TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras, November 27, 2023 - Canada won the bronze medal and earned a spot at the 2024 FIVB World Championship in Tegucigalpa, Honduras.

Canada beat Dominican Republic 3-1 (28-30, 28-26, 25-23, 28-26) on Sunday in this first edition of the NORCECA Girls’ U17 Championship.

Canada finishes the tournament 4-1 and qualifies for the 2024 FIVB World Championship as one of the three finalists. Dominican Republic finishes 3-3.

This was Canada’s second time defeating Dominican Republic at this tournament, also 3-1 in pool play.

In the match for bronze, Canada outscored the Dominican Republic with a 53 to 46 advantage in attacking points and 10 to 7 in points from serves. The Dominicans led in blocks 13-11 and made fewer unforced errors, 35 to 39.

After the victory, Canada’s coach Amy Wilson said: “We knew the Dominican Republic was going to come out real tough and we knew that we had to stay patient through the roller coaster. We had played the Dominican Republic before, so we stuck to our game plan with a few little tweaks and it worked for us.”

Mexico defeated Puerto Rico in five sets to win the gold.

Individual awards were also handed out on the final day of the tournament, with Canada’s Megan Hunter receiving the best setter recognition.

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