Canadian beach volleyball duo Humana-Paredes, Wilkerson ousted in quarterfinals at worlds

Canada's Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson saw their run at the beach volleyball world championships come to an end in the quarterfinals on Friday in Apizaco, Mexico.

The fourth-ranked Toronto duo had won five straight matches without surrendering a set, but they were bested in a battle of unbeatens by Australian stars Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Solar, who swept the Canadians 22-20, 21-16.

The Tokyo silver medallists, ranked fifth, held off Canada's lone remaining team in a back-and-forth opening set before taking control in the second. The Australians led 29-22 in attacks and 4-0 in aces, while Clancy led all players with 21 attack points and three service points.

Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson were coming off a 21-14, 21-11 win over Switzerland's Esmée Bobner and Zoé Vergé-Dépré in the Round of 16. They defeated Finland's Niina Ahtiainen and Taru Lahti-Liukkonen 21-17, 21-17 in the Round of 32 after going 3-0 in pool play.

WATCH | Humana-Paredes/Wilkerson vs. Clancy/Artacho del Solar, full match replay: 

The Canadians were trying to crack the top-five at an event for the first time since winning gold at the Elite 16 in Montreal last July.

The women's and men's champions will earn quota spots for their respective countries at Paris 2024 and a share of the $1 million purse. The tournaments are also a good opportunity for teams to pick up points and improve their world ranking. The top 17 teams in each gender will automatically qualify for the Olympics.

Playoffs continue through the weekend, with medal matches set for Sunday. All the action from the beach volleyball worlds will be live streamed on CBCSports.ca, the CBC Sports app and CBC Gem.

Kelly Cheng and Sara Hughes of the United States also