PONCE, PUERTO RICO, August 10, 2023.- Colombia recovered after losing the first two sets and won the next three to close the group stage with a victory, 3-2 (18-25, 21-25, 25 -20, 25-17, 15-10), against Peru in the fifth day of the XX Senior Women’s Volleyball Pan American Cup at the Juan “Pachín” Vicéns Auditorium in Ponce.
Peru came out aggressive to play and had total dominance in the first two sets. The Peruvians did not give the Colombian squad opportunities to establish their game. But in the third, the awakening of Colombia came after the first technical timeout, 8-4, for Peru. Colombia came from behind to even the score, 11-11, and from then on it would be another game, which stretched to five sets.
In the fifth set, Peru came out determined to regain control and led 4-2. Colombia tied it, 4-4, and from then on never looked back until the victory, 15-9.
Colombia had three players with over 20 points. Dayana Segovia was the best scorer with 24 points (19 attacks, 4 blocks, 1 ace); Ana Karina Grajales (21 attacks) and Amanda Coneo (18 attacks, 1 block, 2 aces) contributed 21 points each. For Peru, Ysabella Sánchez with 22 points (19 attacks, 2 blocks, 1 ace); Karla Ortiz with 18 points (16 attacks, 2 aces); and Flavia Montes with 10 points (8 attacks, 2 blocks).
Colombia led 69-59 in attacking points and 12-7 in blocks. Peru did better in points from serves 8-4.
Antonio Rizola coach of Colombia
With this victory, Colombia closed the group stage with a 3-1 record and awaits its rival in the quarterfinals.
Antonio Rizola Nieto, Coach of Colombia: “The attitude of the first two sets was not good, we must play more aggressive with Peru and much more focused. When we took the right attitude, we had the result. Peru is a team that plays seriously, and we played unfocused in the first two sets, then we led the game. The second round will be very difficult. We await to meet our opponent and prepare all night.”
Dayana Segovia, Best Scorer of Colombia: “We changed our attitude and things began to work out. We entered the court very calmly and we didn’t fight for the balls. When we changed our attitude, we made things happen for us. This victory is very important for us because it puts us in a good position for the second round. We are happy because Peru is a team with which we play a lot, and they know us well. We knew it would be difficult but, thank God, we were able to get the victory”.
Francisco Hervas Tirado, Coach of Peru: “We were playing very well but these things happen in volleyball. There are moments when we have gotten stuck in a rotation, and we have given them the advantage. From there, we have lost the intensity that we had up to now; and that’s what we needed to beat a team like Colombia. But I’m happy with the team’s effort and we must keep working because there’s still a long tournament left”.
SAN JUAN, Argentina, August 10, 2023.- The U.S. Boys U19 National Team will play for the bronze medal on Friday at the FIVB U19 World Championship in Argentina after falling to France 3-0 (25-10, 25-17, 25-12) in the semifinals.
United States will play Korea for the bronze medal at 1 p.m. PT on Friday. Matches are being shown on the Volleyball World YouTube channel.
No matter where the U.S. Boys finish, it will be their best placement ever at the U19 World Championship.
On Thursday, France jumped on the lead right away in each set and never looked back.
The European side led the U.S. in kills (32-18), blocks (15-3) and aces (6-2). France also scored 22 points on U.S. errors while committing 16.
On the way to the ninth-place match, Brazil managed a 3-1 (24-26, 25-10, 25-16, 25-19) victory over Mexico, while Slovenia achieved a 3-1 (25-20, 25-6, 17-25, 25-17) win over Japan.
Colombia grabbed a tight 3-2 (21-25, 26-24, 17-25, 25-21, 15-10) win over Puerto Rico.
Costa Rica won 3-2 (25-21, 25-23, 20-25, 19-25, 15-12) over India and took 18th place.
August 10, 2023.- The United States and Türkiye overcame the semifinals on Thursday and are the two national teams that will fight for the title of the 2023 FIVB Girls’ U19 Volleyball World Championship in Osijek, Croatia.
Americans and Turkish will play for the title of the tournament on Friday, at 21:00 local time (19:00 UTC), at the Osijek Sports Hall, while Italy and Japan will meet three hours earlier in the bronze medal match.
The United States have been strong contenders in the U18 age group, having won medals in four of the last five editions of the World Championship before the change to U19 last year – they took gold in 2019, silver in 2013 and 2015 and bronze in 2021. In the semifinals, the Americans were in excellent form against Italy, topping the Europeans 3-1 (25-18, 25-22, 20-25, 25-15).
Outside hitter Abigail Vander Wal was once again the main American scorer, with 21 points. Against the Italians, she got great help from middle blockers Ayden Ames and Favor Anyanwu, who got 13 points each. Despite the defeat, Italian opposite Merit Adigwe led all scorers with 27 points.
The playoffs from 13th to 16th had a pair of victories from NORCECA teams as the Dominican Republic beat Egypt 3-2 (21-25, 25-17, 25-20, 13-25, 15-13) and Puerto Rico triumphed 3-1 (27-25, 25-23, 17-25, 25-23) over Hungary.
The positions from 17th to 24th were all determined on Thursday as Serbia overcame Mexico 3-0 (28-26, 25-17, 25-23) to finish 17th, Canada topped Peru 3-0 (25-21, 25-20, 25-21) to rank 19th.rbia superó a México 3-0 (28-26, 25-17, 25-23) para terminar en el puesto 17, y Canadá venció a Perú 3-0 (25-21, 25-20, 25-21) para clasificar en el puesto 19.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 10, 2023 – In the final match of the day, Guatemala, in straight sets 25-19/25-19/26-24, stifled Belize’s shout of victory in front of hundreds of fans at the Belize City Civic Center, to keep leading the standings of the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup.
Guatemala dominated in attacks 35-30 and in service points 10-4. The blocks were in favor of Belize 10-4. Guatemala earned 26 points from unforced errors, while Belize scored 18 points from their opponent’s errors.
The top scorer for Guatemala was Andy Blanco with 14 points, 8 from attacks and 6 from services. For Belize, Karym Coleman converted 10 points from attacks, three from blocks, and two from services, totaling 15 points.
Guatemala holds three wins and one loss, while Belize has two wins and two losses.
The tournament’s excitement continues on Friday at 5:00 pm with Guatemala facing Honduras and at 7:30 pm Belize taking on Costa Rica.
Erik Flores, Opposite of Guatemala: “We knew it was a very tough opponent because they were playing at home and had the support of the crowd; we knew this place would be packed. Our goal was to win, and we achieved it. Given how the competition has gone, with some countries losing matches and dropping sets, we knew it was important. We were coming off a loss against Costa Rica, but that didn’t affect us because we knew we could fight for the championship. Costa Rica’s loss today gives us even more possibilities, and the closest rival was Belize, so we had to win for the ultimate goal”.
Ernest Broaster, Outside hitter of Belize: “This was a shaky night. We faltered in passing, and the attack wasn’t working for us; our service also failed us. We didn’t reach our goal, which is the gold medal, but we’re still in contention for the silver medal; we can win it, but we just need to win the next two matches”.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 10, 2023.- Panama needed four sets to defeat Honduras 3-1 (24-26, 25-18, 27-25, 25-18) on the fifth day of competition in the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup.
Honduras started by winning the first set 26-24, however, the Panamanians claimed the next three 25-18/27-25 and 25-18. Panama was superior with dominance in attacks 57-49 and blocks 14-6.
Both teams tied at 3 in services. Honduras earned 29 points and Panama 27 from opponent’s errors.
The top scorer for Panama and the match was Jason Quintero with 20 points, 19 on attacks and one from blocks. For Honduras, David Villatoro scored 16 points, 15 on attacks and one from blocks.
Panama secured their second victory in the tournament, with a balance of two wins and three losses. Meanwhile, Honduras has one victory and with today´s match, they accumulated three losses.
The event taking place at the Belize City Civic Center continues with the schedule on Friday at 5:00 pm, with Honduras facing Guatemala and Panama is the team with the day off.
Miguel Medina, Libero of Panama: “The match was quite challenging for us in the first set. We had been in the lead and didn’t maintain the advantage, which cost us the set. The guys focused more and pursued the goal of winning because it puts us in a position to dream about the medal table. Thanks to God, the perseverance of our young team helped everyone contribute their bit and secure the victory. Honduras fought hard and didn’t let us pull away until the last set”.
Irvin Reyes, middle blocker of Honduras: “We didn’t take advantage of the opportunities in the match, but we need to keep working and have the confidence that things will start going better for us”.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 10, 2023.- El Salvador defeated Costa Rica 3-0 in the first match of day five of competition in the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup with scores of 25-13/25-18/25-13.
The match was dominated by El Salvador in all areas, with 35 attacks to 26, 13 blocks to 5, and 4-2 in serves.
El Salvador scored 23 points from opponent errors, while Costa Rica scored 11 points from unforced errors.
El Salvador improved their win-loss record to 3-2. Costa Rica has a record of 2 wins and 2 losses.
The top scorer of the match was Rodrigo Chávez with 17 points, 13 on attacks and four on blocks, his teammate Franklin Flores was close behind with 16 points.
For Costa Rica, Gilbert Solano scored six points from attacks and one a block for a total of 7 points, being the top scorer, followed by Richard Smith with 6 points.
The event taking place at the Belize City Civic Center continues Friday at 2:30 pm with El Salvador facing Nicaragua and at 7:30 pm Costa Rica will compete against the hosts.
Rodrigo Chávez, outside hitter of El Salvador: “This was a complicated match from a tactical point of view, our coaches read the other team very well, at this stage of the tournament, we’ve had time to study our opponents and that makes the matches more competitive. In this case, we found the key. Costa Rica stood up well, but perhaps the fatigue from last night’s game affected them, however, they are a very strong team and El Salvador showed a very different face from the previous matches. We are very grateful to the guys and coaches for boosting our spirits and we hope to maintain this rhythm of play”.
Oscar Ramírez, outside hitter of Costa Rica: “It was a very emotional match, unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned for us. El Salvador read us very well on the court. Now, we need to prepare for tomorrow’s match, it’s another final to aim for the medal we came for”.
PONCE, PUERTO RICO, August 9, 2023 .- Dominican Republic secured its third victory (3-0) and remains undefeated in Group B by defeating Mexico 3-0 in the final match of the fourth day of the XX Pan American Cup of Senior Women’s Volleyball at the Juan “Pachín” Vicéns Auditorium in Ponce.
The clock struck 12:30 AM when the Dominican Republic scored the final point of the victory (25-13, 25-21, 25-17) against Mexico.
Bethania de la Cruz was the top scorer for the Dominican Republic with 13 points (8 attacks, 5 aces); Geraldine González with eight points (5 attacks, 3 blocks); and Brayelin Martínez with seven points (5 attacks, 2 blocks). For Mexico, María Fernanda Rodríguez and Karen Rivera contributed 10 points each. Rodríguez with 8 attacks, 2 aces; and Rivera with 10 attacks. Andrea Cecilia Elicerio with six points (4 attacks, 1 block, 1 ace).
The Dominican Republic (3-0) will seek a direct spot in the semifinals on Thursday against Puerto Rico (2-1) at 8:00 p.m. Meanwhile, Mexico will face Chile at 4:00 p.m.
Dominican Republic vs Mexico
Marcos Kwiek, Coach of the Dominican Republic: “Today, other players got a chance to play, and that’s important for the remainder of the tournament. We need to know how to rotate the players. Tomorrow (today against Puerto Rico) we have a tough match ahead. The good thing was that today’s sets were short, and we could finish quickly to recover for tomorrow’s (today’s) match.”
Bethania de la Cruz, Top scorer of the Dominican Republic: “It was a tough day due to the uncertainty of when we would play, but we managed to maintain focus, and that’s important when things like this happen. Winning in three sets was important due to the time we’ll have to rest.”
Nicola Negro, Coach of Mexico: “It was a game where we had moments of playing well. I think we didn’t attack with strategy, so it’s an important game to learn how to face a team of that level. The Dominican Republic is a very physical team, a team that works well with blocking. Tomorrow is the most important game against Chile. We have a few hours of rest to focus our energy on tomorrow’s match.”
PONCE, PUERTO RICO, August 9, 2023.- Argentina finished their participation in the group phase with a 2-2 record by defeating Chile, 3-0, on the fourth day of the XX Senior Women’s Volleyball Pan American Cup at the Juan “Pachín” Vicéns Auditorium in Ponce.
The winning scores for Las Panteras were: 25-16, 25-19, 25-18.
Argentina topped Chile with 45 attacking points against 36, and 8 to one in blocks. Both teams scored two points from direct serves. Argentina scored 20 points on Chile’s unforced errors and conceded 14.
For Argentina, Bianca Cugno contributed with 14 points (11 kills, 2 blocks, 1 ace); Paula Nizetich with 13 points (12 attacks, 1 ace); Daniela Bulaich 10 (9 attacks, 1 block). The Chilean captain, Beatriz Novoa, was the best scorer with 13 points, all in attacks; Karen Morales with nine points (8 attacks, 1 ace); and Florencia Giglio with eight, all in attacks.
Chile ends the preliminary round tomorrow against Mexico at 4:00 p.m.
Argentina vs Chile
Daniel Jorge Castellani, Coach of Argentina: “It was important to win from three points, but besides that, we played well. I think it was the most regular game we had where we had almost no bumps. It was a positive (preliminary) round. It is a new process because I have been with the team for three months, we work a lot, we have trained; and now you have to compete. We need this to confirm and continue working.”
Paula Nizetich, Player of Argentina: “We knew it was an important match for us to continue with the qualifying plans, and we entered with that strong mentality from the beginning. We know what we have to do and luckily it came out. Argentina is a battle-hardened team that likes that type of game, and it turned out well. I am content and happy. It was a round of ups and downs, it’s a young team and it’s the first time we’ve started playing with the new coach. Now we have to continue.”
Alejandro Marín Hormazabal, Coach of Chile: “Today we are playing with a team that is coming from the Olympic Games and with a good level. From what we proposed, we were very clear and concise about that, which was to serve very hard so that they couldn’t play with their middles and we could play a little more comfortable in blocking. It was fulfilled at times, but we still need more experience, play more, and little by little we are going to achieve the level that we want. We are happy with the dedication that each player has”.
PONCE, PUERTO RICO, August 9, 2023.- Colombia achieved its second victory at the XX Senior Women’s Volleyball Pan American Cup by defeating Costa Rica, 3-0 (25-13, 25-12, 25-9), on the fourth day of competition at the Juan “Pachín” Vicéns Auditorium in Ponce.
The Colombian players gave the victory to their Brazilian coach Antonio Rizola Neto, who is celebrating his birthday.
Colombia had total control of the game from start to finish. The Colombians scored 35 attacking points against 20 of Costa Rica, 10-0 in blocks; and 4-0 on serves.
Dayana Segovia was the best scorer for the Colombian squad with 14 points (11 attacks, 2 blocks, 1 ace); Laura Grajales contributed 11 points (8 attacks, 1 block and 2 direct services); and Ana Karina Olaya with 10 points (5 attacks, 4 blocks, one ace). For Costa Rica, Marcela Araya with eight points (8 attacks); Tannia Carazo, five points (5 attacks); and Yuliana González Alfaro with two points (2 attacks).
Costa Rica (0-4) closed the preliminary round without victories, and Colombia will play tomorrow against Peru at 2:00 p.m.
Colombia vs Costa Rica
Antonio Rizola Neto, Coach of Colombia: “A great birthday present for the seriousness with which the team played today. Costa Rica is a team that is growing and that presented high-quality volleyball, but the human material cannot be changed. They play well, but they are limited in physical condition and my team respected them. We play serious all the time. A score like this represents that we respect the adversary. All the players came on court today, they played, and they presented themselves well. I like this a lot.”
Dayana Segovia, Colombia’s Best Scorer: “This victory is very important for us because it is a difficult game like all the ones we have. We have to add victories to arrive at a good level and in a good position for the rest of the tournament. We have to prepare to close the group stage, then come the quarterfinals which are very important for us, to be on the podium”.
Pablo Acuña, Coach of Costa Rica: “Today we knew it would be a difficult game because Colombia is physically superior to us in height and strength. We didn’t want Colombia to have too many one-on-ones; and we work the blocking well. We read very well the priorities of the setter and that process was what interested us today. The truth is that we are in a very difficult group, and we respect our opponents, but the team’s focus is to continue improving and analyzing what we can improve to be prepared for our Central American Cup well”.
Augst 9. 2023.- The United States came back from a set down to turn the tables against longtime rivals Brazil and advanced to the semifinals with a 3-2 (21-25, 25-19, 25-19, 23-25, 15-11) victory at the FIVB Girls’ U19 Volleyball World Championship in Osijek, Croatia.
United States will meet Italy in Thursday’s semifinals, while Japan will play Türkiye in the other semifinal.
The U.S. dominated in kills, 74-40, but Brazil rallied in a pair of sets and sent the match to a deciding fifth set. The top three scorers in the match were all from the U.S., highlighted by a huge performance from outside hitter Teraya Sigler, who totaled 29 points with match-bests of 23 kills and four aces to go along with two blocks and contributed 11 digs. She led all players with four points on three kills and an ace in the fifth set.
Outside hitter Abby Vander Wal finished with 23 points, on 18 kills, one block, and equaled Sigler with four aces as the U.S. served for 12 aces compared to nine for Brazil.
Eight more matches were played across Osijek and Szeged on Wednesday in order to determine the final positions from 9th to 24th place. In the playoffs from 9th-16th, China defeated Puerto Rico 3-1 (25-23, 25-21, 17-25, 25-20) and Argentina beat the Dominican Republic 3-0 (25-22, 25-23, 25-20).
In the playoffs from 17th-20th, Mexico prevailed over Canada 3-0 (25-21, 25-15, 25-23).
SAN JUAN, Argentina, August 9, 2023.- United States upset the world’s number one youth team Bulgaria, at the FIVB Volleyball Boys’ U19 World Championship quarterfinals in San Juan on Wednesday.
The Americans will take on France in semifinals; Koreans will challenge Iran in Thursday’s semifinals.
FIVB U19 Boys’ World Ranking leaders Bulgaria failed to recover fast enough from the five-set battle with Brazil that had finished less than 15 hours earlier and fell victim to a well-prepared American team that managed to overcome the opponents in straight sets, 3-0 (25-21, 25-21, 28-26), mostly thanks to their blocking effort (13 against nine), but also with more precision in their actions (13 errors against 19) and a slightly more productive offence (45 successful spikes against 43). The Europeans outserved the opponents with three aces against one.
Bulgaria did put up a fight in each of the sets. In the third, they even broke away with a 7-2 lead only to lose it deep into overtime on a first-tempo swing by middle blocker Joshua Aruya for the match winner. USA’s Sean Kelly and Bulgaria’s Kristian Titriyski shared the top-scorer honors with 19 points each. Finn Kearney added another 13 for the winners, including four kill blocks, while Bulgarian middle Kostadin Kozelov impressed with five of those also to finish with 13 points.
In Thursday’s second semifinal, at 21:00 local time (midnight UTC), Korea will engage in an all-Asian duel with Iran.
Further down the bracket, in the quarterfinal playoffs of the race for the ninth place, Brazil downed Puerto Rico in a 3-0 (25-9, 25-11, 25-18) straight-setter and progressed to an encounter with Mexico, who squeezed out a hard-fought 3-2 (25-23, 17-25, 23-25, 25-22, 15-12) victory over Colombia.
Wednesday’s action started with Chile’s first win of the tournament. In their last match in San Juan, the South Americans delivered a narrow 3-2 (25-15, 17-25, 19-25, 25-20, 17-15) victory over winless Costa Rica in the race for the distribution of the places from 17th to 19th.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 09, 2023 – An exciting five-set match unfolded in the closing of the 4th day of the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup, where Costa Rica defeated Guatemala 3-2 by scores 25-22/18-25/31-29/22-25/17-15.
