Panaji: With packed stands and VIPs in the gallery, the pressure on the young Goa boys was understandable.The 16-year-olds were playing in front of such a crowd for the first time, and watching them with keen interest was sports minister Ramesh Tawadkar. Had they not wrapped up the game in straight sets, even chief minister Pramod Sawant would have been in attendance for the marquee clash of the U-17 National School Games Beach Volleyball Championship in Miramar, on Tuesday.On the opening night, Goa were up against Andhra Pradesh and the hosts did their reputation no harm with a straight-set 21-15, 21-19 victory to confirm their place in the knockout stage of the competition.It was a nervous win, never mind that Goa was clearly the better team. Narendra Vasudev Gaonkar (Mauxi, Valpoi) and Vedant Devidas Kavlekar (Santa Cruz) have the height and skill to thrive on the beach, but playing in front of a big crowd for the first time, they appeared overwhelmed.The shaky start allowed Andhra Pradesh to enjoy a lead but once the hosts found their feet, they were able to wrap up the first set at 21-15. In the second, Goa were again down by two points, and at 15-17, they appeared to have surrendered the advantage.However, a service error from Andhra Pradesh at that juncture, coupled with a block from Narendra and a smart drop from Vedant saw Goa pick up four points in a row. Goa then wrapped up the set and match at 21-18.It was Goa’s second win of the opening day, good enough for them to top group C and qualify for the quarterfinals.Earlier in the morning session, Goa started on a bright note as they swept aside the challenge of Puducherry 21-17, 21-9.Goa will now face CBSE in the quarterfinals on Wednesday.In the girls section, Goa had more to cheer after the home team of Deepali Kusta Gawas and Roshni Rama Gaonkar put it across Andhra Pradesh 21-17, 21-14. They are now almost certain to qualify for the quarterfinals, despite having a tough group-stage match to play against Tamil Nadu.All quarterfinals will be played on Wednesday evening, starting 4pm.
