Belize City, Belize, July 19, 2024.- With a solid 3-0 victory (25-11, 25-14, 25-14) over El Salvador, Belize remains an unbeaten record at the 20th AFECAVOL Central American U21 Women’s Championship and is now on the verge of winning the title with one match remaining in the event.
Belize has a record of three wins and no losses and will conclude the tournament on Saturday against Guatemala, a match that will determine the event’s champion. Meanwhile, El Salvador finished their participation with a record of 1-3.
Gareth Bruce and Nisaan Martínez led Belize’s offense, both scoring 17 points. Bruce scored 10 points on serves and seven on attacks, while Martínez had 14 on attacks and three on blocks.
For El Salvador, María Ramírez was the best attacker with eight points, five from attacks and three from serves.
Belize dominated the entire match, collectively scoring 41 points from attacks compared to their opponent’s 14. They also led in serves 13-6 and blocks 3-0 but conceded more points on unforced errors, 19-18.
Looking ahead to the final match, Belize’s coach, José Fontes, stated: “We have a crucial match against Guatemala. We are not celebrating anything yet, as we know that match is crucial for both teams. Regarding the match against El Salvador, I am satisfied with the offensive part but not with the defensive part, as I feel we made many mistakes”.
On the other hand, El Salvador’s coach, Karen Orellana, commented: “We knew Belize is not an easy team, but I think we achieved about 50 percent of the goals we had set for this match. Overall, I am happy with the work the girls have done in this tournament.”
English 
Spanish