The top scorer of the match was Andy Blanco, who contributed 31 points for Guatemala, including 21 points from attacks, 7 blocks, and three serves. For Costa Rica, Gilberth Solano scored 24 points, consisting of 17 points from attacks, three from blocks, and four from serves. Close behind, his teammate Ricky Vargas scored 23 points.
The dominance in attacks slightly favored Costa Rica 65-63, blocks were in favor of Guatemala 17-8, and services were led by Costa Rica 7-6. Costa Rica capitalized on 33 points from opponent errors, while Guatemala scored 30 points on their rival’s mistakes.
The event, taking place at the Belize City Civic Center, continues on Thursday, with Costa Rica facing El Salvador at 2:30pm, and at 7:30pm, Guatemala competing against the hosts.
INTERVIEWS
Ricky Vargas, outside hitter of Costa Rica: “A very tough match against an opponent that has always given us trouble and has been growing. In the recent encounters, they’ve complicated things for us; it has been hard to beat them. Today, it worked out for us. We followed the tactical aspects, we were mentally focused, and even though we had some setbacks that caused us to lose two sets, I feel the team is strengthened, and we’re going all out for the upcoming matches”.
Carlos López, first attacker of Guatemala: “A pretty tough, quite lengthy match. Costa Rica did a good job; we had some errors that cost us in closing the sets. We haven’t lost anything; we have half of the tournament left, and we will keep working hard to continue producing results”.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 09, 2023 – With a score of 3-0, Honduras managed to defeat El Salvador 25-22/25-23/26-24 in the second match of the fourth day of the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup.
Honduras led in attacks 47-33, while blocks were in favor of El Salvador 9-7, and both teams tied in serves at 3.
El Salvador scored 24 points on Honduras’ errors, and Honduras earned 19 points from their opponent’s errors.
The top scorer of the match for Honduras was middle blocker Irvin Reyes, with 10 points from attacks, one from a block, and two from serves, totaling 13 points. For El Salvador, outside hitter Rodrigo Chávez scored 14 points, all from attacks.
On Thursday, August 10, Honduras will face Panama at 5:00pm, and El Salvador plays against Costa Rica at 2:30pm.
David Villatoro, outside hitter of Honduras: “The match was highly contested. We knew that El Salvador was a very strong opponent. Thankfully, things went our way to secure the result, and both teams put in great effort. We’re happy to obtain this victory for our country”.
Juan Carlos Vargas, setter of El Salvador: “Honduras is a worthy team that stood their ground with the determination they are known for. They played a smart game, and we adapted to their style of play, which ended up costing us. They defeated us in three sets. We tried a couple of variations, even in the third set, and still couldn’t overcome them. Our spirits are high, as we have two more days of competition against strong teams. We’re aiming for the medals; the competition is still ongoing”.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 09, 2023. Middle blocker Emilio Andrews (#7) scored 21 points in Nicaragua’s 3-1 victory (26-24/22-25/25-14/25-19) against Panama in the first match of the fourth day of competition in the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup.
Andrews scored 10 points from attacks and 11 from blocks. His teammate, opposite hitter Dennis García, contributed with 19 points, 18 from attacks and one from a block, making him Nicaragua’s second highest scorer.
Outside hitter Jason Quintero scored 24 points, 21 on attacks, one on blocks and two aces, as Panama’s leading scorer, followed by teammates Félix Williams and middle blocker Ludrik West, each with 11 points.
Panama dominated in attacks 55-52 and in serves 5-2. Nicaragua excelled in blocks 16-5. Nicaragua earned 28 points from Panama’s unforced errors while conceding 17 points from their own mistakes.
On Thursday, August 10, Nicaragua will have a rest day, and Panama will face Honduras at 5:00pm.
Dennis García, opposite hitter from Nicaragua: “The match against Panama was very important for us to contend for a medal in the competition. We entered with strength and confidence in ourselves. Unfortunately, the previous matches didn’t go our way, so today we came to seek victory, and we managed to secure the match”.
Jason Quintero, lateral attacker from Panama: “This match was challenging against a well-prepared team. We couldn’t execute the set plays we had been working on since the first match, and we continue to push ourselves to achieve the medal.”
PONCE, PUERTO RICO, August 8, 2023.- The Dominican Republic made acomeback against Argentina on Tuesday night to win, 3-1, and remain the only undefeated team (2-0) in Group B of the XX Pan American Cup of Senior Women’s Volleyball at the Juan “Pachín” Vicéns Auditorium in Ponce.
The Caribbean Queens won in four sets: 25-23, 25-18, 21-25, 25-16.
Argentina began the match aggressively and immediately took control of the score in the first set. The Panthers led 8-2, 12-4, 17-10 and 19-12. But the Dominican Republic with Bethania de La Cruz in command, managed a comeback to turn the score around and win the set, 25-23.
In the second set, Argentina stayed very close to the score, but could not stop the Dominicans’ offensive. In the third, Argentina returned focused on extending the match and they did. But in the fourth, the Dominican Republic controlled the set and won the match.
The Dominican opposite Gaila González was the best scorer of the match with 23 points (16 attacks, 5 blocks, 2 aces); Bethania de la Cruz with 14 points (11 kills, 3 blocks); and Yonkaira Peña with 10 points (9 attacks, one block). For Argentina, Bianca Cugno with 13 points (9 attacks, 2 blocks, 2 aces); Erika Mercado with eight points (6 attacks, 2 blocks); and Daniela Bulaich with seven (7 attacks).
Bethania de La Cruz (DOM) spikes
Argentina (1-2) will play Chile (0-2) tomorrow at 6:00 p.m.; and Dominican Republic (2-0) against Mexico (1-1) at 8:00 p.m.
Marcos Kwiek, Coach of Dominican Republic: “The first objective is to qualify and the second objective is to qualify directly and today we have taken a step forward. Argentina is fighting for a place. Yesterday (against Puerto Rico) everything didn’t work out for them and today, they came in very aggressively, but we were able to control them. In the first set they had a very big advantage and we were able to come back, which is not easy. And then in the third set they played a good match. But we won, which is always the goal.”
Bethania de la Cruz, Player of Dominican Republic: “It was almost 10 months without playing. I’m still getting into the rhythm of the game, but it feels good to help the team to win. It is an important victory because the Argentinean team knows how to play. They are a team with courage, and with players with a lot of experience. Winning against Argentina, 3-1, is important to achieve our goal in this Cup”.
Daniel Jorge Castellani: Coach of Argentina: “I saw the team better because we were very angry about yesterday’s game (against Puerto Rico). The girls responded very well to that and we started very well. I think we made mistakes that we shouldn’t have made to win the first set, which was quite controlled, and take it to 3-2. Today we rotated, other girls played and we played very well. There are positive things for the team”.
PONCE, PUERTO RICO, August 8, 2023.- Mexico surprised Puerto Rico tonight and took the host’s undefeated record with a four-set loss on the third day of the XX Senior Women’s Volleyball Pan American Cup at Juan “Pachin” Vicens de Ponce auditorium.
The scores of the match ended 22-25, 25-21, 25-22, and 25-19 for Mexico.
The Mexicans lost the first set, but from then on, their game was impeccable to prevent Puerto Rico from having a chance to win.
Puerto Rico came within 17-16 in the fourth set looking for a fifth set, but Mexico immediately took off again to end the match and silence the audience.
This is the first victory for Mexico (1-1) in the tournament after their loss against Argentina in three sets. It is the first defeat for Puerto Rico (2-1).
Mexican opposite Karen Paola Rivera was the best scorer of the match with 24 points (23 attacks, 1 block); Jocelyn Urias with 16 points (16 attacks); and María Fernanda Rodríguez with 15 points (10 attacks, 1 block and four direct services).
For Puerto Rico, Alondra Vázquez was the best scorer with 15 points (13 attacks, 1 block and 1 ace); Paola Santiago had 15 points (11 attacks, 3, blocks, 1 ace); and Dariana Hollinsgworth with 13 (9 attacks, 3 blocks and an ace).
Italian Nicola Negro Head Coach of Mexico
Nicola Negro, Head Coach of Mexico: “The players entered the court today with great determination. I said before the competition that we are here in an emergency situation. We have two players who are playing out of position and reinventing the starting six. I am amazed at the resources we were able to find. Every day I see the team with greater experience and that is very positive. Now, to cool our heads that we have a very important game tomorrow against the Dominican Republic”.
Jocelyn Urias, Captain of Mexico: “The truth is that we are very happy with the result. We came with the whole attitude that we had nothing to lose. We gave it our all. We all played perfect and achieved victory. The connectivity we had today was perfect. The energy was great. We put our heart, claw and all the dedication to get the result”.
Fernando Morales, Coach of Puerto Rico: “Mexico played very well. Nothing came out for us. We tried everything. We used almost the entire squad, and we had no results. All the credit to Mexico, who prepared very well, and things turned out for them. The players from Mexico were well organized. When Mexico took advantage, we didn’t follow the game plan. We hadn’t had bad results with our young team. These are phases of the change that have to go through, and that help us learn and grow”.
PONCE, PUERTO RICO, August 7, 2023.- United States extended its undefeated record to 3-0 by beating Colombia in consecutive sets on the third day of the XX Senior Women’s Volleyball Pan American Cup at the Juan “Pachín” Vicéns Auditorium from Ponce.
The United States won by scores of 25-14, 25-21, 25-19; and had four players in double digits.
This important victory places them one victory away from qualifying directly for the semifinals.
Mims Taylor, from the United States, was the best scorer of the game with 16 points (13 kills,1 block, 2 direct serves); Simone Lee, 13 points (13 attacks); Madeleine Gates, 11 points (6 kills, 3 blocks, 2 direct serves); and captain Sarah Parsons with 10 points (6 kills, 2 blocks, 2 direct serves).
For Colombia, Valerin Carabali with 10 points (7 attacks, 3 blocks); Dayana Segovia with nine points (6 kills, 3 blocks); and Ana Karina Olaya with seven points (5 attacks, 2 direct services).
United States vs Colombia
The United States rests tomorrow and will have its last match of the preliminary round on Thursday against Canada at 6:00 p.m. Precisely, Canada will be Peru’s rival tomorrow at 4:00 p.m.
Brad Rostratter, Coach of United States: “Tonight was a good match for the team. We played well against a very tough opponent. Lots for us to improve on and work on as the tournament continues on, but we will continue to take each day ahead of us. As best we can”.
Antonio Rizola Neto, Coach of Colombia: “It was a match in which Colombia did what they could against a structured and very strong team. We have two games left and the goal is to go out and win both because the goal is to get into the semifinals”.
PONCE, PUERTO RICO, August 7, 2023.- The Peru National Team achieved its first victory of the XX Senior Women’s Volleyball Pan American Cup against Costa Rica, 3-0 (25-15, 25-19, 25- 18) on the third day of competition at the Juan “Pachín” Vicéns Auditorium in Ponce.
The duo of Karla Ortiz and Ysabella Sánchez contributed 13 points each to lead Peru’s offense in the important Group A victory.
Ortiz, captain of Peru, got 11 of her 13 points in attacks, and two on aces; Sánchez made 12 attacks and an ace; and Flavia Montes had eight points, five on kills and three on blocks. Captain Marcela Araya was the best scorer for Costa Rica with 10 points (9 attacks, one ace); Lakysha Thompson with five points (4 attacks, one block); and Mónica Castro with five points (one ace).
Peru vs Costa Rica
Costa Rica (0-3) will face Colombia tomorrow at 2:00 p.m.; and Peru (1-1) faces Canada at 6:00 p.m.
Francisco Manuel Hervas Tirado, Coach of Peru: “The team came in a little looser than yesterday, because the first games are always difficult. Today we were able to apply a little more rhythm, which is what we are looking for. There is a long way to go and we will continue working for tomorrow. Canada is a tough, big and very physical team, and I’m sure it will be a good game”.
Karla Ortiz, Captain of Peru: “Thank God the victory was achieved. This victory is important for us because we want to be on the podium like any team that comes to this competition. Each team is a new story, and this victory helps us to be at the top of the chart”.
Marcela Araya, Captain of Costa Rica: “We did a good job, however, we are having a really hard time closing the last part of the set. The positive part is that we compete with these high-level teams and they have many more training sessions than us, however, we have been improving and that is the idea; improve every day. And tomorrow, if possible, take a set from Colombia; That is our goal always”.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 8, 2023. The Honduran National Team bounced back from a 2-set deficit, extending the match against the hosts to a fourth set. However, despite their effort, the locals asserted their dominance on home turf and emerged victorious with a 3-1 win (25-16, 25-18, 23-25, 25-14) in the third day of the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup.
In the first two sets, Belize outperformed their opponents with scores of 25-16 and 25-18. However, in the third set, Honduras showed determination and edged the locals to a score of 25-23, extending the match to a fourth set. Ultimately, Belize showcased their strength, winning the set and the match with a solid 25-14 score.
The home team led in attacks (44-35), blocks (17-6), and serves (5-3). Belize gained 32 points from Honduras’ errors, while Honduras earned 29 points from their opponent’s errors.
The top scorers of the match were Karym Coleman for Belize with 14 points, including 11 attacks, two blocks, and one service. For Honduras, David Villatoro contributed 12 points from attacks, one from blocking, and one from serving, totaling 14 points as the highest scorer for his country.
On Wednesday, August 9th, Belize will have a rest day, while Honduras will face El Salvador at 5:00 PM.
Karym Coleman, Opposite of Belize: “We started off pretty strong, but we died a little bit and it caused us to drop a set, which we didn’t want to do. We came back when our blocking started to pick up in the last set and that’s how we got them out of their system and into their heads, and we just took it from there”.
Héctor Ortiz, Libero for Honduras: “It was a match where their physical dominance prevailed. We tried to fight with a fast-paced game in the third set, and it worked for us. Unfortunately, we couldn’t sustain the pace in the fourth set. Their size affected us; we were blocked on multiple occasions, and despite our efforts, we couldn’t break free. Belize is a very cohesive team with great potential, while we are a team of individuals who are just starting to play at the national level. But I’m proud of the guys, and we’ll keep fighting”.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 8, 2023. Guatemala only needed three sets to secure victory against Nicaragua with scores of 31-29, 25-19, and 25-14 in the second match of the third day of competition at the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup.
The first set was the most thrilling of the game, with both teams going point by point in pursuit of victory. Eventually, it was Guatemala who emerged victorious, dominating in attacks 45 to 36, in blocks 10-7, and in services 10-2. Both teams committed a similar number of unforced errors, with Nicaragua recording 16 and Guatemala 17.
With 18 points for his country, outside hitter Carlos López led Guatemala to victory with 15 points from attacks, one on blocking, and two on serves. On the other hand, Tito Valdivia contributed 11 points from attacks, one point from blocking, and one point from serving, totaling 13 points as the highest scorer for Nicaragua.
On Wednesday, August 9th, Guatemala will face Costa Rica at 7:30 PM, and Nicaragua will play against Panama at 2:30 PM.
Carlos López, Outside hitter of Guatemala: “Today we managed to play a better game as a team, correcting many mistakes. We had better team cohesion, which helped us achieve a favorable result and giving us confidence for the what’s left of the competition”.
Álvaro Solís, Setter of Nicaragua: “Guatemala is a tough opponent that pressured us from the beginning with their serves. In 2021, when we won the bronze, we lost to the same two teams: Costa Rica and Guatemala. So, we still aspire to make it to the medal podium and will continue working for the upcoming matches, which I believe will be within our reach. This is not over, and all countries are at the same level”.
SAN JUAN, Argentina August 8, 2023.- United States will play in the quarterfinals of the FIVB Boys U19 World Championship for the third time ever after sweeping Puerto Rico (28-26, 25-17, 25-17) on Tuesday in Argentina.
The U.S. Team (4-1) has a very quick turnaround and will play Bulgaria (4-1) in the quarterfinals on Wednesday. The turnaround will also be tight for Bulgaria, which won a 3-2 match over Brazil in the Round of 16 on Tuesday afternoon.
The best U.S. finish at the FIVB Boys U19 World Championship is seventh, achieved in 1995 and 2015. The 2015 team included current Men’s National Team players T.J. DeFalco, Kyle Ensing, Micah Ma’a, Josh Tuaniga and Jordan Ewert.
On Tuesday, the U.S. Boys led Puerto Rico in kills (34-27) and blocks (13-6). They scored 26 points on Puerto Rico’s errors while committing 21. Puerto Rico led in aces (6-5).
Puerto Rico will play for positions 9-16, as well as Mexico who lost their quarterfinal match to France 3-0 (25-19, 25-15, 25-13).
On Wednesday Puerto Rico will play Brazil and Mexico faces Colombia, while Costa Rica will play for positions 17-20 against Chile.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 7, 2023. With a score of 3-1, El Salvador claimed victory against Panama, who had been leading the standings until today, in the first match of the third day of competition in the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup.
With closely contested sets of 26-24, 23-25, 25-21, and 26-24, El Salvador secured the win in a match led slightly in the attack by the winners, 61-57.
Panama dominated in blocks, 12-10, and both teams were tied at 3 in serves. El Salvador gathered 26 points from their opponent’s errors, while Panama earned 22 points on El Salvador’s errors.
From El Salvador, Rodrigo Chávez once again stood out, contributing 17 points on attacks, two on blocks, and two aces, totaling 21 points.
Uriel Batista continued to lead Panama’s scorers, as he converted 19 attacking points and three blocks, for a total of 22 points.
On Wednesday, August 9th, El Salvador will face Honduras at 5:00 PM, and Panama will play against Nicaragua at 2:30 PM.
Diego Cerón, Libero of El Salvador: “We’re still in the fight for what we came for. The possibility of winning gold is still alive; we don’t lose sight of that mindset. The team has very high expectations. Since we left our country, we knew that this tournament would present a lot of challenges, but we Salvadorans are known by not giving up, and we will keep fighting until the end”.
Oswald Marschall, Outside hitter of Panama: “Unfortunately, we faced a defeat today that shouldn’t have happened. It put us in a tough spot for the medal tally, but we have a team with both youth and experience, which I know will serve us well in tomorrow’s game. Congratulations to El Salvador for putting up a good match”.
PONCE, PUERTO RICO, August 7, 2023.- Puerto Rico and Argentina staged a five-set battle to close the second day of the XX Women Senior Pan American Cup at the Juan “Pachín” Vicéns Auditorium in Ponce.
Puerto Rico (2-0) marches undefeated in Group B by defeating Argentina (1-1) with scores of 20-25, 25-18, 25-18, 23-25 and 15-7.
The Boricuas made 22 blocking points, eight of them from middle blocker Paola Rojas who shined in the fifth set in her team’s victory.
With the set tied, 6-6, the Puerto Ricans scored six consecutive points to take the lead, 12-6, and define the match.
Puerto Rican Brittany Abercrombie was the top scorer with 18 points (15 kills, 2 blocks, 1 ace); Pilar Victoria with 17 points (15 attacks, 2 blocks); and Paola Santiago with 15 points (11 attacks, 3 blocks and an ace).
From Argentina, Bianca Cugno with 13 points (9 kills, 3 blocks, one ace); Bianca Farriol with 13 points (8 kills, 5 blocks); and Candelaria Herrera with nine points (8 attacks, one block).
Puerto Rico celebrates against Argentina
Puerto Rico will play tomorrow against Mexico (0-1) at 6:00 p.m., and Argentina (1-1) against the Dominican Republic (1-0) at 8:00 p.m.
