Monthly Archives: July 2017

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

THEY may not have achieved their desired results in the final standings, but the Bahamas was able to end the beach volleyball competition with a pair of wins at the Commonwealth Youth Games.

The women's team finished seventh overall while the pair of men's teams were 11th and 12th when the event concluded at the National Beach Soccer Stadium.

La'Tavia Braynen and Mechelle Moss got their first win of the tournament with a three-set victory over Tsyan Selvon and Ebony Williams of Trinidad and Tobago in the seventh place match.

Trinidad and Tobago took the first set 21-15 but the Bahamas responded to take the second set 21-18.

With both teams showing signs of fatigue, the third and deciding set was tied at 2-2 and again 5-5 at the first side change. The Bahamas took a 10-8 lead and held serve for the next four points. They took the set and the match, 15-10.

"It feels really good to know that we were able to put all that practiced into our playing and that we were able to get a win in our last game. We can move on and do better next time," Braynen said.

They finished the tournament with a 1-4 record with losses to Australia, New Zealand and twice to England, once in the prelims and again in the quarter-finals.

"It's always a privilege to represent the Bahamas," Moss said. "No matter where we are and we will always try to represent the country to the best of our abilities."

According to both players, a win against another Caribbean team bodes well for the junior programme's standing in the region.

"We can see more of this partnership moving forward, she's a great player and she can do anything they request of us. Beach volleyball is fun but you have to play really hard to accomplish what you set out to do," Braynen said.

Australia won gold, New Zealand took silver and Rwanda won bronze.

On the men's side, both Bahamian teams faced off with Kyle Wilson and Nathan Wert (Bahamas One) getting the 21-15, 21-8 win over James Cleare and Aaron Springer (Bahamas Two) for 11th place and bragging rights.

The first set was tied at 10 before Wilson and Wert moved ahead in the set with four consecutive points. Cleare and Springer went on a run of their own and were within one (15-14) when the teams switched sides and Sweeting's spike tied the game at 15. In a game of runs, Bahamas One would go on another and Wert's kill made it 20-15 at the switch before they eventually took the set.

Bahamas One dominated the second set and led by as much as 12 points en route to the win.

"It was very familiar so it was really easy to read them, we knew exactly what they were going to do," Wilson said. "It felt good to finally get a win. The whole Commonwealth Youth Games experience has been a lot of fun and a real learning experience for us."

Before the win against their regular practice partners, Bahamas One lost to Cyprus, South Africa and Jamaica.

"It was really fun because we practice together all the time and we were just having fun. It was really amazing being a part of the CYG and great training for future tournaments," Wert said.

Bahamas Two suffered losses to Australia, St Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago.

"We just went out there and tried to play our best game. The night before we talked to each other and we said we were going to try to go out and have fun but we were not going to take the competition lightly and joke around so we just went out there, tried to make ourselves proud and bring back a win for the country," Cleare said.

"The trash talking started the night before at the dinner table, straight through the game, it's bragging rights but they got the better results. As a player I'm thankful for the Commonwealth Youth Games and it gave us a lot of experience to see where we are internationally. We're technically the best in the Bahamas but when we match up against other countries we see that we fall short in a lot of places so we just need more experiences to better our games."

England went on to win the gold medal, Cyprus took silver and Australia won bronze.

In other event finales on the day, the men's rugby sevens side finished in sixth place after a 43-5 loss to Sri Lanka.

They finished the tournament with an 0-6 record. Samoa won gold with a 10-5 win over England and Fiji took bronze.

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Bahamas women 7th overall, men 11th and 12th in tennis | The ... - Bahamas Tribune

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Coast Guard helps rescue 88 Haitian migrants in Bahamas | Miami ... - Miami Herald

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

WITH regulation time on the brink of expiration and the bronze medal on the line, Bahamas team captain Phieron Wilson provided the dramatic finish to secure a place in history for the men's beach soccer side at the 6th Commonwealth Youth Games.

Chadwick Russell's shot was blocked by keeper Jernya Oscar, but Wilson was there to corral the rebound and scored the go-ahead goal with eight seconds remaining to lift the Bahamas to a 5-4 win over Antigua and Barbuda to win the bronze medal at the national beach soccer stadium on Saturday.

Wilson and Jonathan Richardson each scored two goals for the Bahamas and goalkeeper Michael Butler added another.

"We came together as a group of brothers, we weren't training for that long, maybe three months at the most, and we expected a gold, but it still feels good to come away with a bronze with my brothers," Richardson said.

He finished the tournament second to Wilson among the team's top goal scorers.

"I just came out and I was mainly thinking about my team and my country, it happened to work out for us and we came out with a win, he said. "In beach soccer, going into the third period you have to stay mentally tough, we were able to do that and we came away with the win. Our song is 'who let the dogs out' and that's how we fought."

