Belizean Athletes Compete At 2024 CODICADER Games

Goodnight and welcome to another edition of Sports Monday, I am Paul Lopez. Many of our high school athletes have been in El Salvador for the past few days competing in the 2024 CODICADER Games. Here are some of the stats coming out of the games. Team Belize played against Panama in its first matchup of the basketball tournament. Sadly, they fell to Panama, finishing the game with eighty-three points to Panama’s ninety-eight points. Our female football team from Belmopan Comprehensive High School has been dominating their tournament. On Friday they defeated El Salvador with six goals to two.

 

They also won Saturday’s match against Honduras five goals to one. Today they defeated Guatemala three goals to one. The male football team from Muffles College has been having a less pleasant experience at the games. On Friday, they were demolished by El Salvador in a game that saw Belize finish with zero goals to El Salvador’s eight goals. They suffered another defeat on Saturday at the hands of Honduras in a match that finished with team Belize, once again, not realizing any goals. Honduras finished with four goals. In Volleyball, Saint Catherine Academy defeated Honduras on Saturday three sets to one. On the same day Saint John’s College male volleyball team defeated Nicaragua three sets to one. Both teams advanced to the semi-finals as a result. On Sunday, SCA faced off against Nicaragua for a spot in the finals. Unfortunately, they fell to their opponents in a hard-fought game that ended three sets to two. SJC also lost in similar fashion to Panama on Sunday, three sets to two. The games will continue over the course of the next few days with more matches ahead for Belize, including Judo and Track and Field.

 

From the CODICADER Games, we bring you back home to the Belize City Civic Center, this year’s home of the Inter-Office Basketball League. The season is well underway. Several play-in matchups were held late last week into the weekend. Team Police and team Customs led Friday night’s matchups. Team Police in the black and white jersey. Customs in grey and black jersey.

 

Number three for Customs, Solis with the lay up on the fast break to put his team on the scoreboard. This was the first basket, four minutes into the game. Here, Saunders from Team Belize gets the turnover. Was that a kick ball? In any event, he is alone on the other end and made the basket. Number six for Police, Lino, with the hot hands from three, puts his team at nine points, with Customs trailing. The first quarter ended with team Police on top, with eleven points. Customs had eight.  Solis with an early two points in the second quarter for Customs.

 

Smooth play here from Trapp, Ramos and Jones to get the inside bucket for Police. On the other end, Saunders skillfully uses the screen to work his way to the rim and get past every defender to make the bucket. Top notch ball playing there. Customs could not afford to let team Police extend their lead in the second quarter. They were unable to close the gap, but they worked hard enough to keep Police at an eleven-point lead at the end of the half. Customs came out of the locker room after the halftime break with fire in their eyes and completely turned the game around in a decisive twenty-three-point third quarter. Olivera with a three-point basket brings his team to thirty points and cuts down Police’s lead to six. Saunders with an open three. He makes the most of that opportunity. That basket tied the game at thirty-six a piece. The third quarter ended with Customs in the lead, with forty-two points to Police’s forty points. Customs did not let up in the final quarter, they scored a total of nineteen points. Saunders, Lino and Olivera were key players in the comeback. These players made most of the baskets. Customs won the match, with sixty-one points. Team Police led through the entire first half, but ultimately lost with fifty-three points.

 

Staying on basketball, we have also been following the 2024 William Dawson Sprite Basketball Tournament. On Saturday we covered a match between Boulevard Ballers and defending champions, Hard Rock Boys at the Yabra Green Basketball Court. The defending champions are in their signature yellow and white jersey. Boulevard Ballers are in blue and red. Justin Wade for Hard Rock with the layup. Boulevard Ballers’ Jacob Westby maneuvers his way to the rim for the layup, putting his team on the scoreboard four minutes into this one. Raheem Thurton showing off his skills on the other end. Dale Smith is left wide open, and he makes them pay for that error.

 

The first quarter finished with Boulevard Ballers on top, with ten points. Hard Rock Boys had eight points. That two-point lead was cut down to one point at the end of the first half. Boulevard Boys had twenty-one points. The defending champs had twenty points.  Hard Rock Boys were able to hold their opponents to eight points in the third quarter, while they managed to score twelve points and take a three-point lead. That third quarter run was led mainly by Raheem Thurton who scored eight of those twelve points. The fourth quarter was the Hard Rock Boys’ best quarter of the game. They scored fourteen points, led by Earl Johnson. A hard-fought game by Boulevard Ballers with some big-time minutes from Jacob Westby. Ultimately Hard Rock Boys won that game.

 

Well folks that is all we have for you in tonight’s coverage of Sports Monday. Catch you in the next one.