Panama, Guadeloupe and El Salvador joined the holders in the CONCACAF final four.
CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship holders Mexico will take on Guadeloupe in the semi-finals while El Salvador will face Panama after all four won their respective quarter-finals on Friday.
Defending champions Mexico moved safely into the semi-finals with a minimum of fuss on Friday as they dispatched Trinidad and Tobago 4-1. In-form Jose Ramon Maldonado Alonso took his tournament tally to eight with a brace in a win that ultimately proved comfortable despite being put under spells of pressure by Benyam Astorga’s men.
Guadeloupe accounted for hosts Bahamas in a 5-3 win thanks largely to a Theo Gelas hat-trick.
Backed by a fervent home crowd, Bahamas battled back from deficits on three occasions to go into the final period at 3-3 only for Gelas’ second and third goals to take the game away from the home nation who will now look to secure fifth spot.
Like Guadeloupe, Panama also sprung a surprise as they reached their first CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship semi-finals after disposing of United States 6-4. United States – shorn of suspended skipper Nick Perera – led only once early on and saw their FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup hopes dashed as Rafael Garcia and Ricardo Pascual Galvez notched twice each.
CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship’s big hitters El Salvador are also safely into the 2017 semi-finals after hammering Jamaica 5-0.
La Selecta have not finished lower than third in the event since 2007 and are on course to maintain that as Jose Agustin Ruiz hit a hat-trick to brush past Jamaica and into the final four.
In the ranking play-offs, Guyana and Costa Rica claimed early wins in their quest for a shot at ninth place.
In a close contest, the sides were all square at 4-4 going into the final 12 minutes before Jamal Haynes completed his hat-trick and Michael Wilson added a second to wrap up the victory.
Guyana will now play Costa Rica after the 2015 runners-up beat Canada 3-2 on penalties, having ended normal time level at 2-2. Milos Scepanovic and Ian Bennett has turned the game around after Niels Fallas Beita’s opener but captain Greivin Pacheco Quesada struck the equaliser with just over a minute remaining, with Canada’s Marc Jankovic missing the crucial penalty.
The opening game of the day saw Barbados and Turks & Caicos Islands go in search of their first win and it was the latter who came out on top in a 5-2 success.
Billy Forbes registered twice for Turks & Caicos but, with the scores level at 2-2 going into the final period, Barbados turned on the style as Andre Pinder, Jamal Chandler and Jamar Grazette sealed victory.
They will face Belize on Friday to battle for a spot in the 13th-place play-off after Dennis Dale Serano’s men edged a thriller against US Virgin Islands 6-4 in extra time.
Michael Vollmer’s last-gasp equaliser took the Islands into extra time but fourth-period efforts from Marlon Neptaly Meza and Sean Alexander Mas gave Belize their second win of the tournament.
Friday results
12.30 – Barbados 5-2 Turks and Caicos Islands
13.45 – Belize 6-4 US Virgin Islands (AET)
15.00 – Canada (2) 2-2 (3) Costa Rica
16.15 – Guyana 6-4 Antigua and Barbuda
17.30 – El Salvador 5-0 Jamaica
18.45 – USA 4-6 Panama
20.00 – Mexico 5-1 Trinidad & Tobago
21.15 – Bahamas 3-5 Guadeloupe
Saturday fixtures
11.15 – Turks & Caicos Islands v US Virgin Islands
12.30 – Barbados v Belize
13.45 – Canada v Antigua & Barbuda
15.00 – Costa Rica v Guyana
16.15 – Jamaica v USA
17.30 – Bahamas v Trinidad & Tobago
18.45 – Panama v El Salvador
20.00 – Guadeloupe v Mexico
