Australian men’s and women’s beach volleyball teams keep up unbeaten records

AUSTRALIA kept up its flawless record in the beach volleyball as the men’s and women’s teams both cruised through to the semi-finals with comfortable victories at Coolangatta.

AUSTRALIA kept up its flawless record in the beach volleyball as the men’s and women’s teams both cruised through to the semi-finals with comfortable victories at Coolangatta.

A combined total of 62 minutes was all that Mariafe Artacho del Solar and Taliqua Clancy, and Chris McHugh and Damian Schumann, required to bury gallant — but outclassed — rivals Rwanda and Sierra Leone.

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Neither pair has dropped a set so far in the Commonwealth Games.

The Aussie women’s team were up first and continued their dominance with a 21-9, 21-8 victory in just 28 minutes.

After Clancy had brought the power so far in the Games, this was a game that saw diminutive Artacho del Solar grow tall and slam down a succession of impressive winners.

They will face Vanuatu in the semi-finals, and in such red-hot form, the only possible hiccup could be the fact they’ve spent precious little time on the court, given the lack of serious opposition.

“That doesn’t really bother us, we are prepared for whatever comes,” Artacho del Solar said.

The Aussie men haven’t had as much attention as their female colleagues on the Gold Coast but they’ve been equally as strong, with power at the net and speed around the court.

Chris McHugh and Damien Schumann of Australia celebrate winning their quarter-final against Sierra Leone. Picture: Scott Barbour/Getty Images

They’ll take on England the semi-finals, who’ve been good but dropped a match to New Zealand.

“We’re feeling a lot of relief and excitement at the moment,” McHugh said.

“It was our No.1 goal coming into this competition, to get through to the later stages.

“Sierra Leone stepped up tonight and proved they deserve to be here, too.”

Originally published as Australian men’s and women’s beach volleyball teams keep up unbeaten records