Fernando Morales, Coach of Puerto Rico: “Puerto Rico is not known for its blocking but for its defense, but the blocking gave us the game in the fifth set. The game plan worked. The good news is that we were able to win without Brittany (Abercrombie), who was hurt. We stayed calm in the fifth set and were able to dominate. Tomorrow is the game (against Mexico) to secure the second position, and on Thursday to fight the first against the Dominican Republic”.
Pilar Victoriá, Player from Puerto Rico: “It was a collective game. Those who came from the bench did the job and we played very united. We knew this game would be one of the hardest. We came to play, but obviously we wanted to win. We know that Argentina has a great history in South American volleyball and winning against Argentina is very important to us. We are happy to be able to win this game.”
Daniel Jorge Castellani, Coach of Argentina: “It’s a bitter result because I think we could have played a little better. It wasn’t a good game for us but, nevertheless, what I rescue is what we fought for, we looked for solutions, options, and despite not having a great game, we were able to stay in the game and be competitive. At the end of the fifth set, the team fell off a bit.”
PONCE, PUERTO RICO, August 7, 2023.- Dominican Republic, champion of the last two editions (2021/2022) of the Women Senior Pan American Cup, debuted with a 3-0 (25-23, 25 -15, 25-15) against Chile at the Juan “Pachín” Vicéns Auditorium in Ponce.
The champions started their tournament debut a bit cold with a close first set against Chile, but then they showed their power on court to win in three sets.
The Dominicans dominated the Chileans in attacks, 43-23; in blocks they were even, 9-9, and in direct services, 5-5, as well.
Gaila González was the best scorer for the Dominican Republic with 14 points (12 kills, one block, one ace); Madeline Guillén with nine attacking points and Cándida Arias with seven points (5 kills, 2 blocks).
For Chile, Beatriz Novoa scored 14 points (12 kills, 2 blocks), followed by Karen Morales with eight points (5 kills, 3 blocks) and Florencia Giglio with six points (2 kills, 2 blocks, 2 direct serves).
Candida Arias (DOM) spikes
Dominican Republic will play tomorrow at 8:00 p.m. against Argentina, and Chile has the day off.
Marcos Kwiek, Coach of the Dominican Republic: “It’s always a little difficult for us to start because of the pace of the game, the change of play, but it’s normal and we’re used to it. We didn’t play the first day and that’s part of the competition. Today I had the opportunity to practically put them all to play. Bethania (De la Cruz) is playing for the first time this year and we have to get her into the rhythm of the game, because physically she is fine, and these games are good for that, so we have one more option”.
Niverka Marte, Captain of the Dominican Republic: “Happy that all the girls had the opportunity to play because it is important for our development. We come from a very good transition, and these are games that the girls have to enter and show that there is talent. We come to look for the gold medal, God willing, and for the team to maintain its level in each game”.
Alejandro Marín Hormazábal, Coach of Chile: “We played a very good first set. We played equally. Dominican Republic is a very tough team when it comes to attacking, blocking up front, but we played very well from serves, which was one of the virtues we had. Unfortunately, even though we played good volleyball at times, we couldn’t keep it up. For this reason, we couldn’t stay with a win or a set, but I’m happy with the performance of the players”.
PONCE, PUERTO RICO, August 7, 2023.- Peru lost 3-0 (25-23, 25-20, 25-13) to the United States in the second day of the XX Women Senior Pan American Cup at the Juan “Pachín” Vicens Auditorium in Ponce.
The United States is undefeated at 2-0 in Pool A with six straight sets.
With 12 blocks for points, the North American team dominated Peru, which had three. Likewise, the United States dominated in attacks, 40-37, and in serves they finished even, 4-4.
Logan Eggleston was the top scorer for the United States with 15 points (14 attacks, one block), Stephanie Samedy with 13 points (11 attacks, one block, one ace) and Madeleine Gates with 11 points (6 attacks, 5 blocks).
For Peru, Karla Ortiz with 12 points (12 attacks), María Paula Rodríguez with 10 points (10 in attacks); and Ysabella Sánchez with nine points (7 attacks, one block and ace).
Stephanie Samedy(USA) spikes
Peru (0-1) will play tomorrow against Costa Rica (0-2) at 2:00 p.m., and the United States (2-0) against Colombia (1-0) at 4:00 p.m.
Brad Rostratter, Coach of United States: “It was great. We’ve gotten to get everyone in and everyone kind of get the first match jitters out of the way, and it was nice to see us put some things together through those last two sets, through the home stretch. It’s just the next step and we just have been preparing on what’s ahead of us and what’s in front of us and we played better today and we’re trying to play better tomorrow against Colombia”.
Logan Eggleston, Best scorer of United States: “It was a fun game to play. I think we’re getting used to each other as a team with a lot of really awesome talent. And we’re just having fun getting to play together. Our expectation is always to win, and we just played at a really high level and I think we’re doing a really good job at the beginning and it’s going to keep getting better”.
Francisco Manuel Hervas Tirado, Coach of Peru: “I think that the first two sets we have endured very well and we have had our options, doing little things that we have been working on and we have been satisfied there, although we have lost the third. The third, we haven’t been able to find the rhythm of the game again and a team like the United States, you pay for that, you pay for it on the scoreboard. We always talk with the girls that the first game is always difficult regardless of the rival because it’s normal. We must continue working and keep thinking about the game that comes tomorrow”.
PONCE, PUERTO RICO, August 7, 2023.- Canada achieved its first victory of the XX Women Senior Pan American Cup by beating Costa Rica 3-0 (25-12, 25-17, 25-15) on Monday at the Juan “Pachín “Vicéns Auditorium de Ponce.
After losing the first set, Costa Rica made adjustments and took an early lead in the next two sets but were unable to hold it and Canada took the win.
Canada (1-1) dominated Costa Rica (0-2) in spikes, 41-22, in blocks, 8-3, and in serves, 8-3.
Vicky Savard, from Canada, was the best scorer of the match with 16 points (13 kills, 2 blocks, one ace); Nyadholi Thokbuorn with 13 points (7 kills, 3 blocks, 3 aces); and Sydney Grills with 11 points (8 kills, 3 aces).
For Costa Rica, Tannia Carazo with nine points (7 attacks, 2 aces); Marcela Araya with five points (5 attacks); and Lakysha Nicolle Thompson with 5 points (3 kills, 2 blocks).
Canada vs Costa Rica
Costa Rica will play tomorrow against Peru at 2:00 p.m. and Canada has the day off.
Shannon Winzer, Coach of Canada: “I think we started off a lot better this game than we did the previous game. We managed first contact a lot better, which allowed us to run our offense and I thought we had a few players who had just outstanding service pressure that made it difficult for Costa Rica to control that first pass. So, I think we did some good things. We gave a lot of players a run tonight. And that only, you know, serves us well for the rest of the tournament”.
Nyadholi Thokbuom, Middle Blocker of Canada: “We’re really excited. This is the first time this group has played together, so we’re really hyped up. We’re very happy. I knew I was falling short in other parts of my game so the service line was the only thing that I could control, and I think I did pretty well on that”.
Pablo Acuña, Coach of Costa Rica: “The last two sets we had an advantage, and it went away. The second (set) in rotation four, and the third (set), in rotation three. I think it was Canada’s virtue that they served it very well, and we think we could have made an adjustment in reception earlier to press and win a set that would have changed the match. I like the team up to point 16, after that something happens mentally that is affecting us, and we can’t close the set. But, we are here for that, to see what is happening to correct and make the changes”.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 7, 2023.- Once again, the hosts made use of their home advantage and didn’t allow themselves to fall easily in front of their fans, rallying back from a 0-2 set deficit and extending the last match to a fifth set on the second day of the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup.
With a 3-2 victory against Panama, Belize managed to rally back and win the match 20-25/19-25/25-23/25-18/15-11.
Attacks were dominated by Panama, 59-52. Belize took the lead in blocks with 14-12 and in services 8-4.
Belize earned 30 points from opponent’s errors, while Panama got 27 points on the home team’s errors.
The top scorers of the match were Ernest Broaster from Belize with 20 points, 14 from attacks, 3 from blocks, and 3 from services, and Uriel Batista from Panama with 16 attacking points, 2 from blocks, and 2 from services, for a total of 20 points.
This Tuesday, August 8, Panama will face El Salvador at 2:30 pm, and Belize will play against Honduras at 7:30 pm.
Elton Anderson, Captain of Belize: “It was a very hard match. We fought hard, and thankfully we won in the end. We feel very tired, it was difficult, but we managed to win, so we’ll try to rest and come ready to face Honduras tomorrow.”
Otto Othon, Captain of Panama: “In tonight’s game, we played well in the first two sets. We have many young players, and it was an experience for them and for us, and the match went to five sets. We need to correct what couldn’t be achieved and hope to play a good match against El Salvador tomorrow”.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 7, 2023. – The current Central American champions, Guatemala, made their debut with a 3-2 victory (22/25, 25/19, 18/25, 25/20, 15/9) over El Salvador in the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup.
The sets alternated between the two countries, leading to a decisive fifth set. El Salvador started by winning the match, but Guatemala bounced back to claim the second set, setting the stage for a highly contested challenge.
Guatemala was powerful in their attack, tallying 68 points against 45. Both teams scored 15 points from blocks, and Guatemala led in service points with 8 against 2. El Salvador earned 36 points from Guatemala’s errors, while Guatemala capitalized on 14 errors by their opponent.
Andy Blanco propelled Guatemala to victory as the top scorer of the match, contributing 28 points with 23 attacks, 2 blocks, and 3 service points. On the other side, El Salvador’s outside hitter Rodrigo Chávez achieved 22 points, with 19 from attacks, 2 from blocks, and one from service.
This Tuesday, August 8, Guatemala will face Nicaragua at 5:00 pm, and El Salvador will play against Panama at 2:30 pm.
Carlos López, Captain of Guatemala: “We started off in good energy, but throughout the game, we lost focus and made many reception errors, which complicated our journey and led us to extend the match. However, in the end, we achieved the result, which is to win”.
Juan Carlos Vargas, Captain of El Salvador: “We didn’t secure the victory, but we put up a fight. A quite extended 3-2 match, a lot of passion on the court because we were playing against the reigning Central American champions of the past years, and that always motivates us to play well and better. We had a player injured in the fourth set, which made it difficult for us to close the fourth and fifth sets properly. Our spirits are high, there are still four games to go, and we’re looking forward to giving our best performance tomorrow with the goal of winning”.
August 7, 2023.- United States advanced to the FIVB Girls U19 World Championship quarterfinals on Monday by defeating the Dominican Republic 3-0 (25-15, 25-15, 2-24) in Osijek, Croatia.
United States (6-0) will play Brazil (4-2) in Wednesday’s quarterfinals. The time has not yet been announced. The Dominican Republic (2-4) will face Argentina (4-2) in the matches for positions 9-16.
Outside hitter Abigail Vander Wal was the American leading scorer with 13 points, one more than middle blocker Favor Anyanwu. Dominican outside hitter Katielle Vargas topped all scorers with 18 points.
Puerto Rico (2-4) lost their quarterfinal 3-0 (25-18, 25-21, 25-21) to Japan (5-1). Opposite Miku Akimoto left the court with 16 points and outside hitter Riri Kasai with 13 on the Japanese side, while outside hitter Elena Garcia and opposite Grace Mar Villanueva each scored 14 for Puerto Rico.
Puerto Rico will also play for positions 9 to 16 against China (5-1) in Szeged, Hungary.
Mexico (1-5) and Canada (1-5) will battle each other for positions 17-20. On Monday Mexico beat Germany 3-0 (25-19, 25-22, 26-24) and Canada prevailed 3-1 (25-19, 27-25, 16-25, 25-23) over Chile.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 7, 2023. – The second day of the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup saw the first match of the day between Costa Rica and Nicaragua, which was decided in four sets 3-1 (25-22/25-22/20-25/25-20) for Costa Rica.
Costa Rica dominated in attacks with a 17-point difference, 62 to 45, and in services 4 to 2, securing their first victory of the tournament. Blocks were in favor of Nicaragua with a six-point difference, 16-10.
The top scorer of the match was Costa Rica’s outside hitter Ricky Vargas with 24 points, on 23 attacks and one ace. In the Nicaraguan team, the top scorer was Dennis García with 17 points, 14 from attacks, and 3 from blocks.
This Tuesday, August 8, Costa Rica is the team with a day off, while Nicaragua faces Guatemala at 5:00 pm.
Emmanuel Villareal, Captain of Costa Rica: “This was a very important match for us after the defeat against Belize on the first day. It was a match against an excellent Nicaragua that never gives up, that defends a lot. We had to attack strongly and improve our blocking. We are very happy and with the intact goal of winning the tournament. Tomorrow, we have a day off, and on Wednesday, we will defeat Guatemala”.
Miguel Castillo, Captain of Nicaragua: “Today’s game got away from us because we are inconsistent in reception. We knew we were up against a tough opponent, and unfortunately, we couldn’t close the fourth set to go into a fifth. The tournament is just starting, and we will continue to give our all to finish with a medal”.
PONCE, PUERTO RICO, August 6, 2023.- Argentina defeats Mexico in consecutive sets (25-20, 25-19, 25-18) on the first day of competition of the XX Women’s Volleyball Pan American Cup at the Juan “Pachín” Vicéns Auditorium in Ponce.
Argentina’s blocking was very effective at the net to stop the Mexican offense. Argentina dominated in attacks, 42-33, to Mexico; in blocks, 10-2, and 4-2 in aces.
Mexico had its best moment of the game in the third set, dominating the first technical timeout, 8-5. From then on, Argentina returned to the field to close the game and get their first win.
Opposite Bianca Cugno was the best scorer for Argentina with 20 points (19 attacks, 1 blocks); Outside Hitter Yamila Nizetich with 12 points (9 attacks, 1 blocks, 2 aces); and middle blocker Candelaria Herrera with eight points (5 attacks).
María Fernanda Rodríguez was the best scorer from México with nine points, all in attacks; Karen Rivera with six points (6 attacks); and Aime Margarita Topete with six points (5 attacks, one block).
Bianca Farriol (ARG) spikes against Mexico
Argentina will play tomorrow against the host, Puerto Rico, at 8:00 p.m., and Mexico has the day off.
Nicola Negro, Coach of Mexico: “The result is clearly not positive. Positive are the first two sets that we clashed and the first part of the third set. We have players playing out of position, not their natural position. We played an orderly game. We lacked attack. Now we rest to prepare for Puerto Rico on Tuesday.”
Daniel Jorge Castellani, Coach of Argentina: “Very happy with the victory. There was a bit of nerves at the start of the game, like every first game in a competition, and then we saw the work they did. I really liked the offense. There was a lot of offense.”
Victoria Mayer, Captain of Argentina: “It was a great victory against Mexico. We are a team of young players with others who have more experience. We are very happy to start this Cup with a victory”.
August 6, 2023.- Mexico, Puerto Rico and the United States came out of pool-play at the FIVB Volleyball Boys’ U19 World Championship, and are ready for Tuesday’s eightfinals in San Juan, Argentina.
In Pool D on Sunday, Belgium mastered a 3-0 (25-19, 25-22, 25-17) shutout of Mexico with a 14-point match high from Berre Van Looveren. In the final pool standings, Mexico (1-3) finished third and advanced to the eighthfinals where they’ll face Pool B winners France (4-0).
United States failed to finish Pool A with an impeccable record. In their last pool match against Serbia, they not only lost their first sets of the tournament, but also conceded their first defeat. However, even after Serbia’s 3-1 (25-22, 18-25, 25-21, 25-13) victory, the Americans topped the final pool standings on a 3-1 win-loss record and better set ratio than pool runners-up Egypt. Winless Costa Rica will move on to battle with Chile and India for the 17th place.
In the eighthfinals, the teams from Pool A will meet the teams from Pool C. USA will face fourth-placed Puerto Rico (1-3).
In the last match of Pool C, Colombia claimed a 3-0 (25-14, 25-21, 26-24) win over Puerto Rico.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 6, 2023.- The closing match of the inaugural day in the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup saw the most closely contested game between hosts Belize and El Salvador, with scores of 25-22/13-25/25-23/22-25/15-13 in favor of El Salvador.
In a match that extended to the fifth set at the Belize City Civic Center, the spectators were treated to a thrilling matchup that was dominated by Belize in attacks (58-57) and blocks (14-8), while both teams tied at four each in the service category.
El Salvador earned 31 points from their opponent’s errors, while Belize secured 30 points from Salvadoran mistakes.
The top scorer of the match for El Salvador was Rodrigo Chávez, the outside hitter, who secured 26 points on 24 attacks, one block, and one service point.
On the Belizean side, two of their players accumulated 40 points. Outside hitter Karym Coleman scored 17 points from attacks, one from blocks, and two from serves, totaling 20 points. Meanwhile, his teammate Francis Hauze also contributed 20 points, including 16 from attacks, three from blocks, and one from serves.
On Monday, August 7, El Salvador will face Guatemala at 2:30 PM, and Belize will take on Panama at 7:30 PM.
Gabriel Linares, El Salvador’s coach: “We had to start against the home team, and we knew it wouldn’t be easy because they’re a team that has been working together for quite some time. We knew we had to give our best, and it was reflected in the scores. We had to go to the fifth set, but in the end, we steered the ship right. We worked on our serves, which we were struggling with, and thanks to God, we managed to secure the game in our favor”.
Albert Humes, Belize’s coach: “The defeat tonight was very disappointing. I believe that both the players and the coaches made mistakes at some point in the game, and El Salvador capitalized on those mistakes. El Salvador did their homework studying us; they didn’t use power but played intelligent volleyball, and that cost us the match”.
August 6, 2023.- The elimination rounds of the 2023 FIVB Girls’ U19 Volleyball World Championship are now set after the pool play stage was completed on Sunday with 60 matches held over the course of six days in Osijek, Croatia, and Szeged, Hungary.
The Round of 16 will be held on Monday in both cities, while the eight teams that didn’t make it out of their pools, finishing fifth and sixth in their groups, will now compete in the playoffs for 17th-24th places.
NORCECA representatives United States, Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico advanced to the Round of 16, which feature: Türkiye vs. Korea, the United States vs. the Dominican Republic, Croatia vs. Poland, and Japan vs. Puerto Rico (in Osijek), China vs. Thailand, Italy vs. Egypt, Argentina vs. Brazil and Bulgaria vs. Hungary (in Szeged).
In Pool B, in Osijek, the dispute was still open for two of the four spots in play and Puerto Rico topped Germany 3-0 (25-22, 25-22, 25-15) to advance in third place and send the Europeans to fifth. Their victory also benefited the Dominican Republic, who got a forfeit win over Nigeria and advanced in fourth place.
Back in Szeged, Thailand claimed the last spot available in Pool C with their 3-1 (25-11, 21-25, 25-22, 25-14) win over sixth-placed Canada.
Pool D had a direct battle between Korea and Serbia for the last spot in the playoffs. The Koreans did their homework, topping sixth-placed Mexico 3-0 (25-16, 25-16, 25-22) and managed to finish fourth after Serbia fell to pool winners the United States 3-2 (25-15, 18-25, 25-19, 19-25, 15-7) and ended in fifth place.
The tournament continues on Monday with the Round of 16 and will have one day off on Tuesday ahead of Wednesday’s quarterfinals, which will all be hosted in Osijek. The semifinals will be held on Thursday and the medal matches on Friday. Playoff matches will also be held in parallel to determine positions from 5th to 24th.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 6, 2023.. The Nicaraguan National Team started their campaign with a 3-1 victory over Honduras (25-13/19-25/25-18/25-19) in the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup organized at the Belize City Civic Center.
The first set was dominated by Nicaragua, with a comfortable 12-point lead, securing the set at 25-13.
Honduras was determined to level the match and managed to win the second set with a score of 25-19.
