In an impressive run at the Beach Volleyball World Championships taking place in Mexico, Canadian pair Sarah Pavan and Molly McBain have successfully secured their place in the playoff round. Their victorious match saw them take down Ariana Becerra and Karelys Ortiz of Ecuador with decisive scores of 21-13, 21-10 in a crucial “lucky loser” match that took place on Tuesday.
Moving alongside the Canadian teams of Sam Schachter and Dan Dearing, and Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson, Pavan and McBain now move into the promising round of 32 which is set to commence on Wednesday. Their exemplary performance included a commanding lead in attacks (27-18) and the addition of seven points from opponent errors during the match.
In the same vein, within Pool H, Pavan and McBain held a less than favorable 1-2 record. These dynamic Canadian players found themselves bested in matches against the 21st-ranked Switzerland pair Esmee Bobner and Zoe Verge-Depre as well as the seventh-ranked Dutch duo Katja Stam and Raisa Schoon. However, their spirit was unbroken as they rallied in their third and final match of the main draw, winning decisively against Allanis Navas and Maria Gonzalez of Puerto Rico by 2-0 and nudging their playoff chances back into the realm of possibility.
Controlled performances seemed to be the theme for Schachter and Dearing in Pool L, with a 2-1 record under their belt. They had a narrow loss to the 14th-ranked Brazilian pair Renato de Carvalho and Vitor Felipe before fiercely bouncing back with two-set victories against Mexico’s Miguel Sarabia and Juan Virgen, and Mohamed Abicha and Oussama El Azhari of Morocco. These determined victories led to the confirmation of their position in the round of 32.
Wednesday will see Schachter and Dearing poised for an upset against the tenth-ranked Australian duo Thomas Hodges and Zachery Schubert. The summer season has seen Team Canada (ranked 33rd in the world) flourishing, with triumphs at the Volleyball Canada National Championships and the Futures event in Halifax.
Coming in strong, competing in Pool D, Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson sailed through unscathed with a flawless 3-0 record, marking victories against Morocco’s Imane Yakki and Mahassine Siad, Paraguay’s Erika Bobadilla and Michelle Amarilla, and the Czech pair Barbora Hermannova and Marie-Sara Stochlova. Now, this victorious group will step onto the round of 32 tournament grounds. Wednesday will bring with it excitement and suspense as our Canadian representatives take on challengers, yet to be decided, from the “lucky loser” round. Expectations are soaring for the Toronto duo who recently vaulted to fourth in the global rankings, painting them as Canada’s leading hope of securing a medal.