Antigua struck first on a goal from D'Jaire Sheppard and moments later Javorn Benjamin caught Butler out of position and beat him to the ball for a 2-0 lead with three seconds left to play in the first period.

Butler got the rally started with his goal at the 8:45 mark in the second period and Wilson scored the equaliser with 7:33 left in the period.

Tevin Lewis drew a penalty shot which was blocked by Oscar but Richardson was in the right place at the right time for the rebound and his first goal gave the Bahamas a 3-2 lead with just under four minutes left in the second.

Antigua's Jajuan Williams subbed into the game and on his first touch used a great individual effort to tie the game at 3-3 with 2:29 left and the teams took that score into the final frame.

Richardson opened the scoring in the third with his second goal to give the Bahamas a 4-3 lead with 7:44 left in regulation.

Sheppard's second goal tied the game at 4-4, setting the stage for Wilson's late match heroics.

Senior national team member Dwayne Forbes served as head coach and said his team showed great resilience throughout the tournament fighting through their early mistakes.

"The whole tournament was very tough and hats off to the boys for closing it out like this and getting the job done. Unfortunately we had to leave it up to the last minute and had to come from behind in order to win. What caused us to be playing for third place is we were beating ourselves, we made silly mistakes in a few games and in every game, there were three or four bad mistakes that almost cost us the game. Even in the bronze medal game, there were even more mistakes, but we were able to come through."

The team opened with a 5-2 loss to St. Lucia, in a game that was tied at two late in the third period before the Bahamas surrendered three quick goals. They followed with a 7-3 win in the first matchup against Antigua before a 4-2 loss to Trinidad and Tobago in the semifinal.

"It's a big win for the programme, even though it's not what we expected but it's a great start at the youth level with a Commonwealth Youth Games medal," Forbes said, "They were fantastic, this team is fit so that wasn't an issue or an issue of any team being better than us, we just made mistakes but fortunately we were still able to medal and we can only look forward to improving the overall programme in the future."

St. Lucia went on to take the gold medal with a 6-2 win over Trinidad and Tobago.

The Bahamas' women's team was less fortunate and finished in fourth place after a 3-1 loss to Turks and Caicos in the bronze medal game.

After both teams were tied with a goal apiece, Turks and Caicos took a 2-1 lead into the third period on a goal from Sydney Campbell.

Campbell added another goal, early in the third period to take a 3-1 lead at the 10-minute mark.

Team Bahamas suffered a 15-2 loss to Jamaica in their opening match. Shorthanded after that match, the team played back-to-back matches where they lost on penalties. In the first match against Turks and Caicos, the Bahamas lost 2-1 (3-3) and in the semi-final they lost to Trinidad and Tobago 2-1 (5-5).

"I guess we were a bit tired from the other days of competition but we gave it our all we came away with fourth place. I'm a bit disappointed because I know we could have given a little bit more. We trained hard for this but we have the upcoming years and we're looking forward to it. We got tired and we have limited subs because after the first game we lost a lot of people so we just had to work with what we have," team member Hannah Darville said, "The experience was good it was some of our first time national team and that's why were so confident and so ok with our performance because it was our first national team."

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Bahamas Strikes For The Bronze In Men's Beach Soccer - Bahamas Tribune

By Sean Star

Reporter-Herald Sports Writer

Colorado State basketball will play in the Bahamas on Aug. 5-11, the program's first out-of-country trip in five years, giving players like J.D. Paige, right, a chance to adapt to their new-found leadership roles. (Jenny Sparks / Loveland Reporter-Herald)

FORT COLLINS With a five-member incoming recruiting class, and two Division I transfers now eligible, the Colorado State basketball team has plenty of fresh faces.

There are also some familiar ones with the return of starters Prentiss Nixon, Nico Carvacho and J.D. Paige.

Mixing the old with the new, establishing roles and new team leaders in the absence of Gian Clavell and Emmanuel Omogbo, will take some time. Luckily for the Rams, they'll have a head start thanks to a trip to the Bahamas on tap Aug. 5-11.

College basketball teams are allowed one such foreign trip every four years, although it's been five since CSU last traveled abroad which was also to the Bahamas during coach Larry Eustachy's first season with the team in 2012-13.

"We have some experience back; we also have a lot of unanswered questions, so it'll be a chance to move us further ahead, particularly with this monster non-conference schedule we have," said Eustachy, who coached the Bahamian national team for one season in 2014. "It's a chance to progress, whether it's maturity-wise, whether it's getting to know your teammates, whether it's execution, whether it's understanding our terminology, whether it's understanding what the coach expects."

"It's a lot of things. It lets us start our season sooner. And it gives our guys a chance to go somewhere they'd probably never go."

The Rams will play three games against teams from the island during their week-long getaway. Perhaps just as important are the 10 extra practices the team is allowed in preparation for the trip.