In the third and fourth sets, Nicaragua maintained their dominance despite Honduras putting up a fight. The Nicaraguan team secured victories with scores of 25-18 and 25-19, winning the match 3-1.
Nicaragua outperformed Honduras in attacks (43-40), serves (14-4), and blocks (6-5). Nicaragua earned 31 points from opponent errors, while Honduras secured 26 points from their rival’s mistakes.
Outside hitter Jonny Zeledón emerged as Nicaragua’s top scorer with 14 points, including 10 from attacks, 1 from blocks, and 3 from serves. On the other side, also outside hitter David Villatoro from Honduras scored 16 points, making him the highest scorer with 14 points from attacks, one from blocks, and one from serves.
NCA VS HON VILLATORO (11)-XXII Copa Centroamericana Masculina
On Monday, August 7, Nicaragua will face Costa Rica at 2:30 PM, while Honduras will have a free day in the schedule.
Jorge Mena, Nicaragua’s coach: “The match got complicated for us; we lost a set, which wasn’t our intention. However, the players improved as the game progressed. This is just the beginning. What we wanted was to win the match. Tomorrow, we have another game against Costa Rica, and we’ll aim for the victory”.
Marco Sugiyama, Honduras’ coach: “We started the game a bit poorly, slow. We need to accelerate our process for the next match. I’ll be talking to the players, and I hope to bring about a change for the next game”.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 6, 2023.- The Panama Men’s Volleyball Team made a triumphant debut with a 3-1 victory over Costa Rica (25-17/25-20/22-25/25-15) at the XXII AFECAVOL Central American Men’s Volleyball Cup.
In the first match of the day and the tournament at the Belize City Civic Center, Panama displayed determination to secure the win. They clinched the first set with an eight-point lead (25-17).
Panama’s dominance continued into the second set. While Costa Rica occasionally closed in on the score, the Panamanian players persisted in their pursuit of victory, ultimately securing the set 25-20.
Costa Rica entered the third set determined to extend the match, taking the third set with a tight three-point lead over Panama, 25-22.
Coaches Horacio Angulo of Panama and Johan Morales of Costa Rica spoke with their players ahead of the fourth set, one hoping to win the match and the other aiming to tie it for a decisive fifth set.
Panama dominated the fourth set with a 10-point lead, finishing the match with a score of 3-1.
Panama’s offense attacking in the match was evident, with 50 points compared to Costa Rica’s 44. Panama also outperformed in blocks, 16-7, and serves, 8-4.
Panama earned 23 points from their opponent’s errors, while Costa Rica secured 22.
Panama’s opposite hitter Uriel Batista was determined, scoring 26 points, including 21 from attacks, 1 from blocks, and 4 from serves. For Costa Rica, opposite hitter Gilbert Solano scored 15 points, all from attacks.
CRC VS PAN URIEL BATISTA-XXII Copa Centroamericana Mayor Masc (25)
On Monday, August 7, Panama will face Belize at 7:30 PM, while Costa Rica will compete against Nicaragua at 2:30 PM.
Horacio Angulo, Panama’s coach: “We had two sets heavily in our favor that we were able to secure. Costa Rica is a challenging team, especially with coaches who understand volleyball and have worked a lot on their float serves, which somewhat gave difficulties to my team’s reception. We managed to take the third set, and in the fourth set, I made a couple of adjustments, subbing out one player and bringing in a young 19-year-old, Gherson Ortíz, who is a rising star in volleyball. The team played well with the system we’ve practiced in Panama, and thank God, we secured the victory”.
Johan Morales, Costa Rica’s coach: “We knew it wouldn’t be an easy match. Panama inflicted a lot of damage with their serves; we couldn’t control them. When we did manage to control them, we ended up one-on-one, but our attackers couldn’t close. These are things we need to change; in such a fast tournament, we can’t afford to stay down or give up. We know our purpose here, and we still have five matches to make certain changes to achieve it. I brought mobility to the team with significant changes, but in the end, it didn’t work out. We made too many unforced errors, and our defensive tactics were lacking. We weren’t at our best, so now we need to regroup and come to play against Nicaragua, another tough opponent”.
PONCE, PUERTO RICO, August 6, 2023.- The United States began the XX Senior Women’s Volleyball Pan American Cup with a quick victory against Costa Rica in three sets (25-12, 25-12, 25-17) on Sunday at Juan Juan “Pachín” Vicens in Ponce.
The United States offense made itself felt from the beginning of the game and had three players in double figures to get the important victory. Mims Taylor was the top scorer with 17 points (13 attacks, 4 blocks); Logan Eggleston with 14 points (13 attacks, one ace); and Danielle Hart with 13 points (8 attacks, 3 blocks, 2 aces).
The Americans made nine blocks against two by Costa Rica. In serves, the United States dominated 5-1.
For Costa Rica, Tatiana Sayles Marín was the best scorer with 11 points (11 on kills) and Marcela Ayara with six (6 on kills).
The United States will face Peru tomorrow at 4:00 p.m. and Costa Rica, will face Canada at 2:00 p.m.
Costa Rica will face Canada tomorrow at 2:00 p.m. and the United States will play Peru at 4:00 p.m.
United States vs Costa Rica Women’s Pan American Cup
Brad Rostratter, Coach of United States of America: “It’s good to start off the tournament that way and to have our team come in and play well. And we definitely had some jitters and started the first set, so it was nice to get settled. We really were just focused on ourselves and how we’re playing and us. In continuity together. And that’s our focus throughout. Tomorrow, we got Peru. So we gotta watch some video prepare, watch ourselves and and upgrade some things”.
Sarah Wilhite Parsons, Captain of United States of America: “I think overall it was a great win. Costa Rica brings a lot of different things at us and I think we did a good job of managing it and just staying together as a team. But it was my first time playing against Costa Rica and I think that they challenged us in a lot of ways and it was a fun match”.
Pablo Acuña, Coach of Costa Rica: “Pablo Acuña, Coach of Costa Rica: “We had no information about this team playing together. We knew of some individuals. It was a difficult start. We were adapting set by set, getting to know the opponent a little more. We told the players that focus was what we could control. Set by set we gave more competition to the United States. We took a step forward, but there is still a lot to improve.”
PONCE, Puerto Rico (August 5, 2023).- The coaches of the National Teams agreed that participating in the XX Women Volleyball Pan American Cup is very important for the pending competitions for the rest of the year.
The tournament will grant two spaces for the NORCECA teams to the XIX Pan American Games in Santiago 2023, that will take place from October 20 to November 5. These two teams will complete the list of four representatives of the NORCECA Confederation in the Pan American Games, the Dominican Republic and Mexico are already classified.
The current champion Dominican Republic, winner of the last two editions (2021, 2022) with a total of six titles, along with Canada, Costa Rica, Mexico, Puerto Rico and the United States, represent the NORCECA Volleyball Confederation. And Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Peru are the teams that represent the South American Volleyball Confederation.
In the history of the event, the United States has won the tournament seven times, followed by the Dominican Republic with six gold medals, Cuba with four and Brazil with three.
Without Cuba and Suriname, the teams were divided into two groups, in Group A are Canada, Colombia, Peru, the United States and Costa Rica. In Group B will play Argentina, Chile, Dominican Republic, Mexico and Puerto Rico.
The first place of each group will advance directly to the semifinals.
Coach Shannon Winzer of Canada
Nicola Negro, Coach of Mexico: “We came to this competition with a small team. It is a very articulated competition, with many games, and that will help us to have a better result”.
Francisco Manuel Hervas, coach of Peru: It’s a very beneficial tournament for us because it’s the first tournament we’ve played this year with the Senior team, and it puts us at the gates of the South American Championship (August) and the Olympic qualifiers (September). This tournament is very important for us to see how the team is facing these two official FIVB tournaments with great weight in our planning.
Alejandro Marín Hormazábal, Coach of Chile: “It is very important to be here after 2017, which was our last participation in this competition. Today we are lucky to compete with world-class teams, with teams that come from the Olympic Games and VNL. They are world-class teams and it will help us a lot to prepare for the 2023 Pan American Games”.
Marcos Kwiek, Coach of the Dominican Republic: “It is an important competition for us because it is prior to the Continental Championship and the Olympic qualifier. This tournament contributes a lot to gain game rhythm and experience; and it is a good opportunity for other players to enter the court and gain that experience, which we are going to need. We are 100% focused. All games are important. We have to win”.
Antonio Rizola Neto, Coach of Colombia: “It is a tournament that we respect a lot and we are careful to present ourselves well. Last year we finished in third position, and we hope to improve on that ranking. This is the last tournament before the South American Championship, and it is followed by the Olympic qualification. They are two very important competitions and I come to seek experience for my team, which is very different from last year”.
Fernando Morales, Coach of Puerto Rico: “Our goal is to qualify for the Pan American Games. We know we are at home and we want to give our people a good show. We come from two good tournaments (Final Four and Central American and Caribbean Games), and we know that this tournament is of a higher level and we want to expose our players at this level, and that they continue to have good results. We want to start the second cycle of the year on the right foot”.
Puerto Rico during preliminary inquiry
Pablo Acuña, Coach of Costa Rica: “Being here is very important for us because in a month we will be in the Central American Cup, which is our main competition and our goal is to win first place. The Pan American Cup allows us to concentrate the team and prepare with high-level rivals. The players are very excited to be able to compete. We hope to improve game by game”.
Shannon Winzer, Coach of Canada: “I think this is a really good opportunity for, you know, some of our senior A team to who maybe didn’t play as much at VNL. And for some of our younger players who are trying to push into the senior A team, we’ve got a really important end of summer with NORCECA Championships being hosted in Canada and with Olympic qualifiers in China. So this is very much a part of our preparation. We’ve come with the what I think is a really strong team and we’re we’re 100% trying to win this competition. Anytime you play in your region, you wanna do a good job”.
Daniel Jorge Castellani, Coach of Argentina: “It is a very important tournament for us. We played some friendly matches in Argentina before arriving. This tournament has a higher level, and, in the programming, it is a tournament that will give us competition and feedback, to continue growing for the South American Championship and Olympic qualifiers. We never have expectations. We always go out to play 100%, to give our best, and to be prepared for whatever arises on the field of play”.
Brad Rostratter, Coach of USA: “We have a really exciting team. We have a mixture of girls who have played a lot with the USA jersey and logo on the jersey and we also have some girls will be their first time wearing the jersey and representing our country, and some of them are fresh and out of college and some of them have been playing pro for a few years and have been able to get an opportunity to represent our country. So, it’s a really exciting mix of young and experienced athletes. Our expectation is to really grow throughout this next month that we’re together. We’ve had two weeks of training and now we’ll be on the road for a month with this tournament here and then the Final Six afterwards. So, the expectation for us is just keep going. Getting better and obviously compete for every single point in every single match and see where that gets us”.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 5, 2023 – On August 6, 2023, the competition for the XXII Central American Cup Belize 2023 will begin, and the teams want to earn a place on the podium, as expressed by the coaches during the preliminary inquiries held on Saturday, August 5.
During the presentation, the Control Committee verified the paperwork and official uniforms that will be used during the competition, which will take place at the Belize City Civic Center.
In the last edition, Guatemala took first place, Costa Rica came second, and Nicaragua was third, these last ones made history after 30 years of not stepping onto the Central American podium.
As the defending champion, Guatemala will seek to become a four-time champion, having won the 2017, 2018, and 2021 editions, aiming to catchup with Costa Rica with six titles and approaching Panama, the country that has won the most titles in the region with eight gold medals in total.
Albert Humes, Belize Coach: “Our tournament objective, being the host, definitely means we want to win. That’s the primary goal of this Belizean team. But we also want our country to feel proud and ensure that our fans, our families, and everyone enjoys the quality that Belize has to show to the world”.
Reider Lucas, Guatemala Coach: “Our goal is to try to have a good competition. We come to give our all in each match. It’s a very close competition, and there’s a lot of rivalry among the Central American countries, which makes it more emotional and much more competitive. We will try to fight in every match and perform well in the competition. The players are eager to play, and we believe it will be a good competition”.
Gabriel Linares, El Salvador Coach: “We have been preparing to regain the space we had lost within the elite of Central American volleyball. We are aware that the tournament will be tough, and we have high expectations of being among the top three on the podium”.
Marco Sugiyama, Honduras Coach: “I am happy, and we are ready. We will fight to pave the way for future achievements”. “Our objective is to compete for a medal, and we will give it our all. We have prepared well, with a united group, and expect a surprise from us”, added Marvin Ulloa Molina, assistant coach.
Jorge Mena, Nicaragua Coach: “The purpose is to be on the podium and try to improve our position we achieved last time. We come to compete and give it our all on the court as a team and bring Nicaragua forward without returning empty-handed to our country”.
Johan Morales, Costa Rica Coach: “We come to this new Central American Cup with great enthusiasm. We did very well last time but fell short. The goal this year is to win the gold, which is extremely difficult with well-prepared teams. But in the end, I believe we have what it takes to compete, and the boys are highly motivated with a strong sense of unity”.
Horacio Angulo, Panama Coach: “Our expectation is to make it to the medal standings, something we haven’t achieved in many years. We have a young team, from a group that ranges from U21 to U23. We will try to bring something back to our country, God willing”.
SAN JUAN, Argentina, August 5, 2023.- Argentina packed the arena while the United States packed on the points and swept their hosts (25-19, 25-18, 25-20) on Saturday at the FIVB Boys’ U19 World Championship in San Juan.
An estimated crowd of 5,100 watched the United States fight back from early scoring deficits to win the first two sets before taking a big lead and coasting to victory in the third set.
U.S. outside hitter Sterling Foley led all scorers with 18 points on 16 kills and two blocks. Outside hitter Sean Kelly added 16 points on 15 kills and one block.
The U.S. led Argentina in kills (41-32) and blocks (12-5). Argentina led in aces (4-1). The U.S. scored 21 points on Argentina’s errors and gave up 16.
Costa Rica fell to Egypt 0-3 (20-25, 21-25, 21-25). Egypt led Costa Rica 42-29 in attacks, 11-6 in blocks and 3-1 in aces. Costa Rica scored 26 points on Egypt’s errors and handed out 19.
Opposite Yulius Brown and outside hitter Stanley Grant led Costa Rica with 13 points each.
The preliminary round concludes on Sunday with Puerto Rico (1-2) against Colombia (1-2), Mexico (1-2) against Belgium (2-1) and USA (3-0 against Serbia (1-2).
Costa Rica (0-4) ended the preliminary round and will move into the round for positions 17 to 20.
August 5, 2023.- The United States rebounded from a first-set loss to defeat Poland on Saturday 3-1 (23-25, 25-16, 25-22, 25-15) at the FIVB Girls U19 World Championship in Osijek, Croatia.
U.S. players fired up after losing the first set and they returned to the court at the top of their game, winning the last three sets and guaranteeing to move into the elimination round.
Opposite Abigail Mullen led all scorers with 18 points on 11 kills, one ace and six blocks. Outside hitter Teraya Sigler scored 16 points on 16 kills and middle blocker Ayden Ames had 12 points on 11 kills and an ace.
In Pool D, Mexico fell 0-3 (14-25, 11-25, 13-25) to Japan who booked their ticket to the elimination round.
Mexico had outside hitter Isabella Ocampo, with seven points, as their most efficient offensive player. Japan dominated every skill, kills (48-20), blocks (6-2) and aces (11-1).
Dominican Republic fell to host Croatia 1-3 (21-25, 15-25, 25-17, 19-25) and is guaranteed a forfeit win to Nigeria on Sunday , to end the preliminary round 3-3.
Dominicans led 42-40 in attacks, while Croatia led 12-8 in blocks and 10-8 in points from serves. The leading scorers for Dominican Republic were outside hitter Katielle Alonzo and Ariana Rodríguez with 17 and 16 points respectively.
Canada in Szeged, Hungary suffered a tough five-set loss 3-2 (25-20, 22-25, 16-25, 25-22, 15-12) to Peru in Pool C.
Canada and Peru both scored 62 attacking points. Canada led 10-3 in blocks and 9-7 in aces.
Canadian opposite Abagayle Guezen led all scorers with 27 points on 21 kills, three blocks and three aces. Middle blocker Veronica Dickson and outside hitter Megan Hawkins added 14 points each.
Puerto Rico and Nigeria, ended with a forfeit win by the Caribbeans (1-3).
The first phase of the event ends on Sunday with Mexico (0-4) against Korea (1-3), USA (4-0) first place in Pool D plays Serbia (1-3), Puerto Rico (1-3) plays Germany (2-2) and Canada (0-4) against Thailand (1-3).
PONCE, Puerto Rico (August 5, 2023).- The National Teams of Cuba and Suriname could not arrive to Puerto Rico to play the XX Women’s Senior Pan American Cup, which begins tomorrow Sunday at the Juan “Pachín” Vicens Auditorium.
Causes of major force prevented the Cuban delegation from completing their immigration process to travel to Puerto Rico; and Suriname, was left stranded in Guyana due to flight cancellations.
With the absence of both teams, the official competition schedule of the Pan American Cup changed. Each team will have one day of rest in the preliminary round.
PONCE, Puerto Rico (August 4, 2023). – The president of the North American, Central American and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation (NORCECA), Mr. Cristobal Marte Hoffiz, and the Control Committee, carried out the inspection of the Juan “Pachín” Vicéns Auditorium in Ponce, venue of the XX Women’s Senior Pan American Cup.
The Control Committee also visited the training fields for the 12 teams that will compete in the Pan American Cup from August 6 to 13, 2023, were presented by the local organizing committee under the supervision of the National Volleyball Federation of Puerto Rico.
the preliminary meeting of the teams will take place tomorrow for the official registration of their players.
The Pan American Cup will grant two spots to the women’s volleyball tournament of the XIX Pan American Games in Santiago 2023, which will take place from October 20 to November 5 in Chile. These two will complete the list of four representatives from the NORCECA Confederation in the Pan American Games, Dominican Republic and Mexico are already qualified.
In Group A are the United States, Suriname, Colombia, Peru, Cuba and Canada. Group B is made up of Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Argentina, Costa Rica and Chile.
SAN JUAN, Argentina, August 4, 2023.- Mexico defeated Chile in their first victory and the United States prevailed on 16 blocks over Egypt to move 2-0 at the FIVB Boys’ U19 World Championship in San Juan, Argentina.
Mexico in Pool D defeated Chile 3-1 (25-14, 25-19, 20-25, 25-22) with advantages in attacks (48-36), in blocks (9-6) and points from serves (6-3). Chille committed fewer errors than Mexico (32-25).
Mexican outside hitter Ines Vargas topped all scorers with 23 points on 21 points from attacks, one block and once ace. Two other players finished with double digits, outside hitter Brandon Ramirez and opposite hitter Julio Serrano with 13 and 10 points respectively.
The U.S. in Pool A continued its strong start with a 3-0 (25-14, 25-18, 26-24) win over Egypt, with a 37-33 advantage in kills, but a commanding 16-4 advantage in blocks was the key statistic. Four of those blocks came from setter Tread Rosenthal with middle blockers Tristan Whitfield and Kaumana Carreira each recording four also.
Outside hitter Sterling Foley led all scorers with 16 points on 13 kills, two blocks and one ace. Outside hitter Sean Kelly matched Foley with 13 kills.
Opposite Finn Kearney also reached double digits with 10 points on eight kills, one block and one ace.
In other results, Puerto Rico fell to Korea 0-3 (13-25, 18-25, 11-25) in Pool C and Costa Rica to Serbia 0-3 (13-25, 18-25, 15-25) in Pool A.
The action continues Saturday for Costa Rica (0-3) facing Egypt (1-1), and USA (2-0) faces host Argentina (2-0). Puerto Rico (1-2) and Mexico (1-2) will rest.
