Canadians Bansley, Pavan lose in beach volleyball quarter-finals
Canadian team will play for 5th place
By Pete Evans, CBC Sports
The Canadian team of Heather Bansley and Sarah Pavan have been eliminated from the Rio Olympics, falling in the quarter-finals Sunday in a straight-sets loss to Germany.
The German team of Laura Ludwig and Kira Walkenhorst move on to the semifinals by winning both sets 21-14, closing out the match in 37 minutes.
Pavan, from Kitchener, Ont., and Bansley, from Waterdown, Ont., beat Victoria's Jamie Broder and Toronto's Kristina Valjas 2-0 to earn their spot in the quarter-finals.
All four Canadian teams have now been eliminated from beach volleyball play on both the men's and women's sides.
"A lot of athletes strive to represent their country in the Olympic Games. We got that opportunity," Pavan said. "The program doesn't have the history that the American and Brazilian programs have.
"The fact that we had four teams here speaks loudly, and we're only going to get better."
Ludwig and Walkenhorst will face Brazil's Talita Rocha and Larissa Franca Maestrini in the semifinals Tuesday at 3 p.m. ET.
The Brazilian pair survived three match points to come from behind and beat Joana Heidrich and Nadine Zumkehr of Switzerland in three sets (21-23, 27-25, 15-13).
Americans through as well
Americans Kerri Walsh Jennings and April Ross cruised through their quarter-final matchup with Louise Bawden and Taliqua Clancy of Australia winning in straight sets 21-14, 21-16.
Walsh Jennings is looking for her fourth consecutive Olympic gold medal, and her first with Ross as her partner.
"It's a unique experience, and I loved it," the three-time gold medalist said after the win, which came on her 38th birthday.
The U.S. will face Brazil's other duo, Agatha Bednarczuk Rippel and Barbara Seixas de Freitas, in the semifinals Tuesday night at 10 p.m. ET.