Eagles took a 1-0 lead against Young Achievers in their best of three series, prevailing 3-1 on Tuesday in the final of the Demerara Volleyball Association (DVA) tournament at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall, Homestretch Avenue.
The experienced Eagles outfit prevailed in a five-set thriller 17-25, 25-18, 25-16, 22-25 15-7 heading into game two tomorrow at the same venue. The fixture got off to the worst possible start for the eventual victors after Young Achievers romped to a 14-6 lead in the first set.
Eagles battled back to reduce the deficit to 17-12 following a 6-3 offensive run. However, the West Demerara-based outfit secured the opening salvo, outscoring their opponent 8-5. Eagles responded in the second set, seizing early control at 7-3.
The score-line then progressed to 13-9 as both teams recorded a back-and-forth 6-6 exchange. However, Eagles pulled away in the following exchanges, tallying 10 points while restricting Young Achievers to six points to effectively seal the set 23-15. A 7-3 showing highlighted the start of the third set as Eagles raced into the lead. An 11-7 exchange then pushed the score to 18-10 in favour of Eagles, who began to solidify their position. The set was then sealed following a 7-6 run.
The fourth set proved to be an engrossing affair, as eight occurrences of the scores being tied were recorded. The deadlocks occurred at 3-3, 10-10, 11-11, 12-12, 16-16, 18-18, 20-20 and 22-22. However, Young Achievers pulled away in the final moments, following a 3-0 exchange to force the final stanza.
The competitive nature of the previous set, seemed to take a toll on Young Achievers who seemed tired as they fell behind at 8-3.
Eagles further consolidated their position, racing to a 12-5 advantage after a 4-2 exchange. Eagles then sealed the win after out-scoring their foe 3-2.
The DVA ‘A’ division league featured three teams competing over the course of two months. The other competing team was Castrol Strikers.