SAN JUAN, Argentina, August 3, 2023.- The United States started the FIVB Boys’ U19 World Championship in San Juan, Argentina with a victory over Costa Rica, Puerto Rico and Mexico to Iran and Italy respectively.
United States defeated Costa Rica 3-0 (25-20, 25-16, 25-15) in Pool A, on the second day of the event. Costa Rica lost their first match to Argentina.
The U.S. recorded significant advantages in kills (39-28), blocks (12-5), and aces (6-0). Opposite Finn Kearney led the way with 14 points on 10 kills, two blocks, and two aces. Outside hitter Sterling Foley also reached double digits with 11 points on 10 kills and one block.
Iran beat Puerto Rico 3-0 (25-18, 25-15, 25-12) in Pool C. Puerto Rico stands 1-1, yesterday they earned a win to Nigeria who didn’t show for the competition.
Iran led 37 to 21 in points from attacks and 10-2 in points from serves. Each team scored 8 points on blocks.
Puerto Rico v Iran
In Pool D, Italy prevailed 3-0 (25-20, 25-15, 25-21) over Mexico who fell to Brazil yesterday. Italy was dominant in kills (35-28), in blocks (7-3) and in serves (5-0).
August 3, 2023.- The United States gave a big step toward the elimination rounds of the 2023 FIVB Volleyball Girls’ U19 World Championship on Thursday by securing their third victory in the tournament in Osijek, Croatia.
With three wins in as many matches, the Americans are in first place in Pool D and only an extremely unlikely combination of results in the remaining matches wouldn’t have them among the top four teams in the pool.
After triumphs against Asian opponents Korea and Japan, the USA faced NORCECA rivals Mexico on Thursday at the Osijek Sports Hall and claimed a 3-0 (25-19, 25-22, 25-20) victory.
Middle blocker Jaela Auguste was the top American scorer with 13 points, followed by outside hitters Emerson Sellman and Teraya Sigler, who had 12 and 11 respectively. Outside hitter Isabella Ocampo was the main Mexican offensive player with 12 points.
“We played good volleyball today,” Sellman commented. “Credits to Mexico, their defense was amazing, they were digging a lot of balls. But we also did very well on defense. We had a lot of amazing plays on this element. I am really proud of the team, because there were some points that were tough, but we started to take off. This is what made the difference today – we knew that we wanted this game, and we did it.”
Pool B also had a pair of matches during the day, with Türkiye securing a 3-0 (25-19, 25-20, 25-15) win over the Dominican Republic and hosts Croatia topping Puerto Rico 3-1 (23-25, 25-21, 25-20, 25-20).
Setter Ariana Rodriguez was once again the top scorer for Dominican Republic with 10 points, followed by middle blocker Estrella Puente added 8 points.
Outside hitters Chareika Carrion (19 points), Grace López (17 points) and Elena García (12 points) led Puerto Rico.
SAN JUAN, Argentina, August 2, 2023.- Mexico and Costa Rica the first NORCECA teams to hit the court at the 18th edition of the FIVB Volleyball Boys’ U19 World Championship that got underway in San Juan on Wednesday.
In Pool D, Brazil delivered a 3-0 (25-19, 25-17, 25-23) win over Mexico despite a 21-point match high from Mexican outside hitter Ines Lares. Brazil led 7-2 in blocks and 4-2 in points from serves. Mexico held a slim 36 to 35 advantage in attacks.
Host Argentina won 3-0 (25-14, 25-16, 25-13) sweep in their opening match against Costa Rica in Pool A. Stanley Grant was the best performer for Costa Rica with 11 attacking points.
In pool C A 3-0 (25-0, 25-0, 25-0) forfeit win was awarded to Puerto Rico in the fixture against Nigeria. 2023 FIVB Volleyball Boys’ U19 World Championship: full schedule and results
United States will make their first appearance on Thursday against NORCECA opponent Costa Rica, while Puerto Rico and Mexico will face Iran and Italy respectively.
August 2, 2023.- United States move 2-0 in Pool D at the 2023 FIVB Volleyball Girls’ U19 World Championship on Wednesday with a 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 26-24) victory over Japan in Osijek, Croatia.
United States was dominant with a 13-4 advantage in blocks, both teams scored on 34 kills. The U.S. also led 5-3 in serves.
Outside hitter Abby Vander Wal led the U.S. again with 14 points on 12 kills, one block, and one ace. Middle blocker Ayden Ames totaled 12 points, combining six kills with her six blocks. Middle blocker Anyanwu Favor finished with nine points on five kills, two blocks, and two aces.
Also in Pool D, Serbia overcame Mexico 3-0 (25-18, 25-21, 25-17). Serbia finished with a huge 40-28 advantage in kills and 7-4 in aces. Mexico led 5-4 in blocks, allowing 24 points on errors.
Mexico v Serbia
Türkiye downed Puerto Rico 3-0 (25-18, 25-20, 25-16) in Pool B. The Europeans led in every skill, attacks (37-28), blocks (5-4) and serves (8-5), scoring on 24 opponent errors against 14.
Dominican Republic are 1-1 after falling 3-1 (26-24, 15-25, 25-16, 25-23) in Pool B to Germany. Dominicans outplayed Germany 10-9 in blocks and 7-6 in serves. Germany led in kills 47-44. Dominican Ariana Rodriguez led all scorers with 21 points on 16 kills, 2 blocks and three aces.
In Pool C Szeged, Hungary, Italy won their duel to Canada 3-0 (25-12, 25-14, 25-19), leading 40-22 in kills, 9-4 in blocks and 11-1 in serves.
On Thursday, United States plays Mexico, Dominicans go up against Türkiye, Puerto Rico battles Croatia and Canada faces Bulgaria.
OSIJET, Croatia, August 1, 2023 – The Dominican Republic’s women’s volleyball team started on the right foot by securing a 3-1 victory (21-25, 25-21, 25-13, 25-22) against Puerto Rico in Group B, during the first match of the U19 World Championship held in this city.
The winners’ attack was led by Ariana Rodríguez with 20 points, followed by Katielle Alonzo with 16, and Salanny Puente who scored 10 points. For Puerto Rico, Chareika Carrión was the best performer with 13 points, Grace López scored 12, and Elena García contributed with 10.
Dominican Republic will play against Germany on Wednesday at 3:00 PM (Dominican time).
In the first set, Puerto Rico took control of the scoreboard 17-14 with strong hits from López and Valencia. The match became highly contested between both teams who didn’t want to give up ground to their opponent. However, the Dominican players, led by Ariana Rodríguez and Katielle Alonzo, managed to lead a rebellion that granted the first set victory 25-21.
The second set seemed like a copy of the first, as the Dominican team took control of the scoreboard 13-10 with strong hits from Ariana Rodríguez, Alonzo, and Ramírez. The game was tied on several occasions due to the high technical level of both teams. Puerto Rico took advantage of a poor reception from the Dominican team to take the lead 21-10 and went on to win the set 25-21, leveling the match at one set each.
In the third set, the Dominicans allowed their opponents only 13 points and dominated the set almost entirely. The Puerto Rican players made unforced errors that were capitalized upon by their opponents to increase their advantage on the scoreboard. Towards the end of the set, Ariana Rodríguez scored several consecutive points from her serves, putting pressure on the Puerto Rican girls.
Other players from the Dominican Republic who contributed were Puente and Katielle Alonzo, as well as Mía Liberato in setting.
SAN JUAN, Argentina, August 1, 2023.- The 18th edition of the FIVB Volleyball Boys’ U19 World Championship will take place in San Juan over the next 10 days. The northwestern Argentinean city is set to welcome the world’s best 20 youth national teams from Wednesday, August 2, through Friday, August 11.
The U19 World Championship will get underway at 11:00 local time (14:00 UTC) on Wednesday with two simultaneous matches on the two competition courts. India will take on France in a Pool B game, while Nigeria and Puerto Rico lock horns in a Pool C encounter.
The 20 participating teams were split into four single round-robin pools of five for the pool stage of the championship to be played over the first five competition days. Representing NORCECA are the United States, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Costa Rica.
On each of the five days, the matches in Pool B (Bulgaria, France, India, Japan, Slovenia) and Pool C (Colombia, Iran, Korea, Nigeria, Puerto Rico) will be played with starting times 11:00 local (14:00 UTC) and 14:00 (17:00). The games in Pool D (Belgium, Brazil, Chile, Italy, Mexico) will start at 17:00 (20:00) and 20:00 (23:00), while those in Pool A (Argentina, Costa Rica, Egypt, Serbia, United States) will serve off at 18:00 (21:00) and 21:00 (00:00).
The top four teams from each pool will progress to the eighthfinals to start the direct elimination phase, during which each win means advancement to the upper tier of the next stage in the bracket and each loss means moving down to the lower tier of the next stage in the bracket until the final classification matches on August 11, which will fill up the places from first to sixteenth in the final standings.
The remaining four teams, those that finish fifth in their pools, will play a single round-robin to determine the final standings from 17th to 20th place.
The previous 17 editions of the youth boys’ world championships were held from 1989 to 2021. Argentina will host the event for the third time (2011, 2015) and are the first country to do so in the history of the competition. Mexico and Iran have welcomed the tournament twice each.
Brazil is the most decorated team in the competition, with six titles and a silver. However, they have not reached the podium since 2005. Iran also has seven medals (two gold, two silver and three bronze), while Russia has six, but three of them are gold. Italy, Poland and Serbia have also triumphed as youth world champions, twice each.
The most recent winners from 2021, Poland, however, will not be back to defend their title, but the other two medalists, runners-up Bulgaria and third-placed Iran, will compete in San Juan hoping for more honors, starting off as leaders of Pools B and C, respectively. Hosts Argentina, who are reigning South American youth champions from 2022, headline Pool A, while continental runners-up Brazil and current European youth champions Italy will go head to head in Pool D.
The list of past Most Valuable Player awardees in the history of the U19 World Championships starts with the first laureate in 1993 Gilberto Godoy Filho (Giba) of Brazil, Aleksandar Atanasijevic, Uros Kovacevic, Bartosz Kwolek and several others who went on to shine as top international stars in senior men’s volleyball.
August 1, 2023.- United States and Dominican Republic triumphed over Korea and Puerto Rico on the opening day of the 2023 FIVB Volleyball Girls’ U19 World Championship in Croatia and Hungary.
The two national teams were among the 12 sides that triumphed on the first day of competition, which featured six matches in Osijek, Croatia, and another six in Szeged, Hungary.
The tournament continues on Wednesday, with USA vs Japan and Puerto Rico vs Türkiye, Mexico vs Serbia and Dominican Republic vs Germany in Osiejek . Canada will face Italy in Szeged.
BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 1, 2023.- Belize will be hosting the twenty second AFECAVOL Men’s Senior Central American Championship from August 6 to 12 at the Belize City Civic Center.
Reigning champion Guatemala will seek their fourth consecutive title, after winning the past three editions of the tournament (2017, 2018, 2021), for an overall five Central American titles in the history of the event.
In the last edition held in Guatemala City in 2021, Costa Rica finished second, and Nicaragua finished third. After 30 years of not making it to the Central American podium, Nicaragua won the bronze medal, their first-ever medal in the history of the event was also a bronze, during the sixth edition of the Cup held in Honduras in 1991.
Panama is the country with the most titles in the region, with a total of eight, followed by Costa Rica with six.
Teams will arrive in Belize City on Friday, August 4th. The Preliminary inquiries will take place on Saturday, August 5th, and the competition will kick off on Sunday, August 6th, with three daily matches.
PONCE, Puerto Rico, July 31, 2023.- Twelve teams are ready to compete at the twentieth Women’s Volleyball Pan American Cup running from August 6-13 at the Juan “Pachín” Vicéns Auditorium in Ponce, Puerto Rico.
The tournament will grant two berths for NORCECA teams to the XIX Pan American Games of Santiago 2023 to be held from October 20 to November 5. These two will complete the list of four representatives from the NORCECA Confederation in the Pan American Games, Dominican Republic and Mexico are already qualified.
Reigning champion Dominican Republic winner of the past two editions (2021, 2022) with an overall of six titles, along with Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Suriname and United States represent the NORCECA Volleyball Confederation, while Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Peru are the teams representing the South American Volleyball Confederation.
In the history of the event, the United States has won the event on seven occasions, followed by Dominican Republic with six gold medals, Cuba with four and Brazil with three.
Teams are divided in two groups, with Group A consisting of Canada, Colombia, Cuba, Peru, United States and Suriname, and in Group B of Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Mexico and host Puerto Rico.
First place of each group will advance directly into semifinals, second and third places will play in the quarterfinal round.
The preliminary round runs from August 6-10 with six daily matches; quarterfinals, classification round for positions 7-10 and final classification for positions 11-12 will be played on August 11. The semifinals, classification round for positions 5-8 and final classification for positions 9-10 on August 12. The final day of competition on August 13 will start with the final classification for positions 7-10 and 5-6, followed by the bronze and gold medal matches.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 23, 2023.- Dominican setter Ariana Rodríguez was selected as the Most Valuable Player MVP of the sixth edition of the Women’s U23 Pan American Cup that concluded on Sunday at the Sonora Arena in Hermosillo, Mexico.
The MVP award was handed to Ariana Rodriguez after her team won the Championship match to Mexico 3-1 (25-18, 23-25, 25-12, 26-24) and she scored the dramatic match point from the service line when the ball tipped over the net.
Ariana was also the Best Setter of the tournament. Other three awards were granted to the Dominican Republic, with Flormarie Heredia as the 2nd Best Spiker, Geraldine González as the 1st Best Blocker and the 2nd Best Blocker went to Florangel Terrero.
U23 Women’s Pan American Cup Individual Awards
Mexican Sofía Maldonado received the recognitions for 1st Best Spiker and Top Scorer. Her teammate Ximena Cruz was awarded as the Best Service.
Pamela Cuya of Peru was the Best Libero and Best Defense. Also from Peru, María Paula Rodriguez, was distinguished as the Best Opposite.
From Argentina, libero Victoria Caballero was the Best Receiver of the event.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 23, 2023.- Dominican Republic remains the U23 Women’s Pan American Champions winning the gold medal match to Mexico 3-1 (25-18, 23-25, 25-12, 26-24) on Sunday at the Sonora Arena in Hermosillo, Mexico.
This was the second consecutive time that Dominican Republic beat Mexico in the championship match of the event. Dominicans won first place undefeated (5-0), earning their sixth U23 Pan American Cup title and Mexico (4-1) won their second silver medal.
Dominicans led in blocks by a huge 14 to 5 advantage, a comfortable 8 to 4 margin in points from serves and scored on 28 unforced opponent errors while giving up 14. Mexico did better in attacking points 51 to 49.
The dramatic match point came from Ariana Rodriguez, whose service dropped over the net.
Outside hitter Flormarie led Dominican Republic with 18 points (17 kills, one ace), followed by outside hitter Madeline Guillen who produced 16 points (14 kills, two blocks) and opposite hitter Alondra Tapia with 13 points (9 kills, three blocks, one ace).
Mexico’s outside hitter Sofia Maldonado was the top scorer of the match with 21 points (20 kills, one ace) and opposite hitter Katherine Ramírez added 15 points (13 kills, one block, one ace).
Award Ceremony
Flormarie Heredia, top scorer of the Dominican Republic: “We reached our goal, and I feel very happy for the effort of the whole team, each one fought hard. The decisive factor was the support among us and following the instructions of our coaches”.
Wagner Pacheco, coach of the Dominican Republic: “That last point from the serve was surprising. The team felt a lot of pressure from the crowd, and we struggled a lot. But we remain champions”.
Luis Alberto, coach of Mexico: “I’m happy because most of the players on the team are from the under-21 category , and we continue preparing for the world championship in August. I am satisfied with the team’s performance against a very good opponent that has been working together for a longer time. In the last set, some bad decisions cost us two or three actions. It was a surprise to see the last two plays from the Dominican Republic, with the libero’s defense and the final point from the serve that dropped over the net”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 23, 2023.- Argentina defeated Peru 3-1 (24-26, 25-19, 25-21, 25-21) to win the Bronze Medal at the sixth edition of U23 Women’s Pan American Cup on Sunday at the Sonora Arena in Hermosillo, Mexico.
Argentina ends the event in third place with 4-2 record and Peru in fourth with 3-3.
This Argentina’s second bronze medal in the history of the event, they finished third in 2012 and in 2016 they won the silver medal.
Argentina recovered from losing the first set to win the second coming from a four-point deficit (15-19) to win the set 25-19 scoring 10 consecutive points. Peru trailed in the third 16-24 but came off short with Argentina finishing 25-21. Argentina won the fourth and final set 25-21.
Argentina led 53-48 in attacking points. They held a slight 10-9 margin in blocks and finished with a comfortable 11-6 advantage in points from serves. Argentina committed 24 unforced errors and Peru 25.
Monster block from Argentina to Peru
Middle blocker Avril Garcia of Argentina led all scorers with 24 points, on 17 attacks, five blocks and three aces. The other Argentinean player who scored double digits was outside hitter Milena Margaria who contibuted with 13 points.
Three players from Peru finished with double digits, led by opposite Maria Paula Rodriguez (17 points), team captain Alondra Alarcon (15 points) and outside hitter Aixa Vigil (12 points).
Martin Ambrosini, coach of Argentina: “We lost the first set playing better than Peru, but we were a bit shaky in crucial moments, and it cost us. We were trailing in the second set, and some of the girls felt the fatigue from the previous matches, so we rotated the team, and the players who came in did well. That gave us some breathing, and we were able to play our game, which we could sustain in the following sets”.
Julieta Aruga, captain of Argentina: “I’m happy with the bronze medal. We started well in the first set, but at one point, we stopped fighting, and they took advantage. We were able to turn the match around by playing well from the second set forward. The serving helped us a lot”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 23, 2023.- Canada beat Cuba 3-0 (25-18, 25-9, 25-20) for fifth place at the Women’s U23 Pan American Cup on Saturday at the Sonora Arena in Hermosillo, Mexico.
Canada ended the event with a 3-3 record for fifth place and Cuba with 1-4 record in sixth. Canada also beat Cuba in the preliminary round in four sets.
Canada outperformed Cuba in every skill of the game, in attacks (33-22), in blocks (11-3) and points from serves (9-0). Both teams gave away 22 points from unforced errors.
Canada’s leading scorers were middle blockers Kaylee Plouffe and Jessica Andrews with 13 and 10 points respectively. Plouffe on 11 kills and two blocks and Andrews on 6 blocks and 4 aces. Opposite Lucy Borowski added 10 points on 6 kills, one block and three aces.
Opposite hitter Claudia Tarin led Cuba with 7 points, and outside hitter Thainalien Castillo with 6 points.
Andrews (CAN) blocks Cuba
Isabella Noble, setter of Canada: “Our team came out really excited today and I think we performed really well. We came together as a team, and it felt so good to end the tournament on a high. Our serves were really aggressive, we kept Cuba low at the beginning of sets and that helped us later on”.
Carolyn O’Dwyer, coach of Canada: “I am really proud how we came out and we were in an aggressive mode to start, that’s how we wanted to serve this match. I think it’s really easy in these matches to not fight and battle, but I am proud my group did, making sure that every match matters”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 23, 2023.- Honduras finished seventh place at the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup with a five-set win 3-2 (13-25, 25-18, 25-23, 19-25, 15-13) over Costa Rica at the Sonora Arena in Hermosillo, Mexico.
Honduras (1-4) previously lost to Costa Rica (1-5) in the preliminary round.
Honduras led in blocks 11 to 8 and scored 35 points on opponent errors, giving up 28. Costa Rica held advantage in points from attacks 56-45 and in points from serves 12-6.
