Antigua, Grenada feel the heat on day four
Jamaica’s Sunshine Girls ticked off another easy victory at the Americas Netball World Cup Qualifiers by beating Grenada 74-48 on day four on Wednesday evening at the National Indoor Sports Centre.
It was the second game for the third-ranked Sunshine Girls on the day as earlier they whipped 30th-ranked Antigua 80-23.
Captain Jhaniele Fowler led the scoring for Jamaica against the 20th-ranked Grenadians with 50 goals from 53 attempts while Amanda Pinkey supported with 10 from 13.
Goal shooter Lotiysha Cato was the top scorer for Grenada with 44 goals from 51 attempts.
The Sunshine Girls, who have won five straight games, will next play St Lucia on Thursday at 6:15 pm.
Trinidad and Tobago, which are ranked 11th in the world, also recorded two victories on the day. Following a 60-21 victory over the Cayman Islands, Trinidad and Tobago returned later to beat the USA 43-21 and qualified for the 2023 World Cup in Cape Town, South Africa.
The regional qualifying tournament is being used to determine the last two qualifiers for the World Cup.
Jamaica has already qualified based on rankings, so the next two highest-placed countries will be the ones to join them among the 16 teams competing in Cape Town.
With three sets of games remaining, Trinidad and Tobago are leading the table with a maximum of 12 points from six games, two ahead of Barbados and Jamaica, which are locked on 10 points each.
The top three are followed by Grenada (6), St Vincent and the Grenadines (4), the USA (4), and the Cayman Islands (2).
Day 4 results (Wednesday, October 19)
Morning session
Jamaica 80, Antigua 23
Barbados 60 Grenada 38
Trinidad and Tobago 60 Cayman Islands 21
USA 40 St Lucia 36
Evening session
Jamaica 74 Grenada 48
Trinidad and Tobago 43 USA 27
The Cayman Islands 47 Antigua 42
Day 5 schedule (Thursday, October 20)
6:15 pm – St Lucia vs Jamaica
6:25 pm – St Vincent and the Grenadines vs Antigua
8:15 pm – Trinidad and Tobago vs Barbados
8:25 pm – USA vs the Cayman Islands
and then