Silver medal for Aussies at Commonwealth Youth Games
Image and words courtesy of Commonwealth Games Australia
On the sands of Black Rock, Tobago, the Australian women’s pair of Jasmine Rayner (QLD) and Cameron Zajer (SA) have claimed the silver medal at the Commonwealth Youth Games.
Taking on the only other undefeated team in the competition, Rayner and Zajer could still hold their heads high despite going down to the Canadian duo of Calinda Kok and Katalina Drozd.
The match, which saw Canada claimed 2:0 (21-14, 21-14) was played under the sunny and warm conditions, in stark contrast to the rain-affected semi-final fixtures.
“Canada was a good team, and they played a good game today,” Rayner said.
“It’s pretty exciting to bring home a silver medal. We’ve never played together before and to walk away with the silver medal is pretty cool.”
The pair paid tribute to their family, friends, and support teams, noting that their achievements wouldn’t be possible without them.
“We’d like to thank all of our coaches that helped us, and Bree (Brianna Mears), who coached us here in Trinbago, as well as our family and friends; thank you to you all.”
Meanwhile yesterday, Mitchell Croft (VIC) and Jett Rocker-Graham (SA) played a strong match on their way to defeating South Africa’s Jayden Chrisitano Cupido and Deloshen Valaitham, finishing 5th in the men’s competition.
VII Commonwealth Youth Games
Beach Volleyball – Pigeon Point Beach, Tobago
5-11 August 2023
Day 1 – Pool Game 1
Jett Rocker-Graham/Mitch Croft d South Africa 2:0 (21-13, 21-15)
Jasmine Rayner/Cameron Zajer d England 2:0 (21-18, 21-8)
Day 2 – Pool Game 2
Jasmine Rayner/Cameron Zajer v Rwanda 2:0 (21-14, 21-10)
Jett Rocker-Graham/Mitch Croft d St Kitts & Nevis 2:0 (21-13, 21-9)
Day 4 – Quarter-Finals
Jasmine Rayner/Cameron Zajer d Scotland 2:0 (21-15, 21-12)
England d Jett Rocker-Graham/Mitch Croft 2:0 (21-19, 21-18)
Day 5
Men’s 5th-8th Classification – Jett Rocker-Graham/Mitch Croft d Rwanda 2:0 (21-16, 23-21)
Men’s 5th-6th Playoff – Jett Rocker-Graham/Mitch Croft d South Africa 2:0 (21-14, 21-15)
Women’s Semi-Final – Jasmine Rayner/Cameron Zajer d New Zealand 2:0 (22-20, 22-20)
Day 6
Women’s Gold Medal Match – Canada d Jasmine Rayner/Cameron Zajer 2:0 (21-14, 21-14)
