Men’s volleyball – Semifinal |01 September 2023
Seychelles lose to hosts Madagascar in semifinal
- Bronze medal encounter against Mauritius tomorrow
The Seychelles men’s volleyball team will have a last chance to salvage at least a bronze medal tomorrow when they meet Mauritius in the third-place match, after losing their semifinal match 0-3 against hosts Madagascar yesterday at the Palais des Sports of Mahamasina, in Antananarivo, Madagascar.
The match will be a replica of the group B encounter which Seychelles lost 1-3.
Without captain Ricky Vel, who abandoned the Games following an ankle injury in their group match against Mauritius, the Seychellois players stepped on the court ready to defend their flag with honour, holding the Malagasies at the beginning of the first set they trailed 5-6, 10-15, before the well-oiled Malagasy machine shifted gear, taking a 21-15 lead, extending to 23-17.
From that point it was clear that the hosts were well in command as they went on to win the set 25-17, for a 1-0 lead.
In the second set, Madagascar imposed their dominance right from the beginning, taking an early 10-4 lead, which was then extended to 15-8, then 18-11.
Still resisting, Seychelles managed to score some points, to make it 20-15, only to see Madagascar adding three more points, making the score 23-15.
Already in the driving seat, the hosts let down their guard, to which Seychelles capitalised and score some points to lose the second set 18-25.
Despite being two sets behind, the boys of coach François Magloire kept fighting in the third set, trailing 4-10, 6-11 and 8-20.
As it was the case in the second set, Madagascar slowed down at the end of the set, allowing Seychelles to climb back to 11-22, then 16-23.
Madagascar then made it 24-16, with Seychelles scoring an additional point before the former sealed the set at 25-17 to win the match 3-0 and book their spot in the final.
Coach Magloire commended his players for their determination, noting that most of them have been suffering from high fever and diarrhea during the past two days, remaining in bed, and unable to attend training sessions.
He, however, noted that despite the medical issues, they all gave their best, and now their focus is on clinching the bronze medal tomorrow.
Roland Duval