled past Stephen Enile and Steffon Hutson 16-21, 22-20, 15-10; Chandler brothers, Lincoln and Lenroy, 21-10, 21-11 and Danielli Lewis and Darion Thompson 21-13, 21-13 to head Pool C with a 3-0 mark.
Davidson and Stewart, both national junior team indoor players then battled past Edwards and Thomas 21-18, 19-21, 15-7 in their quarterfinal before stopping Christian Francois and Marlon Phillip, another former partner of Williams, 21-19, 21-18.
Williams and Noreiga had a quarterfinal bye along with Francois and Phillip as the group’s winners with the best win percentage and followed it up by rallying past Joel Theodore and Josiah Abraham Eccles 18-21, 21-19, 15-10 in their semifinal.
Francois and Phillip ended the day on a high by beating Theodore and Eccles 21-17, 17-21, 15-9 for the third spot.
Top women teams eye final
The top two ranked women’s teams, Phylecia Armstrong and Malika Davidson, and Commonwealth Games participants Abby Blackman and Rheeza Grant remained on course for a fourth straight final showdown this year after topping their respective round-round-robin groups on Sunday at the same venue.
However, due to the inclement weather the semifinals, third place playoff and final will take place tomorrow from 7 pm.
Playing in Pool A, Armstrong and Davidson, winners of two of the three local tournaments hosted so far this season outplayed Tsyan Selvon and Brittney Choon 21-16, 21-12 and Romelia Fermin and Cheneil Millette 21-9, 21-6 and will meet third-ranked La Teisha Joseph and Suraya Chase in their semifinal tomorrow at the same venue from 7 pm.
The experienced duo of Blackman and Grant, both former national indoor team players and winners of the second local event this season, breezed their way through Pool B with wins over Joseph and Chase 21-11, 21-10; Asthma Charles and Latifa Gonzales 21-8, 21-7; and Ebony Williams and Afiya Alexander 21-10, 21-5 and will come up against Selvon and Choon in the other semifinal.
Joseph and Chase who have competed in all three legs of the 2018 Norceca Beach Circuit so far ended second in Pool B after beating Williams and Alexander 21-7, 21-9 and Charles and Gonzales 21-13, 21-15 in their other matches while Selvon and Choon was second in Pool A courtesy a 21-14, 24-22 defeat of Fermin and Millette.
