MaplesFS takes corporate co-ed volleyball title

By Cayman Sports Buzz
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Updated: 16 May 2017

MaplesFS are champions of the 2017 Camana Bay Corporate Co-Ed Volleyball League.

MaplesFS came out tops in the inaugural Camana Bay Corporate Co-Ed Volleyball League, which recently concluded.

After finishing as the top two teams after the regular season, Deloitte and MaplesFS set up a finals showdown, having taken care of Maples and Calder and PWC, respectively, in their semi-final matchups.

In the championship final, Deloitte jumped out to the early lead, as solid defense on both sides of the net extended each rally. Both teams were well matched and fought for every point.

MaplesFS kept the scoring close through the first 20 points, limiting Deloitte’s lead to no more than two points, and then stole the momentum to take the lead at 21 points, never looking back to finish the first set 25-21 to MaplesFS.

Deloitte’s spirits were clearly broken going into the second set and MaplesFS capitalized, jumping out to an early 8-1 lead off of stellar serving by David Bakker who would finish the game with three service aces and seven kills. While Deloitte fought hard to get back into the game, the early deficit was just too much to overcome and they would see their perfect season end with a second set loss to MaplesFS, 25-16.

MaplesFS v Deloitte

MaplesFS was led by Karlie Cross who scored six kills and a key block in the game. For Deloitte, it was Nelson Still and Alex Verrault registering four kills each in the losing effort. MaplesFS coach Kevin Solomon said the win was the result of a total team effort as he congratulated his team for winning the Championship and expressed his appreciation to MaplesFS as team sponsor.

Going for bronze, Maples and Calder had their hands full with a fiery PWC team, despite them playing a man down with team captain Gustavo Mota absent.

Maples and Calder had been involved in epic battles all season with many of their games needing to be decided in three sets. PWC, ‘the Dark Horse’ of the League, quietly rose from the lower ranks of the league standings, to a top four finish with stellar play in the second half of the season.

In the third-place match, Maples and Calder won a tight first set 25-20, but were shocked by Deloitte taking the second set 25-23 behind the all-around efforts of Hugo J van Renburg who had six kills, two service aces, two digs and two blocks for the game. In the deciding set, Maples and Calder took the early lead and refused to give any ground, finishing on top 15-11. For Maples and Calder, it was Jonathan Corbett leading the way with seven kills and three blocks followed by Steve Ashworth who had five kills.

Deloitte finished as runners-up.

Earlier in the night, DART faced SilverWheaton in their final game. DART had been steadily improving throughout the season and had won their last few matches including an upset win in the final game of the regular season against MaplesFS. Meanwhile, SilverWheaton played well all season but had lost a few close matchups which kept them just outside a top-four finish.

In the first set, DART showcased their much-improved game winning easily 25-14 behind some strong serving by Jeff Wight, who scored eight service aces and three kills for the game. In the second set, SilverWheaton would come roaring back firing on all cylinders and led by youngster Jahmar Dawkins who registered seven kills, two digs, a service ace and a block for the game. However, SilverWheaton would come up just short at 25-22 despite a gallant effort, as DART would win the game in two straight sets.

In the other early matchup, CNB took on KPMG. CNB had started the season at the top of the standings and were early season favorites. However, CNB had seen their momentum fizzle after a few tough losses. For KPMG, it was a season of slow but steady improvement as they looked stronger each week and managed to win sets from several teams, earning them the title of the team to watch in the future given their strong finish to the season.

KPMG would ride that momentum into this game surprising the CNB team in a first set upset 25-14 behind some excellent play by Vincent Ebanks who had two service aces and a kill. But CNB were not about to go gently and stormed back in a hotly contested second set to win 25-22 behind multiple kills by Matthew Powell and setting up a third game-deciding set. Once again, the scoring see-sawed but ultimately it was CNB that found redemption on the back of a 15-11 final set win allowing them to breathe a sigh of relief. Team captain Woodley Scott played admirably serving up four key service aces and a kill.