Opposite Rocio Duron of Honduras. led all scorers with 27 points, producing 24 points on kills, two blocks and the final match point on an ace. Team captain, middle blocker Natalia Reyes and outside hitter Andrea Aceituno collected 13 points each; Reyes on 5 attacks, a match-high of 6 points on blocks and two aces, while Aceituno on 10 kills, two blocks and one ace.
Honduras celebrates victory over Costa Rica
Costa Rican team captain, middle blocker Lakysha Thompson led her team with 17 points (12 kills, four blocks, one ace), followed by outside hitter Nicole Mata with 15 points (11 kills, two blocks, two aces) and middle blocker Melina Abarca with 12 points (9 kills, one block, two aces).
Marvin Ulloa, coach of Honduras: “This is the representation of Central American volleyball up to last year. I think we weren’t at our level of play, we had better performances with other teams. It’s a mentality issue and we are going to work on it. Our goals must be higher now that we have a Japanese coach”.
Andrés Carvajal, coach of Costa Rica: “I am disappointed. The team had no attitude, they didn’t fight. It’s clear that we must restructure the team, there are under-21 and under-19 players who can be part of this team to compete at this year’s under-23 Central American championship. It wasn’t only this match; the players didn’t assume their role during the entire tournament. We must take radical decisions when things aren’t going well; in Costa Rica we are used to winning at a Central American level”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 22, 2023.- Mexico beat Peru in Saturday’s semifinals 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-21) to reach their second championship match at the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup being played at the Sonora Arena in Hermosillo, Mexico, in addition to winning a ticket to the next Junior Pan American Games.
Mexico will battle in Sunday’s title match against five-time reigning champions Dominican Republic, who earlier prevailed in four sets over Argentina. This is the second occasion Mexicans face Dominicans to battle for gold, they met in the previous edition.
Mexico also won a berth to the 2025 Junior Pan American Games. Peru will face Argentina in the bronze medal match.
Despite the close scores, Mexico held the advantage in all three sets that had battled rallies. The crowd at the Sonora Arena cheered for their team enjoying their dominant force in every skill.
Mexico edged Peru with 43-37 advantage in attacks, 6-3 in blocks and 5-2 in aces. The host scored 20 points on Peruvian errors and while giving up 17.
Mexico celebrating
Outside hitter Sofía Maldonado led all scorers with 19 points on 15 kills, three blocks and on ace point. Middle blocker Arleth Marquez followed with 11 points and outside hitter Alexandra Goris chipped in with 7 points.
Aixa Vigil was the only player of Peru to score double digits, with 10 points on 9 kills and one ace. Opposite Maria Paula Rodriguez and team captain Alondra Alarcon produced 9 and 7 points respectively.
Luis Albero León, coach of Mexico: “It benefited us that we had a rest day yesterday, which we used for training, therapy, and rehabilitation. Today, the girls followed all the tactical instructions, which was reflected in the 3-0 score. Tomorrow will be a good match against the Dominican Republic, the girls are motivated, it’s a rival we know well, and we will go in to earn the medal”.
Francisco Hervas, coach of Peru: “Today, we didn’t play well. We were less responsive, and we had a more serious atmosphere on the court in our previous matches. Losing a semifinal is disappointing, but we’ll keep on working because that’s why we came here. Tomorrow, we’ll face Argentina for the bronze medal, a familiar rival”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 22, 2023.- Five-time champion Dominican Republic beat Argentina 3-1 (20-25, 25-18, 25-13, 25-19) in semifinals to move into their sixth U23 Women’s Pan American Cup championship match in a row and qualified to the Junior Pan American Games.
Dominicans have dominated the event since its inception and are seeking their sixth title. Dominican Republic earned a berth to the 2025 Junior Pan American Games as one of the top two ranked NORCECA teams of the event.
On Sunday´s gold medal match, Dominicans will face the winner of the semifinal between host Mexico and Peru, while the loser will play for the bronze medal against Argentina.
Argentina controlled the actions of the first set, jumping to a comfortable 13-8 lead, scoring on several opponent errors, and dominating in blocks. The second set was balanced but Dominicans carried with the win and then they moved into the third set to an 8-0 point lead, their best set of the match. The fourth set was balanced up to an even 18, when Dominicans used their strength in attacks and block-defense for the victory.
The defending champions led Argentina in attacks 51 to 46, in blocks 14 to 11. Both teams scored three points on serves. Dominicans scored 28 points on Argentina’s errors while handing out 14 points from their own errors.
Dominican Republic celebrate after winning semifinal match to Argentina
Outside hitter Madeline Guillen led all scorers with 23 points on 21 kills and four blocks. Her teammate Flormarie added 21 points on 16 kills, four blocks and one ace. Middle blocker Florangel also contributed to the semifinal win with 10 points.
Outside hitter Milena Margaria and middle blocker Avril Garcia led Argentina with 14 points each. Garcia scored a match-high of seven blocks. Outside hitter Nicole Perez collected 10 points.
Wagner Pacheco, coach of the Dominican Republic: “We are two good teams, playing tactically. In the first set, Argentina scored points on our errors, but we balanced the game with the change of setter and opposite, and that’s when the game started to flow. In the second and third sets, we had few errors. The girls are happy”.
Matías Ambrosini, coach of Argentina: “We had to play a neat, well-organized match because we knew about the potential of the Dominican Republic. The girls entered the game convinced and executing our game plan as we had designed it. I think we played a great match until halfway through the second set, and then they changed the setter and the team´s structure, which worked for them, and we struggled to respond. We gave everything we had, giving it our all, but it slipped away from us”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 22, 2023.- Cuba beat Costa Rica in straight sets 3-0 (25-18, 25-21, 25-20) to play for fifth place against Canada in the Women’s U23 Pan American Cup in Hermosillo, Mexico.
Sunday’s fifth place between Cuba and Canada will be a rematch of the preliminary round of the tournament where Canada topped Cuba in four sets. Costa Rica and Honduras will play for seventh place, who also met in the preliminary round won by the Costa Rican squad.
Cuba struggled to close all three sets. Cuba lost three set points before moving on top. In the second set, Costa Rica recovered from a seven-point deficit (12-23) edging Cuba up to a close 25-20 set finish for Cuba. Once again Costa Rica pressed hard in the final and third set but came off short.
Cuba’s serves were definitely a key element to beat Costa Rica, leading by a huge 11 to 3 advantage. The Caribbean team also led in attacks 38-34 and in blocks 9-5. Both teams scored on 17 opponent errors.
Grafort serves for Cuba against Costa Rica
Middle blocker Edisleidys Reyes led Cuba with 13 points on 11 attacks and two blocks. Opposite hitter Alejandra Gomez contributed with 12 points on 6 kills, two blocks and five impressive points on service aces.
Costa Rican team captain Lkysha Thompson was the leading scorer of her team with 12 points, scoring on 10 attacks and two blocks.
Wilfredo Robinson, coach of Cuba: “I made changes in the lineup to continue defining possible scenarios for the U21 World Championship and the aspiration to obtain fifth place tomorrow, which we would be satisfied with our performance here in the competition. We hope to show another level tomorrow; the team has the conditions to win it”.
Andrés Carvajal, coach of Costa Rica: “The team had a good attitude, showing a different face compared to previous matches. Some of the players come with a load of international games in the senior category and from our national league, so we were in a comfort zone without responding to the level of the competition and taking the responsibility to represent our country. Today, we enjoyed it, and we hope it gets even better, showing an evolution of the team for tomorrow against Honduras”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 22.- Canada defeated Honduras 3-0 (25-13, 25-13, 25-12) and will battle for the fifth place of the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup in Hermosillo, Mexico.
Canada will face the winner between Cuba and Costa Rica on Sunday and the losers go up against Honduras will go for seventh.
Canada outperformed Honduras in every skill, 46 to 15 in points from attacks, 5-3 in blocks and 7 to none in serves. Honduras committed fewer errors than Canada 17-20.
Canada blocks Honduras
Outside hitters Jane Austin and Raya Surinx led Canada’s offense with 15 and 13 points respectively; Austin with 11 kills, two blocks and two aces, and Surinx all on kills. Middle blocker Kaylee Plouffe added 10 points on 9 kills and one ace.
Rocío Duron was once again Honduras top scorer with 6 points.
Carolyn O’Dwyer coach of Canada: “Yesterday was a disappointing match for us, we didn’t get the result we wanted but it pressed us to come back today to show energy and life, which is a great opportunity for this young group. We try to teach our team that every game matters and tomorrow hopefully we’ll show up to be the team we want to be”.
Marvin Ulloa, coach of Honduras: “When the team feels they can win they get anxious. Today we played with an open mind, trying to do our best. Canada was more aggressive from the second set forward because the first set was closer in the beginning, they are physically superior than us and this is a great experience for improvement for my players”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 21, 2023.- Peru swept Costa Rica 3-0 (25-10, 25-14, 25-9) in quarterfinals on Friday to reach the semifinals of the Women’s U23 Pan American Cup in Hermosillo, Mexico.
Peru is set to meet host Mexico in Saturday’s semifinals and Costa Rica will play against Cuba in a classification match for positions 5 to 8.
Peru was dominant the entire match while pressing Costa Rica’s offense and defense. The South Americans led with a huge 41 to 18 points from attacks, 7 to one in blocks and 6-0 in aces. Peru committed 14 unforced errors and Costa Rica 21.
Peruvian outside hitter Kiara Vicente topped all scorers with 17 points on 13 kills, one block and three points from serves. Also joining the winning campaign were middle blocker Jade Rodriguez with 12 points and outside hitter Daniela Muñoz adding 10 attacking points.
Peru celebrating
Pamela Cuya, libero of Peru: “Every match is important, and this was an opportunity for everyone to show their abilities, practicing things that can come useful for future matches. Every team is different, and you need different strategies to win each match”.
Francisco Hervas, head coach of Peru: “We continue developing players and opportunities to have their own space, no match is the same. Tomorrow will be a different story against Mexico, it will be a complicated match, a tough team that plays at home, but that is what we want, play difficult matches”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 21, 2023.- Argentina beat Canada 3-0 (25-19, 25-18, 25-18) to reach the semifinals at the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup being held at Sonora Arena in Hermosillo, Mexico.
Argentina will most likely face reigning champions Dominican Republic in semifinals, Peru and Costa Rica are yet to play in the other quarterfinal; while Canada will play classification matches for positions 5 to 8 starting with Honduras.
Argentina was dominant in the first set jumping to a 12-5 lead, Canada battled hard scoring six points in a row, but Argentina kept the lead. In the second set Argentina recovered from a three-point deficit (9-12) to an even 13 to finish with a comfortable lead. Argentina led from an even 14 point forward in the third and final set.
Argentina held a 38 to 28 advantage in kills, producing 9 points from blocks against 4 and a slight 4-3 margin in points from serves. Argentina committed 20 unforced errors and Canada 24.
Argentina blocks against Canada
Two players of Argentina scored double figures, outside hitter Milena Margaria with 11 attacking points and middle blocker Avril García adding 10 points, including a match-high of 5 blocks.
Lucy Burowski and Raya Surinx scored 9 and 8 points respectively for Canada.
Milena Margari, top scorer of Argentina: “What’s important is we came out of rough spots as a team, with a cold head and moved forward without thinking about the result or the opponent. Tomorrow’s semifinal will be tough, and it will be great to get experience, more time to play and we will enjoy it. Hopefully we can win a medal in the tournament”.
Lucy Burowski, captain of Canada: “We start off a bit slow in every set and we start getting momentum but lose a set and then just can’t get it back. I think we can get more aggressive in our attack”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 20, 2023.- Defending Champions Dominican Republic beat Cuba 3-0 (25-20, 25-16, 25-23) to advance into the semifinals of the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup being played at the Sonora Arena of Hermosillo, Mexico.
Dominican Republic won Pool A undefeated 3-0, earning a berth in Saturday’s semifinals. Peru earlier beat Canada, both advance into quarterfinals as second and third place respectively. Cuba will play in classification matches for positions 5 to 8.
Cuba battled stronger forcing Dominicans to lose three-match points before their definitive 25-23 win.
Dominicans dominated thanks to their 11 to 3 advantage. The other skills were balanced, with Dominican Republic leading 37 to 35 in kills, a slim 2-1 in serves and scoring on 25 Cuban unforced errors against 20.
Arianna Rodriguez (DOM) attacks against Cuba
Dominican Republic’s offense was led by middle blocker Geraldine Gonzalez who scored 13 points on 8 kills and a match-high of 5 impressive blocks. Madeline Guillen added 11 points on 7 kills, two blocks and two aces, while Flormarie Heredia collected 10 points from attacks.
Middle blocker Lisania Grafort and opposite hitter Claudia Tarin led Cuba with 9 points each. Outside hitter Thainalien Castillo contributed with 7 points.
Ariana Rodríguez, setter of Dominican Republic: “I am playing a new position, it’s a challenge and a responsibility; sometimes things don’t come out like I want them, and I get frustrated. The team was stable, but we can improve. With each match I’m improving”.
Wagner Pacheco, coach of Dominican Republic: “Cuba served well, and we committed errors that we shouldn’t have failed. The players responded well. Now we have a day off to rest and wait for our opponents in semifinals”.
Edisleidys Reyes, middle blocker of Cuba: “Today we improved in strength and attitude, with more energy to look for the win. The last set was well contested, we had more confidence, we could have done it better from the beginning”.
Wilfredo Robinson, coach of Cuba: “We showed our strength and quality of play. I gave everyone a chance because we are here to develop them for the world championship”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 20, 2023.- Costa Rica beat Honduras 3-1 (23-25, 25-16, 25-14, 25-19) to move into the quarterfinals of the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup in Hermosillo, Mexico.
Costa Rica recovered from losing the first set to finish in third place of Pool B with 1-2 win-loss record, advancing into Friday’s quarterfinal round. Honduras will play in classification matches for positions 5 to 8.
In the first set, Honduras suffered the loss of Genesis Oyuela due to an ankle injury, one of their key players, but managed a close win. Costa Rica came back stronger earning their first tournament win.
Costa Rica controlled every element of the game, leading 57-40 in kills, 9-4 in blocks and 9-2 in points from serves. Honduras handed out fewer points from unforced errors 23-28.
Costa Rica celebrates
Middle blocker and team captain Lakysha Thomspon of Costa Rica led all scorers with 21 points from 18 attacks, two blocks and one ace. Also contributing to Costa Rica’s victory were outside hitter Sofía Arroyo with 17 points on 13 kills, one block and three aces, joined by outside hitter Nicole Mata with 15 points on 12 kills and 3 aces.
Honduras top scorers were opposite Rocío Duron with 15 points on 13 kills and two blocks, outside hitter Andrea Aceituno with 14 points and middle blocker Shantte Clarke with 11 points.
Andrés Carvajal, coach of Costa Rica: “We must study with our players why we lost the first set. I think we were in a comfort zone; we didn’t respect our opponent as they deserved. We let Honduras set the rhythm of play and not the other way around. We adjusted, we made changes and improved as the match developed”.
Andrea Zúñiga, libero of Honduras: “We won the first set well. Genesis is a key piece of our team, and we needed her the rest of the match. We must improve in confidence while attacking, in passing and reading the game”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 20, 2023.- Peru defeated Canada 3-1 (25-14, 25-19, 20-25, 25-17) to finish Pool A with 2-1 record at the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup in Hermosillo, México.
Peru advanced into the quarterfinal round and Canada with 1-2 record will wait for the result of the match between Dominican Republic (2-0) and Cuba (0-2) for their final position in Pool A.
Peru was superior in 44 to 28 in points from attacks and 8-4 in aces. Canada held the advantage in blocks 8-6. Both committed a similar number of unforced errors, Peru 35 and Canada 37.
Pefuvian Libero Cuya digging for the ball
Peruvian outside hitter Aixa Vigil led all attackers with 22 points from 20 attacks, one block and one ace. Opposite hitter Maria Paula Rodriguez followed with 13 points, including a match-high of 5 points from serves. Outside hitter and team captain Alondra Alarcon added 10 points.
Outside hitter Raya Surinix led Canada with 12 points on 11 kills and one ace.
Aixa Vigil, top scorer of Peru: “We were able to execute what we’ve been working for the past six months. We were overconfident in the third set. Today we limited our errors compared to yesterday’s match. We have an interesting group that will fight in the next round to win a medal”.
Francisco Hervas, coach of Peru: “I think that leading by two sets we relaxed a bit. It’s good because we learn that we must keep the game rhythm, our philosophy here is to learn. The girls got back their velocity and level of play”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 19, 2023.- Mexico prevailed over Costa Rica in straight sets 3-0 (25-11, 25-15, 25-21) to remain undefeated at the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup being played at the Sonora Arena in Hermosillo, Mexico.
Mexico with 2-0 record will face Argentina (2-0) on Thursday to decide first place in Pool B and a ticket into semifinals, while Costa Rica (0-2) will battle Honduras (0-2) for a spot in quarterfinals.
Mexico controlled the first two sets, but in the third set, Costa Rica with a better rhythm of play reached an even 15. The hosts recovered after numerous errors and sealed the win in three sets.
Both teams used all their players where Mexico was dominant in kills (46-26) and in points from serves (8-2). The Central Americans were better in blocks (5-2). Mexico scored 22 points from Costa Rican errors, against 14.
Arleth Marquez (MEX) spikes against Costa Rica
The only player who scored double digits was Mexican outside hitter Alexandra Goris, with 10 points (7 kills, 3 aces). Her teammates outside hitter Sofía Maldonado and opposite Katherine Ramírez added 9 and 6 points respectively.
Outside hitter Krystel Vargas was the leading scorer for Costa Rica with 9 points. María Torres added 6 points.
Argentina Ung, captain of Mexico: “We were overconfident in the third set, we got out of our system, and we allowed them to play their game, improving their level of play. We are happy with the win but not satisfied. For tomorrow we must improve in communicating better at critical moments, not let Argentina to set their rhythm of play”.
María José Castro, libero of Costa Rica: “In the third set we were determined to let go. I think we put a lot of pressure, which was reflected in the score. Tomorrow, we want to improve and beat Honduras for a ticket in the quarterfinals”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 19, 2023.- Dominican Republic beat Peru 3-1 (25-23, 25-20, 22-25, 25-19) to remain undefeated at the Women’s U23 Pan American Cup on Wednesday at the Sonora Arena in Hermosillo, Mexico.
Dominican Republic (2-0) in Pool A will face Cuba (0-2) to finish the preliminary round, while Peru (1-1) goes up against Canada (1-1). The top ranked of each pool advance directly into semifinals.
Dominicans blocked Peru the entire match with a huge 13 to two advantage. Both teams scored on 58 points from attacks, and both handed out 22 points from errors. Peru held a slight 5-4 advantage in points from serves.
Heredia (DOM) digs for the ball
Dominican outside hitter Flormarie Heredia led all scorers with 21 points, from 18 attacking points, two blocks and one ace. Outside hitter Madeline Guillen also chipped in producing 15 points and middle blocker Geraldine Gonzalez added 14 points while scoring a match-high of 7 monster blocks.
Peru’s team captain Alondra Alarcon and outside hitter Aixa Vigil led with 14 points each. Opposite Shanaiya Ayme collected 10 points.
Flormarie Heredia, top scorer of Dominican Republic: “We lacked concentration in the set we lost, we couldn’t adjust our game and positions, they took advantage, we lost our rhythm of play. Peru serves well but our good passing helped us”.
Yadhira Anchante, setter of Peru: “In the first and second sets we committed innocent errors which cost us the match because we were close. In the third set we limited our errors and it worked, but in the fourth we failed again. Tomorrow, we finish pool-play against Canada, another strong opponent and we will come out with our all”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 19, 2023.- Argentina defeated Honduras 3-0 (25-16, 25-13, 25-11) to keep their winning streak at the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup being held at the Sonora Arena in Hermosillo, Mexico.
