Bermuda teams endured a tough time in their respective assignments at the Central American and Caribbean Games on Thursday.

In women’s beach volleyball, Megan Hands and Natalie Gazzard were bested 21-10, 21-6 by Marcela Araya and Eugenia Ramirez of Costa Rica, in the ninth to twelfth play-off.

Hands and Gazzard forfeited their eleventh-place play-off against Nelissa Ramirez and Clara Sabal, of Belize. Meagan McPeek, the women’s coach, indicated that one of the players was unwell, resulting in the match not taking place.

“Unfortunately, one of our athletes got really sick,” McPeek told The Royal Gazette.

“She was sick for the last two days and came out to try to play today at 10am, but she was miserable and after barely getting through the first match, it was unsafe to let her play again at 1pm at the height of the heat today.

“It’s incredibly hot and humid and she’s very sick. We made the hard decision to forfeit the last match. Both girls are very disappointed, but the athlete's long-term health is paramount and it’s just too dangerous to push it in these conditions.

“It was very unfortunate, the ladies have both put in a lot of time and effort training for this. But there was nothing else that could be done at this time and it would have been dangerous to push through this.”

Days after defeating Jamaica 1-0 for their first win, the women’s hockey team suffered a 9-0 loss to Cuba in their final group B match. They finished third in their pool and will now play for positions between fifth to eighth, with their final two fixtures scheduled for Saturday and Monday.

While conceding that they lost to a better side, Bermuda coach Kovin Moodley felt that the match pushed some of his players to shine their brightest, especially goalkeeper Christina Stephens-Weser.

“It was an amazing performance from our goalkeeper, who managed to save quite a significant amount of shots,” Moodley said.

“I think the scoreline could have potentially been even more but it probably brought out the best out of some of our players because they had an opportunity to step up.

“Cuba are a very strong team and they are here to win the CAC Games. They have very durable players, who are able to withstand the heat and conditions while being extremely technical and moving the ball with a lot of efficiency.

“They didn't make as many mistakes as we did in the game. They exposed a lot of our technical flaws, their ability to play on the transition and move the game forward immediately when they won possession was quite outstanding.”

At the conclusion of the first session of the team event in bowling, Bermuda were ninth with a total score of 2,893. David Maycock, Anthony Hayward, Dennis Joel, Lamar Richardson and LeVinc Samuels are hitting the lanes again on Friday, the final day of action for the sporting code at the Games.

“We started off well, but once the lanes changed, a couple of the guys struggled while others got a better look,” Maycock said.

“We’ve got to be better on Friday and sharper on the moves. We’ve still got three games to go on Saturday, starting at 4pm Bermuda time, so we’re looking forward to finishing the tournament strongly.

“If we play the way we know we can, we’ll give ourselves every chance of being in the medal mix, you never know.”

Maycock, one of the most experienced members of the team, expressed gratitude to American coach Joe Slowinski for providing the team with guidance.

“Having coach Joe Slowinski here with me this week at this tournament has been a tremendous help,” he said.

“The preparation leading up to the event gave me a strong foundation, having him here throughout the week has been exactly what I needed.

“His knowledge of the game and strategic approach have helped me read the lane conditions much more clearly, while the new techniques he's taught me have made a significant difference in my performance.

“Having his experienced eyes behind me throughout the tournament has given me greater confidence, and that confidence has translated directly into how I’ve performed on the lanes.”

Samuels also credited Slowinski’s impact after months of working with the Bermudian squad preparing them for the Games.

“I have been on many bowling trips to represent Bermuda, but having a coach Like Joe has definitely given us a different outlook on the sport and allowed us to prepare for things we never knew existed in the sport of bowling,” Samuels said.

“I have never felt so versatile as a bowler and in this sport you need to be prepared for whatever is thrown at you. He has actually improved all of our games in many different ways and I feel very confident having him by our side.

“It has been a tough tournament, but I am sure it would’ve been way harder without his knowledge and experience in the game.”

Slowinski commended the duo of Maycock and Samuels for their consistency at the competition.

“I want to recognise the consistent performance of both David Maycock and LeVinc Samuels,” the coach said.

“They have performed well throughout the Games and today was no different. With Pan American Games qualifying in the mix, they both show the impact of preparations and having knowledgeable coaching behind them to help each reach their full potential.

“Our strategies are effective and we continue to see both perform well against a very strong field.

“We suffer from a lack of depth relative to the regional powers such as Mexico [tenth], Venezuela [sixteenth], Colombia [eighteenth] and Puerto Rico [21st] who are in the top 25 nations historically in world championships medal count for men.”

The coach pointed at what he thought were some of the weaknesses for Bermuda at the Games.

“We are having difficulty executing from top to bottom in the line-up and can’t match the quality we see from the majority of nations here competing,” the American said.

“When a bowler misses target lines we lose the information that will be used for adjustments with their team-mates. This makes it difficult to be proactive and maximise scoring.”

“The best performing countries have a pipeline of youth with many bowling at collegiate level in the United States and gaining valuable experience in regional and World Championships at the youth level.

“Also, the emergence of Guatemala in the past five years after an infusion of commitment to youth development. We see many of the youth bowlers winning medals at these Games.

“An extensive youth development programme is necessary to build a longstanding competitive programme to compete for medals consistently in the CAC Games and Pan American Games.”

“We are certainly missing 2018 CAC Games medal-winners Damien Matthews and Rickai Binns here. Filling their shoes is nearly impossible.”

Joell also acknowledged Maycock and Samuels for being the best performers in the side.

“Today’s team performance was certainly not our best, but far from our worst,” he said.

“We have one more day of team competition and we’ll keep fighting until the very end. LeVinc and David have been bowling exceptionally well and we’re optimistic that we can secure qualification for the Pan American Games.

“We’re staying focused, supporting one another and looking to finish strong.”

Hayward vowed that they will try their best to finish in a good position on the last day.

“It was a very tough day on the lanes,” he said.

“We have to dig deep going into the final day to bring back a respectable total, hitting our lines more accurately will be a big factor and we have to fight until the very end.”

Meanwhile, Bermuda on Wednesday joined fellow Caribbean nations in paying tribute to one of the region's greatest sporting icons when the Barbados Olympic Association held a memorial ceremony at the Athletes’ Village during the CAC Games.

The ceremony coincided with the funeral of Sir Garfield Sobers in Barbados. It provided an opportunity for athletes and officials from across the Caribbean to honour the legendary cricketer's extraordinary life and lasting contribution to sport.

Representatives from several national delegations attended the service, reflecting the immense respect Sir Garfield commanded throughout the region.

Bermuda was represented by Chef de Mission Jon Beard, who joined fellow officials and athletes in remembering a man widely regarded as one of the finest all-round cricketers in the history of the game and an inspiration to generations of Caribbean sportsmen and women.

The ceremony served as a poignant reminder that, while the Games celebrate athletic achievement, they also provide an opportunity for the Caribbean sporting family to come together in remembrance of those whose legacy has transcended their own sport and helped shape the region's sporting identity.