Canadian women stay unbeaten at beach volleyball worlds with straight-set victories
Sam Schachter, Daniel Dearing drop 2nd straight match in Rome
Canada's Sophie Bukovec and Brandie Wilkerson will face Betsi Flint and Kelly Cheng of the United States on Sunday morning to decide first place in Pool E of the women's beach volleyball tourney at the world championships in Rome.
Bukovec and Wilkerson won their fourth consecutive set to open the event with a 2-0 record, downing Italy's Margherita Tega and Valentina Cali 21-12, 22-20 on Saturday morning.
Earlier, Flint and Cheng improved to 2-0 with a straight-sets victory over Esmee Bobner and Anouk Vergé-Dépré from Switzerland. Sunday's match is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET.
WATCH | Wilkerson, Bukovec defeat Italy:
Canada's Megan and Nicole McNamara are also 2-0 following a 21-17, 24-22 win over Paraguay's Erika Bobadilla and Giuliana Poletti. Toronto's Sam Schachter and Daniel Dearing dropped their second straight match in Italy, with Poland's Michael Bryl and Bartosz Losiak prevailing 25-23, 21-19.
WATCH | McNamara sisters beat Paraguay:
Meanwhile, Bukovec and Wilkerson were never separated by more than two points in Saturday's contest.
The Canadians appeared to be taking control when Wilkerson's cross-court hit increased their lead to 19-17, but the Italians drew even when Wilkerson served into the net and Canada was charged with a net foul after review.
Tied 20-20, the Toronto duo put away its opponent on a Wilkerson kill and gained a point when Italy misfired on a return, sending the ball into the net.
1st-year tandem
Bukovec and Wilkerson scored in bunches in the first set, putting together a three-point run and a 4-0 stretch on two occasions.
Wilkerson extended Canada's lead to eight at 17-9 with a point off a block and later saw the advantage reach nine points after her serve, which grazed the net, led to a point for a 19-10 cushion on the way to a nine-point win.
Bukovec, 26, and Wilkerson, 29, became on-court partners in February after the latter split from Heather Bansley.
Wilkerson and Bansley once held the world No.1 ranking and placed fifth in the Olympic tournament last summer in Tokyo.
Bukovec is a former world junior and college champion who won the FIVB U21 title in 2014 with partner Tia Miric.
WATCH | Canada's Schachter, Dearing fall to Poland:
A total of 48 men's and 48 women's pairs representing all five continental confederations will play a total of 216 matches, with the gold-medal final scheduled for June 19.
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