Argentina has a 2-0 win-loss record in Pool B and will finish the preliminary round against the host Mexico on Thursday, while Honduras is 0-2 and will play their Central American rival Costa Rica.
Argentina held a huge advantage in kills (49-13) and serves (13-2), and a 5-3 margin in blocks. Honduras only committed 8 unforced errors and Argentina 22.
Argentina’s Libero LLanos
Three players scored double figures for Argentina, Nicole Perez (11), Magali Marquez (11) and Milena Margaria (10).
Rocio Duron and Genesis Oyuela scored 4 points for Honduras.
Emilia Balague, setter of Argentina: “We are focused in our game, in executing what we’ve been training. This tournament is a preparation for the U21 World Championship. Tomorrow we close against the host and it will be exciting with the support of the crowd, we must play hard”.
Rocío Duron, opuesta de Honduras: “Siento que nos falta mayor comunicación entre nosotras. Dadas las condiciones lo hicimos bien, tuvimos buena actitud y motivación para dar más”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 18, 2023.- Mexico took down Honduras 3-0 (25-11, 25-13, 25-14) on opening day of the sixth edition of the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup at the Sonora Arena in Hermosillo, Mexico.
Mexico started the first set jumping to an early 8-0 advantage. The host moved into the next two sets with overwhelming superiority against Honduras in their Pool B opening match.
Mexico held a huge 47 to 19 advantage in points from attacks as well as a 16-2 margin in points from serves. Honduras scored 2 points from blocks against one from Mexico. Both teams committed similar unforced errors, Honduras a total of 11 and Mexico 14.
Sofía Maldonado (MEX) spikes
Outside hitters Carla Esquer and Sofía Maldonado led Mexico with 13 and 10 points respectively. Middle blocker Arleth Marquez scored a match-high of 6 aces.
Opposite hitter Rocío Duron topped Honduras with 10 points.
Mexico (1-0) will meet Costa Rica (0-1) on Wednesday and Honduras (0-1) against Argentina (1-0).
Luis Alberto León, coach of Mexico: “The pool we’re in is made to come from less to more, the level of play will be more demanding, and we will get into rhythm for the last matches. It’s always good to start with a win, and even more when it’s 3-0”.
Marvin Ulloa, coach of Honduras: “There were good frames during the game. This is a spectacle and in the second set we were one on one, it was nice. Unfortunately, we failed a lot, it’s fine when the opponent plays better than us but not thanks to our errors, it’s something we must improve on”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 20, 2023.- Mexico won Pool B and the ticket to semifinals winning a five-set thriller to Argentina 3-2 (25-17, 23-25, 27-25, 11-25, 15-12) at the sixth edition of the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup in Hermosillo.
México was confident in the first set and Argentina responded winning the second. Argentina reached set point in the third, but Sofia Maldonado’s attacks, who went on to be the leading scorer of the match (28pts) pushed Mexico on top again. Argentina overwhelmed Mexico in the fourth leading 18-6 and closing with a huge 14 point advantage (25-11) . México took the tie-break with María Ximena Cruz serves were decisive.
Argentina led in kills 59-51, in blocks 9-6 and in points from serves 8-6, but their 36 errors against 26 from Mexico made the difference.
Mexico celebrates against Argentina
The leading scorer of the match, Sofía Maldonado scored 28 points from 25 powerful kills, two blocks and two aces. María Ximena Cruz added 14 points on 8 kills, three blocks and three aces.
Constanza Pérez led Argentina with 25 points on 18 kills, the most blocks with 5 and two aces. She was joined by Dalma Pérez with 16 and Milena Margaria with 16.
Luis Alberto León, coach of Mexico: “We had a bad fourth set, we made changes and they didn’t go well. Argentina defended everything. In the fifth set the key element of sealing the win was our serves and a play we hadn’t executed was the surprise element as well”.
Martín Ambrosini, coach of Argentina: “In general the match was balanced; we had troubles in the first set because the girls were too anxious, and Mexico plays well. We started the fourth set very well, and they had difficulties”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 18, 2023.- Defending champion Dominican Republic beat Canada 3-0 (26-24, 25-18, 25-15) in their debut at the sixth edition of the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup debut on Tuesday at Sonora Arena in Hermosillo, Mexico.
The party of points in the first set was tied on numerous occasions, reaching an even 23 while Canada snatched a set point before the Dominicans started on top 26-24. Dominican Republic came back stronger to finish with comfortable advantages in the last two sets.
All the elements of the game were balanced, with Dominican Republic leading 37 to 31 in attacks, 8 to 6 in blocks and 7 to 4 in points from serves. Dominicans scored 24 points on errors from Canada and committed 16.
Three Dominican players scored double digits, led by outside hitter Madeline Guillen with 14 points (9 kills, 2 blocks, 3 aces), outside hitter Flormarie Heredia with 12 points (10 kills, one block, one ace) and opposite hitter Alondra Tapia with 10 points (9 kills, one block).
Canada’s outside hitters Raya Surinx and Jasmine Rivest topped with 11 and 10 points respectively. Team captain, opposite Lucy Borrowski added 7 points.
On Wednesday, Dominican Republic (1-0) will face Peru (1-0), while Canada (0-1) goes up against Cuba (0-1).
Gonzalez (DOM) overtakes Canada’s block
Camila De la Rosa, captain of Dominican Republic: “We didn’t know Canada’s players and how they played. We did a great job in analyzing what they were doing, that’s how we managed to win the game. I think our block was very important for our victory”.
Lucy Borrowski, captain of Canada: ““We came out strong. Dominican Republic is a tough team, and we lost a bit of our fight, we were playing it smart, and I think we can come out stronger tomorrow”.
Wagner Pacheco, coach of Dominican Republic: “The first set was battled because I didn’t know Canada’s team, we came out blind. After the first set we played really well, the serves were strong and out counterattack. We leaned fast how to face Canada and that made things easier. We failed in some things, which is normal in a debut”.
Carolyn O’Dwyer, coach of Canada: “We came out strong but struggled a bit on our side with first contact and making a few too many errors. With a new team we will get better and better. There’s definitely room for improvement”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 18, 2023.- Argentina started the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup with a straight set win 3-0 (25-12, 25-10, 25-14) over Costa Rica at the Sonora Arena in Hermosillo.
Argentina managed to control the entire game from start to finish in their opening victory in Pool B.
Argentina’s advantages in attacks, 39 to 10 and in points from serves, 17 to one, were to thank for their strong debut. They also held a slim 1-0 in blocks. Costa Rica committed fewer errors (18-25).
Outside hitter Nicole Perez of Argentina was the leading scorer of the match with 10 points, from 8 kills and two points from serves. Her teammates opposite Constanza Perez and middle blocker Josefina Ossvald registered nine points each. Ossvald scored a match-high of 4 aces.
Outside hitter Nicole Mata topped Costa Rica with 4 points.
On Wednesday, Argentina goes against the other Central American team of the event, Honduras. Costa Rica will face hosts Mexico.
Margaria (ARG) spikes facking Costa Rica’s blockers
Julieta Aruga, captain of Argentina: “To start a tournament winning is positive, we executed what we’ve been planning during our training and with the coaching staff we’ve been changing our system, it worked. We did well in all the elements of the game, we pressed with our serves, and it made a difference”.
Lahisha Thompson, captain of Costa Rica: “This tournament is to prepare for the U23 Central American championship in November. We can improve our togetherness as a team. The experienced players stood out with their attacks”.
Martín Ambrosini, coach of Argentina: “We played well, we were able to make changes. There were too many nerves because this was the first match for some players with the national team. We were able to serve well, the attack worked well too. When you have an advantage, you must keep your concentration. The team must play point by point, sometimes in favor and sometimes down”.
Andrés Carvajal, coach of Costa Rica: “The opponent is very capable, they had a higher level. The tournament has just begun. We must continue to battle, and we know what we are here for, and the players understand it”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 18, 2023.- Peru opened the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup defeating Cuba 3-1 (23-25, 25-22, 25-19, 25-20) at the Sonora Arena in Hermosillo Mexico.
Peru led the first set with a five-point advantage, while Cuba earned their way to move on top on opposite Claudia Tarin serves. Peru battled to recover and earn their first win in Pool A.
The South Americans held a 50 to 46 advantage in points from attacks and a comfortable 11-7 margin in blocks. Cuba did better in points from serves 7 to 3. Peru scored 34 points from Cuban errors and handed out 26.
With impressive 27 points, opposite Maria Paula Rodriguez of Peru led all scorers on 23 kills and four blocks. Outside hitter Daniela Muñoz and team captain Alondra Alarcon contributed in the win with 11 and 10 points respectively.
On Cuba’s side, outside hitter and team captain Hhitney James led with 15 points (13 kills and two aces), joined by outside hitter Yalain De La Peña with 14 points (13 kills and one block) and opposite Claudia Tarin who finished with 12 points (10 kills and two aces).
On day two of the event, Peru faces defending champion Dominican Republic and Cuba plays against Canada.
PERU’S OP RODRIGUEZ SPIKES FACING CUBA’S BLOCKERS
Alondra Alarcon, captain of Peru: “We had difficulties in the first set because we were too anxious to start the competition. We were able to move forward in the next three sets. There are errors we need to work on and improve our game, but in practice we will get it right. We were able to get the win as a team, united and helping each other”.
Francisco Hervas, coach of Peru: “Our goal is to learn. The first match is always hard, it’s hard to get into rhythm. We kept the lead in every set and the first set got away. That is what we need to improve”.
Hhitney James, captain of Cuba: “We were aware that Peru isn’t an easy opponent, they are a disciplined team on the court, something we lack a bit of. We lost the match for bad decisions; in easy points we couldn’t get the point. The beginning isn’t easy, and we will battle harder the next matches”.
Wilfredo Robinson, coach of Cuba: “We recovered the set by scoring, but Peru did the same in the next ones. We recognize that Peru has an excellent defense and with our strong attacks we couldn’t break it. We failed in serves; we made their complex one easy by serving to the libero. And we had bad decisions in defense”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 19, 2023.- Canada earned their first win beating Cuba 3-1 (25-18, 24-26, 25-19, 26-24) in Pool A at the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup being held at Hermosillo, Mexico.
It was a rollercoaster performance for both teams. Despite leading, Canada struggled to close the first set. In the second set Canada reached set point but Cuba evened the actions on a block and kill. Canada’s best set was the third, while in the fourth they battled hard coming from behind recovering two Cuban sets points before sealing with a block by Raya Surinx.
Canada led in every skill, in kills 49 to 41, in blocks with a comfortable 13-8 margin and in serves 9-6. Cuba committed fewer unforced errors, 29 to 32.
Middle blocker Jessica Andrews and outside hitter Raya Surinx led Canada’s attackers with 17 points each, with Andrews leading with 4 points from blocks and as well in serves with 4 from aces.
Canada’s setter Noble
Outside hitter Yalain De La Peña and opposite hitter Claudia Tarin scored double digits for Cuba; De La Peña contributed with 11 points and Tarin with 10.
Canada (1-1) will face Peru on Thursday to resume the preliminary round and Cuba (0-2) goes against defending champions Dominican Republic.
Isabella Noble, setter of Canada: “We had a competitive mind-set and it set us up for success really well. We came together as a team well and it feels really good. We hope to bring the same energy for our next match, we’re ready for it”.
Carolyn O’Dwyer, coach of Canada: “It feels good to get the result. We made a lot of improvement from yesterday and we’re getting better every day. At times we were still a little shaky on our side, but we were able to pull off the win and that shows a lot of fight from us”.
Wilfredo Robinson, coach of Cuba: “We recover balls, but we can’t’ keep the advantage. In the offense we were weak. We keep failing and handing out opportunities to our rival”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 17, 2023.- The head coaches of the eight participating teams speak ahead of the U23 Women’s Volleyball Pan American Cup that starts on Tuesday July 18 at the Sonora Arena in Hermosillo.
NORCECA teams are aiming for two berths to the 2025 Junior Pan American Games.
Matches will be streamed on Telemax Sonora on Facebook live and YouTube.
Martin Ambrosini, Head Coach of Argentina: “The team is good. We are bringing a young team, it’s a U-21 team that is preparing for the world championship in a month, so this comes great for our preparation. The Pan American Cup gives a chance to play against teams that we normally don’t and with a great level of play, and that’s just what Argentina’s volleyball needs. We think it will be a good tournament”.
Carolyn O’Dwyer, Head Coach of Canada: “We’ve been fortunate to be able to train a group of us for the last few weeks, so we had a longer training block than normal. For several athletes this is their first international competition, which is very exciting. I think we have a really strong group to do our best, we are well prepared for sure”.
Andres Carvajal, Head Coach of Costa Rica: “We are excited after becoming Central American champions for the fifth time in this age-group. We are using this competition to prepare for the Central American championship in November in El Salvador. Our intentions are to compete at our highest level according to this highly leveled competition”.
Wilfredo Robinson, Head Coach of Cuba: “The has the aspirations to win a berth to the Junior Pan American Games. We have worked hard; we have some players who are bringing experience after competing in other events”.
Wagner Pacheco, Head Coach of Dominican Republic: “This team is a mix of our youth and junior categories, this is because of several international competitions and visa arrangements to be here. The combination is good, we will do a good job and we will battle for a medal”.
Marvin Ulloa, Head Coach of Honduras: “We weren’t sure to come, so the preparation was short. Three players who are abroad were able to make the team and we’re bringing four new ones who trained with the U-19 team that is competing at the Central American event in Belize, because we are working on renewing our senior team. This competition will help our preparation for the U-23 Central American championship in November”.
Head Coach of Mexico: “Exciting to start another competition here in Mexico. The team we’re bringing is the U21 that’s preparing for the upcoming world championship in Leon. Our expectations are high, we hope to be in the finals and win a berth to the 2025 Junior Pan American Games in Asuncion”.
Head Coach of Peru: “We expect a lot of learning. We come to these championships with a clear idea to work for the future and improve our players’ performance who begin their international journey”.
HERMOSILLO, Mexico, July 15, 2023.- Reigning champions Dominican Republic will be seeking for their sixth consecutive title at the U23 Women’s Volleyball Pan American Cup to be held from July 18 to 23 at the Sonora Arena in Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico.
Five-time defending champions Dominican Republic have won the event in as many editions since its inception in 2012. Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru have one silver medal each, while Cuba has finished third in the past three editions. Argentina also has one bronze medal.
The 2023 U23 Women’s Pan American Cup marks the beginning of the qualification process towards the 2025 Pan American Junior Games.
Two (2) vacancies will be granted here in Hermosillo, in the final ranking of the event among NORCECA teams for the 2025 Pan American Junior Games. The South American Volleyball Confederation, CSV, will establish its own qualification system.
The eight participating teams have been divided in two pools, with Pool A consisting of Canada, Cuba, Dominican Republic and Peru; while host Mexico is joined by Argentina, Costa Rica and Honduras in Pool B.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 8, 2023.- Dominican middle blocker Jineiry Martinez was named the Most Valuable Player MVP of the Women’s Volleyball Tournament at the twenty fourth edition of the Central American and Caribbean Games San Salvador 2023.
Jineiry Martínez received the MVP recognition and the 1st Best Blocker award during the closing ceremony after “Las Reinas del Caribe” won their Sixth consecutive Gold Medal at the CAC Games.
Dominican Republic was distinguished with the awards for 1st Best Spiker to Brayelin Martinez, 2nd Best Blocker to Geraldine Gonzalez, Best Setter to Niverka Marte, Best Opposite and Best Scorer to Gaila Gonzalez, and the Best Receiver to Brenda Castillo.
Elaine Vazquez of Puerto Rico, who won the silver medal of the Games, was named the 2nd Best Spiker.
Colombian Juliana Toro was distinguished with the awards of Best Libero and Best Digger; and Mexican Jocelyn Urías as the Best Server.
Women’s Individual Awards San Salvador 2023 CAC Games
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 8, 2023.- Dominican Republic beat Puerto Rico 3-0 (25-19, 25-19, 25-16) to win their Sixth Women’s Volleyball consecutive Title in a row in Central American and Caribbean Games at the 24th edition of San Salvador 2023 at the Sports Palace Carlos El Famoso Hernández.
This is “Las Reinas del Caribe” overall eighth title, with a winning streak of sixth in a row that started here in San Salvador in 2002. Dominican Republic is now tied in the historical record of gold medals at the CAC Games with Cuba.
This is Puerto Rico’s sixth silver medal, having lost to Dominican Republic on five occasions and one to Mexico.
Dominican Republic celebrates
Dominican Republic outplayed Puerto Rico with a comfortable 43 to 35 margin in attacks and a huge advantage of 13 to three in blocks. Both teams scored one point on serves. Dominicans handed out 15 points on unforced errors and Puerto Rico totalized 18.
Marcos Kweik, Head Coach of Dominican Republic: “We are happy, we came with a big responsibility to defend our title because of the team we brought. We have done serious work to keep the gold medal”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 8, 2023.- Cuba beat Colombia 3-0 (25-22, 28-26, 25-22) to win the Bronze Medal in Women’s Volleyball at the 24th Central American and Caribbean Games San Salvador 2023 at the Sports Palace Carlos El Famoso Hernández.
Cuba with a 3-2 record won their second bronze medal in the history of the event, their first was during the 2014 Veracruz Games.
Cuba won a battled first set and then went on to win the second coming from a two-point deficit the entire set in a thrilling party of points, with Ailama Cese scoring the winning point 28-26 on a kill. Cuba again came from behind in the third set, recovering from a six-point deficit (12-18) and reaching an even 21, with Diaris Perez scoring the match point on a block.
Cuba led on a huge 56 to 33 attacking point advantage and on a comfortable 10 to 6 margins in blocks. Colombia did better in points from serves (5-1) and limited their errors to 11 against 26.
Three players scored double digits in Cuba’s bronze medal win, outside hitters Diaris Perez and Ailama Cese with 16 points each, and middle blocker Dezirett Madan who contributed with 13 points.
Cuba celebrates winning the Bronze Medal
Colombia’s offense was led by outside hitter Ana Karina Olaya with 16 points, followed by Melissa Rangel and Valerin Carabali with 9 and 7 points respectively.
Tomás Fernández Arteaga, Head Coach of Cuba: “We were coming for a medal, and we reached our goal. Yesterday during the semifinal, it went uphill against one of the best teams in the world and what we did was to recover the team so they could battle in a more accessible match today for the bronze medal. We prepared the group in every element of the game to reach our goal”.
María Alejandra Marin, Captain of Colombia: “Cuba was offensive in serves and we failed a lot in receiving. They were more aggressive in attacks than us and that’s today’s result. Congratulations to Cuba that did well”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 8, 2023.- Mexico beat Costa Rica 3-0 (25-14, 25-23, 25-18) to finish fifth place in Women’s Volleyball at the 24th Central American and Caribbean Games San Salvador 2023.
Mexico finished with a 3-2 record and Costa Rica with 1-4 for fifth and sixth place respectively.
Middle blocker Jocelyn Urias led Mexico with 14 points (11 kills, one block, two aces) , followed by outside hitter Melanie Parra who added 13 attacking points.
Costa Rica’s leading scorers were outside hitter Tamara Espinoza with 13 points (12 kills, one ace) and opposite Tatiana Sayles with 10 points from kills.
Mexico held advantages in every element of the game, kills (49-33), blocks (8-0) and points from serves (7-1). Costa Rica limited their errors to 11 against 21 from Mexico.
Andrea Rangel, MEX, attacks
Joseline Landeros, Libero of Mexico: “This wasn’t the tournament we expected, we had other results in mind. We are leaving with the things we must work on, and we will do it with all the energy towards what’s next. We are in a new process with a new coach, we only have one month together, and we are all adjusting to his vision of what he expects from us”.
