MANAGUA, Nicaragua, September 28, 2024.- Belize (3-2) ended with a 3-0 (25-19, 25-8, 25-22) win over El Salvador (1-4) on the final day of the First AFECAVOL U17 Girls’ Central American Championship.
Belize finished with a record of three wins and two losses, earning 14 points, and now awaits the result between Nicaragua and Guatemala to determine if they will reach the podium.
Belize dominated in attacks 35-21, blocks 2-0, and serves 13-4, with Sara Safa contributing 4 aces. El Salvador committed 25 unforced errors compared to 24 from their opponents.
Emaun Marín and Akili Jones led Belize with 14 points each; for El Salvador, Katya Cunza scored six points.
José Fontes, coach of Belize: “As I said at the start of the tournament, our goal was to grow individually and as a team, and we progressed. Yesterday, we had a tough match that we solved 3-1, and today, the first two sets were relatively easy, but we struggled in the third. In the end, we managed to recover. Overall, it was a good tournament; we gave playing time to 12 out of 14 players, and this will be important for their future in the sport.”
Pedro Rivas, coach of El Salvador: “This is the first time this age category has been introduced, and I believe NORCECA and AFECAVOL made the right call by taking this initiative. We have a lot of work ahead as a country to continue identifying and training more girls of this age group. It was a closely contested tournament, with final positions decided in the last matches, which is commendable for all the countries. The girls’ inexperience and nerves were evident, but this serves as an excellent learning experience for them.”
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