GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, October 17, 2025. – Belize started strong with an important 3-1 (27-25, 25-17, 24-26, 25-23) victory over Honduras, in the opening match of Pool B in the women’s volleyball tournament at the 12th Central American Games Guatemala 2025, which kicked off this Friday at the Teodoro Palacios Flores Gymnasium.
The Belizean team took control early in the first set, although Honduras responded well after trailing 20-23, tying the score at 23 points with effective attacks from Cecille Johnson. The closing moments were dramatic, as both teams wasted set points before Herdie Castillo sealed it 27-25 for Belize.
In the second set, the story was similar, with Belize leading from start to finish, this time building a wider margin (22-14), powered by Castillo and Shantell Arnold, to take the set 25-17 and a comfortable 2-0 advantage.
Honduras came back in the third, despite Belize rallying from 14-18 down to tie 20-20 behind the efforts of Clara Sabal and Nelissa Ramirez. Belize’s errors at key moments allowed Honduras to force a fourth set, as Sasha Kawas scored with a strong attack and Johnson blocked Gareth Bruce to close it 26-24.
The fourth set was tightly contested, featuring several ties and lead changes. Belize lost two match points due to an error and a kill point from Johnson but ultimately secured the win with a powerful attack from Shantell Arnold, claiming their first victory of the tournament.
Belize led in attacks (51-48) and blocks (12-9) while committing fewer unforced errors (27-33). Honduras held the edge in serving (7-5).
Herdie Castillo topped Belize’s scorers with 17 points, including impressive 7 stuff blocks. Nelissa Ramirez and Shantell Arnold added 16 and 10 points, respectively. For Honduras, Cecille Johnson and Sasha Kawas each scored 18 points, while Victoria Aparicio contributed 11.
In their next matches, Belize will face host nation Guatemala, while Honduras will look to recover against Panama.
Clara Sabal, Opposite of Belize: “It’s a great motivation for us starting off the tournament with a victory. It was a great hustle for us, we came out feeling strong. This was a team effort and the work from the bench gave us the push we needed”.
Tessa Flores, captain of Honduras: “We lacked concentration. It was hard for us to believe we could win. We started the match very anxious, because for most of us these are our first Central American Games. I think the pressure got to us, which I don’t understand — there was no reason to feel that way. We’re going to try to fight for a spot on the podium.”
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