V.I. struggling at CAZOVA
Published: July 20, 2012
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Daily News Photo by JASON BRONIS U.S. Virgin Islands players Edward Peter Jr., left, and Shimoi Van Holten defend at the net against the Bahamas during the CAZOVA Caribbean Championships at Central High.
What home-court advantage?
The U.S. Virgin Islands senior men's volleyball team has dropped its first two matches this week at the 14th annual CAZOVA Caribbean Championships at Central High's Ronald Charles Arena. The six-day, seven-team tournament started Monday, and the championship is slated for Saturday.
In the team's tourney opener, the USVI fell to Guadeloupe in four sets, 17-25, 21-25, 25-17, 21-25. On Wednesday, Alvaro deLugo finished with a team-high 16 points, but the USVI still fell to the Bahamas, 25-20, 20-25, 16-25, 15-25.
The USVI was paired with Guadeloupe and the Bahamas in Group A, while Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago, Jamaica and Martinique made up Group B. The top two teams in each group move on to the finals round, while the USVI and the other remaining teams will play in the consolation round.
USVI coach Mark Daniel was not available for comment.
After three days of action, Trinidad sits atop the tournament standings with a 3-0 record, while the Bahamas is 2-0. The USVI is the only winless team after three days and has been outscored by its opposition, 187-160.
DeLugo, who played professionally last year in Mayaguez, is ranked 14th in the tournament with 31 points - 20 of those points coming off spikes.
Brandon Varlack (16 points) is ranked 23rd and Aseah Thomas (13) is 27th. Thomas was a member of the USVI junior men's volleyball team that competed on St. Croix two months ago.
- Contact sports writer Aaron Gray at 714-9102 or email agray@dailynews.vi.
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