Canada headed to playoffs
Canada is still in the hunt for gold in beach volleyball at the Francophone Games being held this week in Beirut.
In women’s play, Heather Bansley of Waterdown, Ont., and Julie Rodrigue of Quebec City completed round robin with victories in their four matches to place first in their pool and earn bye to the semifinals. They defeated pairs this week from France, Lebanon, Niger and Burundi.
“Our opening victory against France (17-21, 22-20, 17-15) really set the tone for us for the rest of the tournament,” said Bansley. “We were happy with how we came back in the last two sets after losing the first and won those crucial points at the end of those sets.”
The quarterfinals and semis are on Saturday and Bansley and Rodrigue will play the winner of the Switzerland-Congo quarterfinal.
On the men’s side, Jessi Lelliott of Kelowna, B.C., and Ben Saxton of Calgary finished their round robin at 2-1 and play Lebanon in a quarterfinal on Saturday.
from Volleyball Canada
