BELIZE CITY, Belize, July 20, 2025. – Guatemala got off to a strong start at the VII AFECAVOL U23 Central American Women’s Championship with a comfortable 3-0 (25-19, 25-11, 25-16) victory over El Salvador in the opening match of the tournament.
It was a one-sided affair, with Guatemala in full control throughout, although El Salvador showed brief flashes of promise at the start of the match.
For Guatemala, María Santa Cruz led the offense with nine points, including seven kills and two aces. Jimena Castellanos and Annika Graniolati added eight points each.
El Salvador’s top scorer was Paola Juárez, who tallied six points in the match.
Guatemala dominated in attack points (34-12) and aces (11-6), while both teams were even in blocks with three apiece.
Following the win, Guatemala’s head coach William Fernández said, “The first match is always tough for any team. Congratulations to El Salvador for their performance, and especially to our team for earning the victory in three sets. The key to our success was our setting and finishing, even though we had some issues with our serve early on that we later corrected.”
Meanwhile, El Salvador’s coach Efraín Calderón commented, “We need to work more on our reception and be more consistent in finishing sets. For many of our players, this is their first tournament, and that has an impact. Guatemala has many experienced players in the U23 category, and that really helps them maintain their rhythm throughout the match.”
English 
Spanish