Nigeria narrowly lost 23-22 to Chile in a gripping classification match at the IHF Women’s World Under-18 Handball World Championship held in Chuzhou, China, on Sunday. Despite a strong performance from Coach Shittu Adewunmi Agboola’s team, the Nigerian squad fell just short in a closely contested encounter.
The match was fiercely competitive, with both teams delivering a high level of play throughout. Nigeria, showing improvement in shot efficiency compared to previous games, was evenly matched with their South American opponents. They ended the first half trailing by a single goal, with the score at 11-10 in favor of Chile.
In the second half, Nigeria displayed resilience and tactical prowess, scoring effectively from 9 meters, wings, and fast breaks. The team managed to equalize, with the second half ending 12-12. However, despite their best efforts, Nigeria could not overcome the deficit and Chile secured the victory with a final score of 23-22.
Blessing Igbenedion and Lucy Chinecherem were standout performers for Nigeria, continuing their impressive form from the previous match against Angola. Their efforts were not enough to clinch a win, as the team fell just short in a dramatic finish.
Nigeria will look to bounce back as they prepare to face Austria in another classification match on Tuesday. The team remains focused on finishing the tournament strong and improving their standing as they head into the final stages of the championship.
