The third days of the 2015 CASA Championships concluded with
repeat wins for top seeds and defending champions Chris Binnie
and Karen Meakins.
Meakins,
playing in her ninth final in a row, was up against CASA
newcomer Rune Reta. The 15-time Barbados champion started the
better, keeping up a fast paced attack as she led from the
outset, taking the first 11-7 and after a 6-2 start to the
second held off a late challenge from the Bermuda-based Canadian
to double her advantage 11-8.
The good start belonged to Reta in the third though, 8-2 as
Meakins struggled to maintain the initiative, 11-5 despite
tinning a simple winner on her first game ball to reduce the
deficit
The
fourth went point for point up to 7-all, but two winners, a
stroke, and finally a no let as Meakins drove the ball deep into
the corner and the title was heading back to Barbados.
"I knew it was going to be tough," admitted Meakins, "I was
playing the unknown, Runa's had a good world ranking but is new
to CASA. I started out playing as aggressively, volleying as
much as I could, I'm quite fit at the moment so wanted to try to
use that to my advantage.
"In
the third I went out a bit too aggressively and she took
advantage. She was playing well by then, and in the fourth too,
but I managed to get a break at the end.
"It was a good match, I enjoying it, and I moved and volleyed
well which is my strength.
"Nine finals in a row and three wins, not bad for a 43-year-old,
as long as my body hold up I'll keep going. There's a lot of
good juniors coming through though, and the strength in depth
has been better than ever this year so it's particularly
pleasing to win it this time."
The
men's final went all the way as Chris Binnie and Cameron
Stafford, playing each other in the final for the third time in
four years, traded the first four games in a match that mixed
dynamic attacking with periods of attrition.
The momentum kept switching, Binnie taking the first and third
games, Stafford pulling away at the end of the second, holding
off Binnie's comeback in the fourth to level.
The
Jamaican's surge at the end of the fourth was too late, but he
continued in that vein as he dominated the fifth, collecting his
sixth title, and fifth in a row, to the delight of the Jamaican
support.
"It's
tough to play someone who can hit five or six outright winners
in a game," said Binnie, "there's not a lot you can do for much
of the time. I just had to try to keep it out of his hitting
zone, he was very difficult to play tonight, I'm just relieved
to win it in the end.
"I won my first title here in 2009, but never thought I could
win five in a row - there seems to be a new challenge every year
but thankfully I've been lucky enough to overcome most of them
now. I like it here in Cayman and I seem to play well here too!"
Women's
3rd/4th: Daniela Schumann (Ecs) 3-2 Ashley Khalil (Guy)
8-11, 13-11, 11-8, 9-11, 11-4 (39m)
Women's Consolation Final Amanda Heywood
(Bar) 3-1 Charlotte Knaggs (Tto)
11-9, 10-12, 11-9, 14-12 (33m) Semis:
Charlotte Knaggs (Tto) 3-1 Akelia Wiltshire (Guy)
11-6, 13-11, 8-11, 11-5 (31m) Amanda
Heywood (Bar) 3-1 Mary Fung-A-Fat (Guy)
11-4, 11-7, 9-11, 11-5 (27m)
Men's 3rd/4th: not played
Men's Consolation Final Micah
Franklin (Ber) 3-1 Julian Morrison (Jam)
11-8, 11-7, 8-11, 11-3 (43m)
Semis Julian Morrison (Jam) 3-0 Ashante Smith (Jam)
11-3 rtd Micah
Franklin (Ber) 3-1 Noah Browne (Ber)
11-6, 13-15, 11-1, 11-3 (37m)
Vets' Teams RR1 Cayman 4-1 Bermuda Barbados
4-1 Guyana
Finals Day at South Sound
The day started with the consolation semis - it's a full feed-in
system where the last players to join in are the losing
quarter-finalists.
In
the women's semis young Amanda Haywood continued her
great form as she beat Mary Fung-A-Fat, while Charlotte
Knaggs - sporting a variety of tapes and a big bruise - got
past Akelia Wiltshire, both in four games.
The men's semis were both local derbies, Jamaica's Julian
Morrison going through to face Bermuda's Micah Franklin
in tonight's final.
Here come the Vets
Then it was an early start for the Team events. There are Men's,
Women's and Vets categories, but with the Vets event being a
seven-team round robin getting started early is definitely a
good move, as hosts Cayman and defending champions
Barbados both got off to winning starts.
Evening Matches
The
women's 3rd/4th went the full distance with Daniela Schumann
easing through the fifth after four hard-fought games against
Ashley Khalil.
The
women's consolation final - effectively for 5th place - was a
noisy affair with the T&T and Barbados supporters noisily
cheering on their favourites for four very close games.
In the end it as 15-year-old Amanda Heywood who edged
through to the delight of, well both sets of fans actually!
Note: there won't be any presentations after tonight's
finals - those are held back until the whole event is finished
on Saturday.
