B Div Vball: Xinmin beat Clementi Town to keep semi-final hopes

Presbyterian High, Wednesday, March 21, 2012 — Xinmin Secondary kept their hopes of qualifying for the semi-finals alive after a 2-0 (25-19, 25-18) victory over Clementi Town Secondary in their Round Two, Group Y match at the National B Division Boys’ Volleyball Championship.

Xinmin had suffered a shock 2-1 loss to Catholic High in an earlier match and desperately needed a win to stay in the game. The teams also received an added boost as they welcomed the return of Kevin (Xinmin #3) and Glen (#8), who had both been out of action in the previous match due to injury.

Xinmin were on form today as they scored 40 points via 30 kills, four blocks, six service aces. Clementi Town on the other hand managed 17 points from 15 kills, one block and one service ace. Hongxiang (Xinmin #2) emerged as the top scorer of the match with 11 points scored from nine kills, one block and one service ace. Teammate Kevin (Xinmin #2) was next in line with nine points scored from five kills, two blocks and two service aces. Clementi Town’s Oliver (#7) also scored nine points from eight kills and one service ace.

Xinmin took control of the first set after being held 5-5 by Clementi Town. They pulled ahead and were leading 14-9 as Clementi Town had trouble answering Xinmin’s attacks.

Xinmin held on to a comfortable lead and were leading 23-17 after a spike from the outside by Benjamin (Xinmin #12). Hongxiang (Xinmin #2) then took set point with a quick ball.

However, Xinmin were unable to take the next point as two consecutive spiking errors saw the score stand at 24-19.

Hongxiang (Xinmin #2) managed to put an end to the set as he went up for a quick ball, deflecting his spike out of bounds off the Clementi Town block.

Xinmin continued their winning form in the second set, widening their advantage from an initial 5-2 to 18-9.

Clementi Town showed that they were not to be beaten so easily as they staged a comeback attempt to score several points in quick succession.

With the score at 23-18, a service fault by Clementi Town broke the team’s momentum and consequently gave Xinmin match point. Glen (Xinmin #8) made use of this advantage as he powered a spike from the outside to seal the set 25-18.

With this result, Xinmin now have four points after one win and one loss. Catholic High have two points after a 0-2 loss to Dunman. However, Xinmin’s fate still lies in the hands of Catholic High as the latter play Clementi Town on Friday. If Catholic High should win 2-0, Xinmin will definitely need to win at least in their match against Dunman Secondary to force a countback.

If Catholic High were to win 2-1, Xinmin will only need to win one set to qualify for the semi-finals. Should Xinmin lose to Dunman, they might still stand a chance at qualifying as both they and Catholic High will be tied with four points each.

Final Score
Xinmin 2 Clementi Town 0
25-19, 25-18

National B Division Boys’ Volleyball Championship
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Current standings
Dunman (2W, 0L) – 6 points
Xinmin (1W, 1L) – 4 points
Catholic High (1W, 1L) – 2 points
Clementi Town (0W, 2L) – 0 points

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