East African secondary schools volleyball champions Kwanthanze from Machakos easily beat Ilika from Kitui 3-0 as they launched their Eastern Region campaign at Kangaru School in Embu County on Thursday.
The smooth co-ordination between the lanky players, the majority of them in Form Two and Form One, quickly exposed Ilika’s defence and the champions were two sets up in less than 20 minutes.
Coach Justin Kigwari was full of praise for Josphine Kataa, Fridah Boke, Rose Muthokya, Sheila Wawire and Silvia Simit but quickly added that they were yet to attain their 2019 form.
“The standards are still low and I cannot say that we have the same quality we had in the past due to the effects of Covid-19 disruption. But we are not complaining, we are still working hard to get there,” said Kigwari.
They will Friday play Kyeni and Ngunyumu from Embu and look guaranteed to book a slot in semis.
Regional champions Matiliku from Makueni followed suit, beating Dr Charles from Machakos 3-0 and a resilient Kaundu 3-1 to storm the semis. Precise service by Pius Kyalo and blocks from Timothy Mutemi and Elijah Torija helped lift the team’s spirits before recording the decisive wins.
In boys’ football, Mbooni stormed the semis with two decisive 3-0 wins against Iriani from Tharaka Nithi and Moi Mbiruri of Embu. Striker Paul Pesian was in top form, scoring a hat-trick against Iriani, while goals from Titus Muteti, Anei Deng and Malipo Kunemwa helped seal clean sheets for the Makueni County champions.
In Pool ‘B’, Dakabaricha of Marsabit beat Isiolo Barracks 1-0, while Kathera of Meru recorded a 1-0 win against Kavia from Kitui. Isiolo Barracks recorded an improved performance to in a 2-1 win against Kavia.
In netball, Kwanthanze beat Chuka 58-10 before overcoming a stiff competition to see off a determined Syumile 40-29. Syumile quickly recovered to beat Kamutu 84-03.
