Both the men and women's national teams suffered losses over the weekend at the 15th Caribbean Zonal Volleyball Association (CAZOVA) Championships in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago.
The men's team went up against the host country on Saturday evening in the semi-final round at the Jean Pierre Complex, Mucurapo.
Simon Blake had a strong game for his team, helping it overcome the defending champions, The Bahamas, in five sets, 27-29, 25-22, 25-21, 21-25 and 15-8. The win put them into the final to face Barbados while The Bahamas was left on the outside looking in.
On Saturday, against The Bahamas, Blake finished with 24 kills and five service aces. Ryan Stewart and Marc-Anthony Honore added 13 points each, and team captain Nolan Tash scored 11.
Captain of the Bahamian team, Prince Wilson, finished with 17 points, 15 of which were kills. Wilson was not alone in his efforts as teammates Renaldo Knowles had 13 points, Byron Ferguson scored 12 and Shedrick Forbes put up 10.
The game went back and forth, as both teams came out and put on a good show. Both squads were even at nine on blocks, and six service aces apiece. However, Trinidad and Tobago held a 67-52 advantage on spikes and committed fewer errors than the Bahamian team.
The women's team played its final round-robin match against Suriname on Saturday. Suriname made quick work of the Bahamian squad, defeating the players in straight sets, 25-9, 25-18 and 25-13.
Morena Leter led her team to victory with 13 points, while her teammate Sandrina Hunsel chipped in with 11.
The game was extremely one-sided as Suriname dominated in all of the key areas of the match, 33-20 on spikes, 5-2 on blocks and 4-1 on aces. The loss eliminated The Bahamas from the medal rounds of the tournament.
With the win, Suriname improved its win/loss record to 2-2 and advanced to the third place game against Barbados.
Jamaica and four-time champion Trinidad and Tobago advanced to the gold medal game.

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