The entire squad has been together for more than a month now, and if anything, the CSU coaching staff has had to pull back the reins in order to avoid burnout.

"With this Bahamas thing, we've got even more time with them, so it's been really good," associate head coach Steve Barnes said. "You want to coach them, but you also don't want them to be not wanting to be in the gym in February and March, so it's kinda, 'Are we poking too hard? Are we going enough?'

The Colorado State men's basketball team practices at the school's Indoor Practice Facility in advance of a trip to the Bahamas Aug. 5-11. (Courtesy of Colorado State Athletics)

"We're just really trying to get the right read on how much to do and how much to teach and all that kind of stuff. It's been really good for the new guys, and to give the older guys a chance to lead. We've had a good summer."

The Rams' success in 2017-18 will largely depend on their ability to fill the massive holes left by Omogbo and Clavell, a pair of first-team all-conference players a season ago who led Colorado State to a runner-up finish in both the Mountain West regular season and conference tournament.

"I think our program is maybe a year away, I really do. If you look at it, we really worked hard to not fall off the map, as I've said so many times. So I think we've got good leadership in the top end and guys are really eager to learn," Eustachy said. "Our guys are talented, but we're just inexperienced. Even though we have three starters back, they're going to have to step into a different role. It's easier when you go into San Diego State with Gian and Emmanuel on your team. Now guys like Jeremiah (Paige) are going to have to step up and take over those roles."

Not only with the Bahamas trip provide a chance for some new leadership to emerge; it will also give the coaching staff an opportunity to tinker with lineups and rotations, something they don't usually do during summer practices.

"Right now they're all kinda in the hopper together, and when we go down to the Bahamas, now you're going to start playing different combinations," Barnes said. "You don't get that really that much when you're just, 'OK, you five against you five' because they're just all together. We'll get a better feel of 'oh, that's a pretty good starting group, that's a pretty good seven, that's a pretty good eight.' That kind of thing."

Sean Star: 970-669-5402, sstar@reporter-herald.com or twitter.com/seanvstar

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CSU basketball's trip to the Bahamas offers growing experience - Loveland Reporter-Herald

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

Denvaughn Whymns was so disappointed in himself with his two individual bronze-medal performances that he was more than determined to get the gold for the Bahamas mixed 4 x 200 metre relay team.

On the final day of athletics at the 6th Commonwealth Youth Games, Whymns powered from third place on the anchor leg to pass the two female runners ahead of him to surge across the finish line first in a time of one minute and 31.50 seconds.

Georgina Adam anchored England to the silver in 1:31.77 and Oarabile anchored Botswana to the bronze in 1:33.51.

Team Bahamas concluded the night by adding a gold, silver and bronze medal in the three relays contested to pull the curtain down on the games just before the closing ceremony was held.

Whymns got the baton from Kayvon Stubbs, who got it from Tylar Lightbourne, while Shaquiel Higgs got the parade started before the crowd in the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium that was waiting for the Bahamian national anthem to be played for the first time in the nine sporting games.

I felt awesome. I had to come back out here and redeem myself, said Whymns, who didnt perform as well as he expected in getting the bronze in both the 110m hurdles and the long jump just after taking a few days off to recuperate last week from the trip to Nairobi, Kenya, for the IAAF World Under-18 Championships.

I wasnt happy with my performances, so I just decided to come out here and do better than I did yesterday. When I got the baton, I know I had to work because other teams were ahead of me, so I know I had to work hard to bring the baton home.

All of his teammates were just as thrilled about his comeback performance.

I feel like I executed well. We just wanted to get a clean pass and make it fast, said Stubbs on passing the baton to Whymns. He did an awesome job, so Im very proud of him.

Lightbourne took it a bit further. I felt that God was on our side and we did what we were supposed to do, she said. I just want to thank God for the opportunity. We had a very strong team and a very good anchor leg. It was very good.

While it was the first gold medal in all of the events for the Bahamas, the team joined the mixed 4 x100m and 4 x400m teams that got the bronze.

On the first leg, Higgs said he just wanted to put the team in contention and he accomplished that feat.

I just wanted to get off the first curve and maintain it and hit all my points to give my team a good position, he said.

I know I could trust these guys. But Denvaughn filled me with plenty pride to come out there and do his best.

In another best effort, the Bahamas 4 x 100m relay team of Lakelle Kinteh, Joel Johnson, Tylar Lightbourne and Adrian Curry ran 43.83 for second in their heat behind Australias winning time of 43.19.

However, in the first heat, only Jamaica ran faster in winning in 43.62 for the gold. That enabled Australia to get the silver and the Bahamas the bronze.

I felt my leg went really well. I didnt let the boys get too far away from me, Kinteh said.

I tried to keep it up the best I could. I feel good to finally get the medal. I would have liked the gold, but whatever God does is well done.

