XALAPA, Mexico, September 4, 2024. – Mexico defeated Nicaragua 3-0 (25-10, 25-17, 25-13) in their second victory at the Women’s U23 Pan American Cup at the Xalapa International Velodrome, Veracruz.
On Thursday, Mexico (2-0) and Peru (2-0) will compete for first place in Pool B and a direct spot in Saturday’s semifinals. Nicaragua (0-2) and Suriname (0-2) will battle for third place and a chance to advance to the quarterfinals.
The home team dominated in attacks (39-20), blocks (6-3), and serves (12-1). Mexico conceded fewer points from errors (16-18).
Mexico was able to use all its players, with Marcela Herrera as leading scorer with 10 points (7 attacks, 3 serves). María Ximena Solar registered 9 points.
For Nicaragua, Brittany Forbes led with 10 points (7 attacks, 2 blocks, 1 ace). María José Rivera contributed 8 points.
In the first set, Mexico was convincing, reaching a huge lead (20-8), which allowed them to control the match in the following sets.
Marcela Herrera, top scorer of Mexico: “After watching Nicaragua play against Peru yesterday, we expected a tougher match, so we approached it with more confidence than we did in our previous game. Tomorrow against Peru, we need to come in strong, with a lot of confidence, and focus on our own game without depending on external factors. We want to enjoy tomorrow’s match; we’re playing at home, and we hope to have the support of the crowd”.
Brittany Forbes, top scorer of Nicaragua: “We knew it would be a tough match; they are playing at home and would have more confidence. We lacked better performance in receiving; without that, there’s no setting and no attack. I think we lacked confidence, although we recovered a bit towards the end, but the result didn’t go our way. Tomorrow, our opponent (Suriname) has height, but if we play at the level we know we can, we can win”.
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