Volley ladies bag bronze

The Namibian Beach Volleyball Ladies Team managed to qualify for the 3rd round of the CAVB Continental Cup Olympic Qualifier finishing in third place out of four participating countries in Group C, with Egypt finishing in top position and Rwanda as runners up.
In a tough opening match against hosts Egypt, Namibia’s no 1 team Kim Seeebach/Julia Laggner were unlucky to lose both their matches in a 3 set tie break.
“It could have gone either way, we were just not focused and nervous in our first matches,” Julia Laggner said.
Namibia’s no 2 team, Rosi Hennes/Stephanie Palmhert lost 2-0 to both Egyptian teams, giving Egypt a 4-0 victory in this country vs country competition.
Next up were the teams from Rwanda, who finished 3rd at the All African Games this year in Congo Brazzaville. Seebach/Laggner managed to win against Rwanda’s no 2 team 2-0, but lost against their no 1 team, with Hennes/Palmhert also losing both matches in straight sets, giving Rwanda a 3-1 victory. The last match day saw neighbouring country Angola face the Namibian Ladies. After a 2-0 win by Seebach/Laggner over Angola no 2 team, they lost 1-2 against the no 1 team, while Hennes/Palmhert also lost their match to Angola’s top team.
The final match between the no 2 teams was a real thriller with Hennes/Palmhert managing to win the 3rd set tie break giving Namibia the equalizer 2-2, meaning a golden set had to decide the outcome of this bronze medal encounter. Only one set up to 15 points is played in this golden set and both teams lined up their number 1 teams. Seebach/Laggner showed they needed this victory and with all their experience finished this set 15-13, giving Namibia the first victory over Angola in Beach Volleyball.
“Last year December we played against them in the first round and lost 3-1, this time we had the better players and deserved to win third place,” commented James Verrinder, Namibia’s national coach. “Our Ladies have been amazing. They became stronger and better with every ball touch,” he added. The top 3 countries from each of the four groups (12 teams), qualify for the next round, which is already the semifinal and will be played beginning of 2016. Only one team in each gender from Africa will qualify for the Olympic Games 2016 in Rio de Janeiro.