Canada’s Humana-Paredes, Wilkerson advance to Olympic beach volleyball semis

After a disappointing start at the Olympics, Canada’s Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson have found their groove on the sand.

The Canadians earned a spot in the women’s beach volleyball semifinals with a 2-0 (21-18, 21-18) win over Spain’s Daniela Alvarez and Tania Moreno on Wednesday at picturesque Eiffel Tower Stadium.

Canada (4-2) has won three elimination matches in a row after going 1-2 in pool play. The semifinal showing marks the best-ever result for a Canadian women’s beach team at an Olympics

The Canadians, ranked seventh in the world, now face world No. 9 Nina Brunner and Tanja Huberli of Switzerland (5-0) in the semifinals on Thursday at 11 a.m. ET / 8 a.m. PT.

The medal matches are Friday.

Canada has won just one volleyball medal in Olympic history — bronze by John Child and Mark Heese in men’s beach in 1996.

In the quarterfinal, Wilkerson’s huge block on Alvarez gave Canada a 17-15 lead in the first set and proved to be the turning point after the teams exchanged numerous sideouts.

The Canadians then fought back from an early three-point deficit in the second half as the Spanish duo made some key attacking errors. Wilkerson then made a massive block to put her team up 20-17 before Canada sealed it.

Alvarez and Moreno, both 22, were the youngest team in the Paris draw and were making their Olympic debuts. They are ranked 16th in the world.

Humana-Paredes, with Sarah Pavan, and Wilkerson, with Heather Bansley, both lost in the quarterfinals in Tokyo three years ago before joining forces as a new team.

Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson were indoor volleyball teammates at York University early last decade.