The last day of the Pan Am Cup posed several key match-ups. Just as important as who would win the gold was who would win the Bronze and who would win the match between Peru and Argentina, to very talented teams in their own right.
As the day's competition started, fans started making their way to the Bank United Center located on the University of Miami Campus.
The first match had Trinidad defeating Guatemala in three (3-0) sets: 25-15,25-16 and 25-22. The Trinidad team has played better since additional players have arrived. It would have been interesting to see how they would have done if all their players would have been available since the inception of the tournament.
Match No. 2 had Canada defeating Costa Rica in three (3-0) sets: 25-20, 25-13, 25-19.
Match No. 3 had the best and most contested match of the day. In the end Peru defeated Argentina in five (3-2) sets: 27-25, 25-20, 16-25, 19-25, 17-15.
Match No. 4 (The Bronze Match) was the big upset of the day in that Puerto Rico defeated USA in four (3-1) sets: 25-22, 20-25, 25-21, 25-20. This was a big defeat for a U.S. team that had been playing so well.
"Congratulations to Puerto Rico as they certainly deserved to win the match," U.S. Head Coach Hugh McCutcheon said. "We came out flat and never got into any rhythm. Puerto Rico was able to return the big points when they needed them."
"Puerto Rico made the important plays at the right time," said Scott-Arruda, the U.S. captain. "We need to play more consistently throughout the match to improve."
McCutcheon was able to utilize a tournament roster dotted with youth as well as veterans. At the press conference, McCutcheon related one of the goals of the tournament was to involve the Olympians as a matter of familiarization with the staff before they get some deserved rest between the professional league seasons.
"For many of our Olympians, this was a chance for our coaching staff to see them and have them be a part of our system early in the process," McCutcheon said.
Match No. 5 (The Gold Match) was controlled by Brazil as they defeated the Dominican Republic in three (3-0) sets: 25-18, 25-20, 25-14.
In all, it was a great opportunity to cover these games for South Florida. For those of you that were unable to make it to see the games in person I hope the report kept you informed. For the many of you that attended, I was very happy to see there!
Final 2009 Women's Pan American Cup Standings
1 - Brazil
2 - Dominican Republic
3 - Puerto Rico
4 - United States
5 - Peru
6 - Argentina
7 - Canada
8 - Costa Rica
9 - Mexico
10 - Trinidad & Tobago
11 - Guatemala
To See an article on the Individual Honors - Click Here
Lets us know your comments on the Pan Am Cup.
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