Saturday, October 28.- Brazil took a significant step towards the gold medal in female's handball. On Saturday night, they defeated Chile by a decisive score of 30-10 in a match held at Gimnasio Polideportivo de Viña del Mar. Tomorrow, they will face Argentina in the final.
From the beginning, Brazil set a blistering pace in the game, averaging a goal every 40 seconds in the first 12 minutes. On the other hand, Chile could only attempt to contain the lightning-fast Brazilian attacks, led by Bruna de Paula, who achieved an 83 percent success rate in front of the Chilean goal, scoring 5 out of 6 one-on-one opportunities. With that impressive efficiency, the green and yellow team went into halftime with a comfortable 19-8 lead.
In the second half, Brazil made some changes. Bruna de Paula stayed in the locker room, making way for Adriana Castro, another goal-scoring player who replicated the dynamic of the first half. In just 6 minutes, Brazil had already added 8 goals to their tally, totaling 27.
Brazil's strategy was simple: recover the ball from the back, make deep passes into the opponent's territory for Castro to finish, often with little marking. Brazil managed their substantial lead and slowed down the pace of the game. Despite their enthusiasm and effort, Chile couldn't match the strength of their opponent.
Mariana Costa, the team's playmaker, is already looking ahead to the final against the Argentine team.
"We have done everything that the coach has proposed to us, and I believe we are a very strong group, a group that knows what we came here for, which is qualification (for the Olympic Games). Tomorrow, we will have a tough match against Argentina, but I think we are mentally ready to play a good match tomorrow and be well-prepared to secure the top spot," she stated.
The match was interrupted after 13 minutes and 48 seconds of the second half due to water leakage caused by the intense rain falling in Viña del Mar at that time. After a 10-minute delay, the match was officially concluded by the present official, Uruguayan Rolando Ferrés Lavecchia, and Brazil was declared the winner.
Written by Ernesto Bustos B. – Verónica Torres; translated by Andrés Castro / Santiago 2023 vía Photosport
Ph: Jose Veas / Santiago 2023 vía Photosport
