Belize Defeats Nicaragua in U-21 Female Volleyball Tourney

Belize’s under-twenty-one female volleyball selection emerged victorious on Tuesday night following a match with Team Nicaragua.  With the first win under their belt, our girls are prepared to face more difficult competition as the tournament progresses. This afternoon, we caught up with the team briefly at the Civic Center where they discussed the outcome of game one.  Sofia Solano is the team captain.

Sofia Solano

Sofia Solano, Team Captain

“I think all of us were just filled with joy and we were ecstatic, I mean this is what we’ve been waiting for.  We’ve been training for this, you know, we’ve been working really hard and to see the fruits of our efforts in that first game which is usually like the tension-breaking game, I think it was amazing that the whole team was able to come together and just express so much joy that our work paid off.”

Iman Safa

Iman Safa, Setter

“This team was supposed to be one of the lower-ranked teams of the tournament, so we do expect it to get harder.  But obviously, my team isn’t here to play any games, where here to win and bring home the goal.”

Gareth Bruce

Gareth Bruce, Vice Captain

“Me, personally, I think I could have done better. I do great in practice, I just think that in the first set I was, well I just felt that in the first set I was scared to like hit, so I was tricking and rolling a lot.  But then after that, my first hit went good and I got more confidence and more engaged in the game.”