Boosted by the return of European-based professional duo, middle-blocker Sinead Jack and outside hitter Krystle Esdelle, T&T senior women’s volleyball team will depart tonight for the 17th Senior Caribbean Zonal Volleyball Association (CAZOVA) Championship which serves off tomorrow and runs until Sunday.
The T&T ‘Calypso Spikers’ led by Sweden-based captain Renele Forde are the reigning champions and winners of the title for the past six editions. The Team has recorded seven victories overall.
Last year in Kingston, Jamaica, then Greece-based Esdelle, Channon Thompson and Darlene Ramdin all scored in double-figures as the “Calypso Spikers” brushed aside Jamaica 25-12, 25-16, 25-10 to record its sixth straight title.
The victory over the Jamaicans was the team’s third in as many finals, adding to previous triumphs in 1996 in the US Virgin Islands, and four years ago on home soil when the then France-based Thompson was also voted as the “Most Valuable Player”.
The “Calypso Spikers”, triumphs were recorded in 1996, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2017 to move one ahead of long-time rival Barbados (1993, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004) for the most tournament wins.
This time around in Paramaribo, Suriname, the T&T women coached by long-serving Cuban-born, Francisco
‘Panchee’ Cruz will face a much easier route to the title as only the host country, Bahamas and long-time rival, Barbados stand in his team’s way.
The teams will contest a round-robin series at the end of which the top two will contest the gold medal match and the third and fourth placed teams will compete for bronze.
Both the tournament winner and runner-up will qualify to next year’s Women’s NORCECA Continental Championship.
Last month, the T&T women served off its 2018 season with a fourth-place finish at the NORCECA Women’s Challenger Cup in Edmonton, Canada, minus the presence of Esdelle and Jack.
The Caribbean champions were beaten by Canada 12-25, 16-25, 22-25 in their lone pool match after Costa Rica failed to show and in their bronze medal contest, T&T went under to Cuba, 18-25, 17-25, 13-25.
Apart from Esdelle and Jack who come into the team at the expense of youngsters Afiya Alexander and Mikela Mc Gilvery and, the T&T contingent is the same as the one in Canada with Thompson (Ankara Numune (Turkey)/Foton Tornadoes (Philippines), Darlene Ramdin (Generika-Ayala Lifesavers/Philippines) and Forde (Svedala/Sweden), the other players with recent international club experience on the ten-player roster.
Also included are former national captain Kelly-Ann Billingy, a former captain and vice-captain Jalicia Ross-Kydd along with Kiune Fletcher, Afesha Olton and Canada-based Taija Thomas.
Following the completion of the tournament of the CAZOVA Championships T&T will then travel to Colombia to contest the 23rd Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games which runs from July 20 to August 3.
It will be T&T’s fourth straight CAC Games tournament and among the opposition will be the host, Puerto Rico and Costa Rica in Pool B, while champions Dominican Republic, Cuba, Mexico and Venezuela will compete in Pool A.
This will be followed by T&T women debut at the FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship in Japan from September 29 to October 20.
At the World Championship in Pool C, 34th ranked T&T will face defending champions and world second-ranked USA, fifth-ranked Russia, South Korea (#10), Thailand (#16), and Azerbaijan (#24) at the Kobe Green Arena.
Fixtures
TOMORROW
Bahamas vs T&T, 5 pm
Barbados vs Suriname, 7 pm
T&T women’s volleyball CAZOVA team
Renele Forde (Svedala/Sweden), Sinead Jack (Galatasaray/Turkey), Krystle Esdelle (Pursaklar Belediyesi/Turkey), Channon Thompson (Ankara Numune (Turkey) & Foton Tornadoes (Philippines), Darlene Ramdin (Generika-Ayala Lifesavers/Philippines), Kelly Ann Billingy, Kiune Fletcher, Afesha Olton, Jalicia Ross-Kydd, Taija Thomas.
Technical staff: Francisco Cruz (coach), Jarad Cuffie (assistant coach), Keva Stephens (physiotherapist)