Johnson, in getting the baton on the first exchange, said it was all about getting around the track.

The execution of the exchanges was bad but , because of our natural talent, we were able to come back strong, said Johnson, who missed an opportunity to medal in the 200m after he placed sixth in the final in 21.82 earlier in the day. Its good to get the medal.

Lightbourne was just happy to be a part of the two relay-medal performances that came back-to-back.

It was good. We had some problems on our exchanges, but we got it around and we medalled, she said.

Curry, who picked up a bronze in the 100m, said it was all about finishing strong.

It feels good, he said. We had a good team and a good set up. We had some minor issues, but the exchanges were good. We just had to get the baton around and finish the race.

While Wymns walked away with three medals, a relay gold and two individual bronze, Lightbourne was the top female performer with her pair of relay medals.

Their performances, along with the silver medal from the 4 x 400m relay team of Marissa White, Corey Sherrod, Shaquiel Higgs and Gabrielle Gibson in 3:34.06 behind Australia (3:25.07), helped the Bahamas to move up on the medal chart from 20 to 17 with a total of one gold, two silver and 10 bronze for the countrys best showing ever with 13 medals.

England finished as the cream of the crop with 23 gold, 16 silver and 12 bronze for 51 medals.

Australia was second with 14 gold, 14 silver and 11 bronze for 39 medals and New Zealand got third with 31 medals, inclusive of 8 gold, 14 silver and 9 bronze.

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Mixed Relay Gold: Bahamas Victorious In 4x200m - Bahamas Tribune

July 26, 2017

Team PNG to the 6th Commonwealth Youth Games in the Bahamas, finished the five day competition from July 19-23 with the experience bringing the best out of the athletes. Though Team PNG didnt win any medals the eight athletes Ryan Maskelyne and Ebony Tkatchenko, (swimming), Matthew Stubbings and Patricia Apisah (tennis), Lawrence Lamond and Letisha Pukaikia (athletics) and Damien Aisi and Tonnie Gima (beach volleyball) made sure they did their best. England won the games with a total of 23 Gold Medals, 16 Silver and 12 Bronze, Australia came in Second with 14 Gold, 14 Silver and 11 Bronze, New Zealand came third with eight Gold, 14 Silver and nine Bronze. According to Chef de Mission Michael Henao the team was impressive and despite going against the worlds best they came out with some good performances. Ryan Maskelyne swam the 100m breaststroke it was a tough field which saw him come in just over 3 seconds (with 30.33) behind the fastest qualifier in that event (27.95). It was not enough to see him through to the finals Ryan Maskelyn swam the 200m breaststroke finals in Nassau he swam with a time of 2:20:33. Unfortunately it wasnt enough for a medal but he did put a personal best in his qualifying race finishing with a time of 2:19:72 Ebony Tkatchenko, the youngest of the contingent, has so much potential according to swim coach Greg Fasala. She competed in the 400m freestyle. Whilst she didnt medal, the coaching staff is confident the experience will fare her well in future tournaments. Lawrence Lamond ran the 200m dash. He finished 7th with a Time of 23.63. Regrettably it wasnt enough to get him into the semi finals. Letisha Pukaikia, another rising star like Lamond, ran the 200m dash and finished with a time of 26.40, but that wasnt enough to get her into the semi finals. Matthew Stubbings played Rwanda and beat them 6-3, 6-2. He went up against the no.1 ranked player (India) of the tournament, He wasnt ranked going into the tournament so having him finish in the top 8 was a remarkable effort, after going down to India. Patricia Apisah played Scotland under tough circumstances; regrettably she went down 7-6, 6-0. In the mixed doubles, Papua New Guinea (Stubbings & Apisah) went down to a well-drilled Scotland 6-0, 6-1. Given this was their first time to play together, and given they were able to hold their opponents to account for much of the match, they did well and -Iike true athletes have taken the learnings in their stride Damien Aisi and Tonnie Gima played St Lucia for 7th place and won in two straight sets (21-8 and 21-9). A grand finish to the two young men.

The top four teams in the four divisions of the Pacific MMI Port Moresby Corporate Snooker competition start the finals play-offs this week.

FC Genesis looked threatening against their University Inter FC opponents in the Port Moresby womens premier competition but could not escape their clutches only settling for a nil-all draw on Saturday.

It barely moved him into the lower reaches of the world top 10 this year, but Usain Bolts (pictured) 9.95-second 100m win at the Monaco Diamond League on Friday night signified so much more.

The top four teams in the four divisions of the Pacific MMI Port Moresby Corporate Snooker competition start the finals play-offs this week.

FC Genesis looked threatening against their University Inter FC opponents in the Port Moresby womens premier competition but could not escape their clutches only settling for a nil-all draw on Saturday.

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Team PNG fare well in the Bahamas - POST-COURIER