CUERNAVACA, Morelos, July 12, 2025.- With an outstanding offensive performance, opposite hitter Joaquín Valjalo led Chile with 26 points in a 3-1 (25-21, 25-17, 21-25, 25-13) victory over Panama at the Boys’ U19 Pan American Cup, taking place at the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos (UAEM) Gymnasium and concluding this Sunday.
Valjalo has been Chile’s standout player in all their matches, and with his 26-point performance – the highest in the tournament so far – he is emerging as one of the top scorers of the event. Chile also had contributions by Mateo Sanz with 15 points and Joaquín Cassanova with 13.
Chile moves on to the fifth-place match, where they will face Puerto Rico. Panama will compete for seventh place against Suriname.
After dropping the first two sets, Panama came back strongly in the third, using a more aggressive approach that allowed them to build a five-point lead (14-9) and extend the match. However, Chile regained control in the fourth to secure the win convincingly.
Chile dominated in attack with a 56-37 advantage and outperformed Panama in service aces, 9-7. Despite committing more unforced errors (26 to 24), Panama only managed a slight edge in blocks, 8-7.
For Panama, Wen Downer and Diego Sánchez led with 15 and 12 points, respectively.
Reflecting on the match, Valjalo commented, “We lost the third set because, in general, we came in with a low rhythm and little intensity after losing a very important match yesterday. In the end, we pulled off the win.”
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