 Melissa Humana-Paredes and Sarah Pavan did what they needed to do on day three of the Beach Volleyball FIVB World Tour Finals in Hamburg – but now face an anxious overnight wait to see if they make it through to the knockout stage.
The Canadians started the day needing to win both of their matches to stand any chance of extending their stay at the Rothenbaum, and the Commonwealth champions did exactly that with a pair of victories.
The second was no easy feat considering it came against home favorites Victoria Bieneck and Isabel Schneider in front of a packed Red Bull Beach Arena crowd.
Melissa and Sarah have done their bit – now they must wait to see if results go in their favor when the final pool play matches take place on Saturday.
“It’s out of our hands and hopefully the volleyball gods are on our side and we can get out of the pool,” said Melissa afterwards. “Regardless of whether we do or not, we can be proud of overcoming whatever happened earlier in the week.
“It would be a bittersweet ending if this is the ending but it’s still special and it means a lot to end on a high note, especially heading into Olympic qualification. If it does end, we end it with a smile on our faces with two solid performances to build on.”
Pavan was equally proud of a performance that could see the Gstaad Major champions in the quarterfinals.
“I’m proud of how we rebounded after a difficult week and how we came together despite of those results,” said Sarah. “We did what we had to do. We didn’t drop a set today and, as Mel says, we hope the gods are with us. If they’re not then we can be happy with how we finished the tournament with two wins.”
Also their fellow Canadians Heather Bansley and Brandie Wilkerson will have to sleep one more night to know their fate for sure. Already qualified with three victories, they wait for the conclusion of pool play to know if they’ll advance directly to the semifinals or if they’ll need to play in the quarterfinals.
On Saturday the final women’s pool play begin at 10.45am CEST – and you can watch all the drama unfold on BeachStream.
Moving and still images available for free editorial use at the dedicated Media Room.
FIVB World Tour Finals Hamburg 2018 presented by Vodafone
August 15 - 19
#HamburgFinals
www.BeachMajorSeries.com
About Beach Volleyball Major Series
Serve, dig, spike, repeat… Since 2015, the Beach Volleyball Major Series has showcased the best athletes in the world of beach volleyball. A joint venture between Red Bull and Hannes Jagerhofer, the series has rapidly expanded to become the most spectacular and popular in the sport. The stops of the Major Series are the highest ranked tournaments on the FIVB World Tour calendar, offering the biggest prize money and guaranteeing world-class entertainment for athletes, partners and fans all around the globe. |
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