NASSAU, Bahamas (CMC):

POWERHOUSES JAMAICA and Trinidad and Tobago got their campaigns up and running, while hosts Bahamas also entered winners' row on day two of the 11th Caribbean Volleyball Championships at the Kendall Isaacs Gymnasium on Monday.

The Jamaicans, serious contenders for the men's title, steamrolled the US Virgin Islands 25-17, 25-17, 25-18 while T&T's women wasted little time disposing of minnows Dominica in straight sets, 25-10, 25-21, 25-22.

In the night's feature game, Bahamas stumbled briefly before recovering to earn a 25-13, 18-25, 25-11, 25-15 verdict over Haiti.

Jamaica, included in the tournament at the last minute after a lack of finances almost ruled them out, asserted their dominance in the contest early to keep the result doubt-free.

The hard-hitting Danny Wilson led the attack with 13 kills, while Mark Lewis finished with nine kills. For the losers, Kirk Rojas recorded seven kills and Shimoi Van Holton chipped in with six.

Jamaican head coach Marcello Gooden said afterward that his team was initially cautious because they had seen little of the USVI team.

Smooth sailing

"We felt them out in the first eight points and it was basically smooth sailing from there on," he said.

"We expect strong competition from the other teams. But we know we will be right there."

Ralph Richards, the USVI's head coach, admitted that his team did not play up to par.

"I'm not too pleased with the way they played," he stressed.

"The players are capable of doing what they did tonight (last night), but we had a rough time with our passing in the game and we couldn't mount our offence to get started and that hurt us."

T&T's victory followed a similar script with Nadiege Honore and Darlene Ramdin combining for 15 kills, while Marcia Renault had five and Anna'Marie Xaviar added four for losers Dominica.

Behind the one-two hitting attack from Kelsie and Katrina Johnson, along with the steady leadership of veteran Jackie Conyers, Bahamas compensated for their men's team loss on the opening night by turning back Haiti's challenge in the night's last game.

While Kelsie Johnson counted 21 kills and Katrina eight kills, Conyers provided steadiness with her solid digs and service.| "This is our first game so we wanted to leave everything on the court," said Kelsie Johnson, a co-captain of the team and a middle player.

"Our biggest thing for us is to improve on our middle and I think we did a good job in that area tonight."

Haiti's head coach, Frantz Bernadine, said they were just delighted to be back playing in the CVCs after a six-year absence.

"We have near to two months of practice. We came here and we didn't make one practice game before we came, so I'm satisfied," Bernadine stressed.