Pablo Acuña, Head Coach of Costa Rica: “After yesterday’s match against El Salvador the players and myself weren’t satisfied so for today each one had personal goals. Today we were able to have a presence on the court and improve in executing”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 8, 2023.- Trinidad & Tobago took seventh place at the Women’s Volleyball tournament of the 24th Central American and Caribbean Games of San Salvador after defeating El Salvador 3-1 (23-25, 25-17, 25-18, 25-23).
Both teams end the event with 1-4 win-loss record, Trinidad & Tobago seventh and host El Salvador eighth.
Trinidad & Tobago faced off El Salvador in their opening match, but today was a different outcome. Trinidad & Tobago overwhelmed El Salvador with a huge 12 to 4 points from blocks and 11 to two in aces. They also held a 56 to 41 advantage in attacks but handed out 36 points from unforced errors against 19.
Outside hitter Channon Thompson of Trinidad & Tobago led all scorers with 23 points on 18 kills and five impressive aces. Opposite Krystle Esdele joined in the victory with 19 points, followed by middle blocker Kaylon Cruickshank with 12 points, including a match-high of 6 blocks.
Outside hitter Gabriela Funes and team captain Adriana Flores led El Salvador with 15 and 11 points respectively.
Saleem Ali, Head Coach of Trinidad & Tobago: “Coming here was a little difficult, in the first match against El Salvador we lacked practice. Today we shivered all together, we improved our level to finish”.
Andrea Genova, Entrenador de El Salvador: “We gained a lot of experience. We won the first match against Trinidad & Tobago and today it was a more balanced performance, in the world ranking they are higher than us. It’s a beginning for us, we are satisfied with the work because we have a little time together”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 7, 2023.- Puerto Rico beat Colombia 3-1 (25-23, 25-15, 8-25, 25-18) in semifinals to reach the Women’s Volleyball tournament Gold Medal match at the 2023 San Salvador Central American Games.
Puerto Rico (4-1) will battle for the CAC gold against reigning champions Dominican Republic who earlier won their semifinal match to Cuba who will play Colombia (3-2) in the bronze medal match.
Puerto Rico has reached the title match on five other occasions since the inception of the Games, losing four of them to the Dominican Republic and one to Mexico.
Puerto Rico trailed on six points (19-23) to win the first set 25-23 with spectacular defense only to go on into the second to storm past Colombia with a comfortable advantage. The third set was a totally different story, where Colombia entirely controlled after showing a significant improvement finishing with a huge advantage 25-8. In the fourth and final set, Puerto Rico reached a comfortable five-point lead (18-13) , impossible for Colombia to catch up.
Despite Colombia’s comfortable 12 to 6 margin in blocks, a slight advantage in points from aces 3-2 and committing fewer unforced errors, 22 against 26, Puerto Rico was the one to progress into the gold medal match scoring 53 attacking points against 40.
Puerto Rico celebrates moving into the Gold Medal Match
Opposite Brittany Abercrombie of Puerto Rico scored a match-high of 21 points on 20 kills and one ace. Outside hitter Elaine Vazquez also contributed to the win with 14 attacking points. Middle blocker Paola Rojas added 9 points, 4 of them from blocks.
Colombia’s opposite hitter Dayana Segovia and outside hitter Ana Karina Olaya scored 16 points each. Dayana on 10 kills and four blocks; Ana Karina on 15 kills and one ace. Middle blocker Valerin Carabali also scored double digits, adding 10 points from kills.
Shara Venegas, Captain of Puerto Rico: “We had a good preparation, the team was focused, and we didn’t lose composure, even if we lost the third set by a huge score, they played well. In the fourth set we showed experience, we were calm and confident to come out with the victory”.
Fernando Morales, Head Coach of Puerto Rico: “Goal succeeded, we wanted to reach the final and rematch Dominican Republic, we are going to give our all against a great team. I told my girls that they needed to be aggressive from the first set because we were used to it coming out of a competitive group, it worked to move forward. I don’t know what happened in the third set, but the bench did a good job giving our starters a rest so they could mentally reset and come back strong”.
Antonio Rizola, Head Coach of Colombia: “We were up by four points in the first set, that first set represented a lot for the team, it decided the outcome. I am happy with the team; we have four athletes who aren’t starters and they represented Colombia well”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 7, 2023.- The North, Central American and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation NORCECA, handed out new uniforms for International Referees from the NORCECA Confederation during the XXIV Central American and Caribbean Games San Salvador 2023.
The idea was presented by the NORCECA Referee Commission and approved by the Executive Committee and Board of Administration of NORCECA who decided to create the new uniform for International NORCECA Referees.
The new design is due to modernize the Referee’s clothing, which went through a selection of several designs which will give greater comfort and attractiveness to International Referees during continental championships organized by the NORCECA Confederation.
On the occasion of the 2023 San Salvador Central American and Caribbean Games the first uniforms were delivered to the International Referees appointed to the Games by NORCECA First Vice President Ariel Sainz and General Director of NORCECA Arateide Cáceres.
The uniform delivery will be carried out progressively to all National Federations members of NORCECA and so that all NORCECA International Referees wear the new clothing during all NORCECA continental championships.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 7, 2023.- Reigning champion Dominican Republic is headed to win their eighth Central American and Caribbean Games Gold Medal, sixth in a row after defeating Cuba 3-0 (25-13, 25-19, 25-15) in semifinals of the twenty fourth edition of the Games San Salvador 2023.
Dominicans remains undefeated (4-0) and will battle for their eighth Gold Medal against the winner of the other semifinal between Colombia and Puerto Rico. If they face Colombia, it will be a rematch of the past editions’ final in Barranquilla 2018 Games. Cuba will play for the bronze medal against the losers.
The stats of the match were all tipped to the Dominican side. “Las Reinas del Caribe” were two points short in doubling over Cuba in points from attacks (40-24), they held a huge 16 to 5 advantage in blocks and scored five points from serves to none. Cuba committed fewer unforced errors, 14 against 18.
Middle blocker Jineiry Martinez scored an impressive 11 points from blocks of her overall 16 points, carrying her team into the final match. Opposite hitter Gaila Gonzalez added 15 points on 14 kills and three blocks, while outside hitter Yonkaira Peña contributed with 14 points on 11 kills, one block and two aces.
Cuban outside hitter Ailama Cese led her team with seven points, joined by Diaris Pérez and middle blocker Dayana Martínez with 6 and 5 respectively.
Yonkaira Peña, DOM, spikes
Niverka Marte, Captain of Dominican Republic: “We tried to commit the smallest number of unforced errors as possible, we tried to keep Cuba under pressure because they have an aggressive attack. Today Dominican Republic played well, we kept the control”.
Marcos Kwiek, Head Coach of Dominican Republic: “We have worked won match at a time, for today we studied Cuba. We always believe that the next match is harder. Now we must rest, study videos of our opponents and perform well tomorrow”.
Gretell Moreno, Captain of Cuba: “We must keep on growing in volleyball up to Dominicans level. We must continue to work, be patient and limit our unforced errors. We learn from facing opponents that challenge us. Physically we are at the same level, our disadvantage against them is the time they have on court”.
Tomás Fernández Arteaga, Head Coach of Cuba: “The team had intensity for moments during the match, showing they can, but the opponent that had a better level of play didn’t let them keep it. My players tried, but they committed unforced errors, and they moved forward, which then it’s harder to recover from when they go back to their intensity. We are going to see the next semifinal to study our next opponent”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 7, 2023.- Costa Rica beat El Salvador 3-0 (25-13, 25-18, 25-14) to face Mexico for fifth place of the Women’s Volleyball tournament at the 2023 San Salvador Central American and Caribbean Games at the Sports Palace Carlos El Famoso Hernández.
Costa Rica dominated the classification match for positions 5 to 8 against host El Salvador and on Saturday they will battle Mexico for fifth place in the Games. El Salvador will face Trinidad & Tobago for positions seven and eight.
Costa Rica held superiority scoring 32 points from attacks, against 12; they also held a huge 11 to three margin in points from serves. Both teams scored 2 points on blocks. Costa Rica committed two points less from unforced errors than El Salvador (28-30).
Outside hitter Tamara Espinoza led Costa Rica with 13 points, scoring 5 points from aces, in addition to 7 kills and one block. Middle blocker María Fernanda Alfaro contributed with 11, also on 5 points from serves, 5 kills and one block. Opposite hitter Tatiana Sayles added 10 points.
Melissa Campos, CRC, pass the ball
Marcela Araya, Captain of Costa Rica: “We are glad to have won the match that progressed us to battle for the fifth place of the Games. At moments we lack consistency, sometimes we play well and sometimes we don’t. We found a better rhythm of play compared to our previous outings, I hope that helps us for tomorrow”.
Adriana Flores, Captain of El Salvador: “This helps us to have a better view of the team because our main competition is Central America. Our is new and it helps him to know the type of volleyball in our area and that way we can improve our tactical game. Our reception failed too much in this game”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 7, 2023.- Mexico defeated Trinidad & Tobago 3-0 (25-15, 25-18, 25-22) and aims to a fifth place finish in Women’s Volleyball of the 2023 San Salvador Central American and Caribbean Games.
Mexico will play for fifth place in the event on Saturday, against the winner between host El Salvador and Costa Rica, and the losers go up against Trinidad & Tobago for seventh place.
Trinidad & Tobago had momentum in leading the third set with a four-point advantage (11-7) until Mexico gained territory once again to finish in straight sets.
Mexico finished with a huge 47 to 20 advantage in points from attacks and an 8-1 margin in aces. Trinidad & Tobago outplayed Mexico in blocks 7-4 and committed fewer errors, 16 against 27.
Three players from Mexico scored double digits, led by outside hitter Melanie Parra (15 points), middle blocker Karina Flores (13 points) and outside hitter Grecia Castro (10 points). Middle blocker Jocelyn Urias scored a match-high of 4 aces.
Opposite hitter Krystle Esdelle led Trinidad & Tobago with 8 points and team captain, middle blocker Jalicia Ross added 7.
Melanie Parra, MEX attacks
Karina Flores, Middle blocker of Mexico: “Trinidad & Tobago improved in system in the third set, and we lacked focus, they took advantage of that. Tomorrow we are going for fifth place, we wanted to win a medal, but it wasn’t possible because of different circumstances. We must improve, we have a long summer of seven tournaments, and we want to take out the most of our new coach Nicola Negro”.
Krystle Esdelle, Top scorer of Trinidad & Tobago: “We didn’t want to give in, I was motivating the team to keep pushing for every point, to play and enjoy the game. Tomorrow I would like our team to bring higher energy, to focus and give one hundred percent no matter what the outcome is”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 6, 2023.- Colombia beat El Salvador 3-0 (25-6, 25-11, 25-5) to reach the semifinal against Puerto Rico undefeated in the Women’s Volleyball tournament of the 2023 San Salvador Central American and Caribbean Games at the Sports Palace Carlos El Famoso Hernández.
Colombia topped Pool B with a 3-0 record to advance into the semifinals to face Puerto Rico who finished second in Pool A. Host El Salvador 1-2 finished third place and will play in the classification round for positions 5 to 8, starting against Central American rival Costa Rica.
In the other semifinal, defending champion Dominican Republic plays against Cuba.
Colombia’s serves were too much for El Salvador, totalizing with 12 aces to none. The South Americans also held a huge 32-16 advantage in attacking points and in points from blocks 7-0, while scoring on 24 opponent errors to six.
Opposite Dayana Segovia of Colombia topped all scorers with 13 points on 11 kills and two points from serves. Middle blocker Melissa Rangel and outside hitter Laura Grajales added 7 and 6 points respectively.
Outside hitters Gabriela Funes and Daniela López scored 6 points each for El Salvador.
Dayana Segovia, COL, attacks
Antonio Rizola, Head Coach of Colombia: “We advanced in first place of our group. We performed seriously, with respect to all our opponents. We didn’t make changes just to make them, everyone played and contributed. Tomorrow is a new championship, the semifinal against Puerto Rico, who today didn’t play with all his team waiting to face us and we to face them”.
Andrea Genova, Head Coach of El Salvador: “We knew which was going to be today’s outcome, Colombia is number 14 in the world. It was hard. Our tournament was to compete against our direct opponents Trinidad & Tobago in the preliminary round and now in the next round against Costa Rica, an important match which we must battle hard to reach to play for the fifth place”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 6, 2023.- Defending champion Dominican Republic won Pool A over Puerto Rico 3-1 (25-19, 25-16, 22-25, 25-21) and both move into the Women’s Volleyball semifinals of the 2023 San Salvador Central American and Caribbean Games.
Dominicans (3-0) undefeated and Puerto Rico (2-1) as first and second place of Pool A respectively reach the semifinals; it’s most likely they will face Cuba and Colombia respectively (second and first place of Pool B) as there is still one match left of that pool.
Dominican Republic used all its players while Puerto Rican setter Vilmarie Rivera and outside hitter Paola Santiago couldn’t perform due to minor health issues.
Dominicans outblocked Puerto Rico 15 to 9 and held a considerable 5-3 margin in aces. Puerto Rico finished with a slight 48 to 47 advantage in points from kills. Dominicans scored on 30 unforced opponent errors against 21.
Middle blocker Jineiry Martinez led Dominicans offense over the net, scoring 6 blocking points from her overall 18 points, in addition to 11 points from kills and one ace. Outside hitter Yonkaira Peña and opposite hitter Gaila Gonzalez contributed with 13 points each. Yonkaira produced 11 kills, one block and one ace, while Gaila scored 8 points from kills, three on blocks and two aces.
On Puerto Rico’s side, Outside hitter Pilar Victoria led her team with 17 points on 15 kills, one block and one ace, alongside opposite hitter Génesis Collazo who tallied 10 points. Outside hitter Elaine Vazquez added 9 points on kills.
Geraldine Gonzalez, DOM, celebrates
Marcos Kwiek, Head Coach of Dominican Republic: “Their coach moved his players and so did us, it was only a qualification match. What’s important is the next two days. It was good to give our bench players an opportunity because we’re going to need them”.
Fernando Morales, Head Coach of Puerto Rico: “Wilmarie has some stomach issues and we decided to preserve her for tomorrow’s semifinal, as well as Paola Santiago who has a muscle pain, we battled. We were able to see everyone in action. The six who were on court battled all the time. We know that Dominican Republic is one of the best teams in the world, we can’t ask for more. We hope to win our semifinal match tomorrow and have a rematch in the final”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 6, 2023.- Mexico finished Pool A in third place after defeating Costa Rica 3-0 (25-11, 25-16, 25-13) in Women’s Volleyball at the 2023 San Salvador Central American and Caribbean Games.
Mexico earned their first tournament win to finish the preliminary round 1-2, Costa Rica 0-3. Both teams will play the classification round for positions 5 to 8. Mexico starts against Trinidad & Tobago and Costa Rica will confirm if they face El Salvador.
México had no difficulties in prevailing over the Central American team with a huge advantage in attacking points (37-19). The also led 6 to 4 in points from block and 7 to 1 in aces, handing out 16 points from unforced errors against 25.
Team captain Andrea Rangel, alongside outside hitter Melanie Parra scored 10 points each for Mexico. Aimé Topete, who came from the bench in the first set added 7 points.
Opposite hitter Tatiana Sayles of Costa Rica was the top scorer of the match with 13 points.
Grecia Castro, MEX, spikes
Nicola Negro, Head Coach of Mexico: “The team is growing every day, facing different opponents. I believe the first day against Puerto Rico we paid a high price. It was our first match together and the first of the season, we came with little rhythm, and we improved until the third set. Against Dominican Republic, it was a positive performance against an elite team and today the team was alert and focused”.
Pablo Acuña, Head Coach of Costa Rica: “These were three difficult matches, our attack is what has suffered the most, clearly because of the serves and the level of blocking of our opponents, we haven’t been effective. Now we must focus on El Salvador, a direct opponent of our zone and we must study them well, we will face it seriously”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 6, 2023.- Cuba beat Trinidad & Tobago 3-0 (25-16, 25-17, 25-17) to improve their record 2-1 in Pool B of the Women’s Volleyball tournament at the 2023 San Salvador Central American and Caribbean Games on Thursday.
Cuba (2-1) is one step closer to reaching the semifinals, they have to wait for the result between Colombia (2-0) and El Salvador (1-1). Trinidad & Tobago ends Pool B in fourth place and will play the classification round for positions 5 to 8.
With a considerable improvement from their previous performances, Trinidad & Tobago was able to keep the score close to halfway in all three sets.
Cuba was superior in attacking points by far (48-23), while finishing with slight advantages in blocks (6-5) and points from serves (4-3). Trinidad & Tobago committed fewer errors (17-19).
Cuban opposite Yensy Kindelan, outside hitter Diaris Pérez and middle blocker Jessica Aguilera scored 10 points each for their teams’ victory.
Channon Thompson of Trinidad & Tobago led all scorers collecting 11 points (8 kills, 3 blocks).
Channon Thompson, TTO, spikes
Yensy Kindelan, Top scorer of Cuba: “I consider it was mostly errors on our side which kept the scores close; we committed 6 to 7 errors per set, that was the difficulty because after each error came consecutive points from their side. We adjusted and it will be harder in the next round because the opponent will be superior, Dominican Republic or Puerto Rico”.
Tomás Fernández Arteaga, Head Coach of Cuba: “My team was overconfident. Experienced players performed at our opponents’ level of play, and we committed unforced errors, which depended on our side. For me the next match is a transition to move into the bronze medal match because I believe we will face Dominican Republic, the best team in the competition”.
Channon Thomson, Top scorer of Trinidad & Tobago: “Our team had a considerable improvement. Now, we are in a process of development, rebuilding, after we qualified to the World Championship in 2018, unfortunately the continuity of the program broke. It’s going to take some time, it’s going to take losing many games, but in losing we can evaluate and go back to the drawing board and learn to play better”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 5, 2023.- Cuba claimed their first tournament win defeating ElSalvador 3-0 (25-19, 25-6, 25-10) in the Women’s Volleyball tournament of the Central American and Caribbean Games on Wednesday at the Sports Palace Carlos El Famoso Hernández.
Cuba with a 1-1 record in Pool B will end the preliminary round on Thursday against Trinidad & Tobago 0-2. Host El Salvador 1-1 will face Colombia who stands first place with 2-0.
The first and second place of each Pool will advance into Saturday’s semifinals; third and fourth place will play a classification round for positions 5 to 8.
Cuba stormed past El Salvador with a huge 34 advantage in attacks against 18, an impressive blocking advantage of 17 to one and a 9-1 margin in points in serves.
Opposite Dezirett Madan led Cuba on a match-high of 13 points on 9 kills, three blocks and one ace, followed by middle blocker Jessica Aguilera with 10 points on 5 kills, the most blocking points with 4 and one ace. Outside hitter Ailama Cese with 9 points.
Team captain of El Salvador, outside hitter Adriana Flores scored 6 attacking points and middle blocker Fabiola Venegas added 5 points.
Diaris Perez, CUB, blocks
Gretell Moreno, Captain of Cuba: “Yesterday we didn’t perform to the best of our abilities and today we were confident to work much better, we played strong, but we committed too many unforced errors, we keep on working on them. We hope that advancing into the next round we can correct, because we are going to face a tough opponent, either the Dominican Republic or Puerto Rico”.
Adriana Flores, Captain of El Salvador: “We were aware of the level of play we were going to face today. In the first set we were able to solve some aspects of the game and that helped them to control us better in the following sets. We did an honest job. Tomorrow we finish pool-play against another tough opponent, Colombia, we will do our best”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 5, 2023.- Dominican Republic remained undefeated after their 3-0 (25-23, 25-19, 25-13) victory to Mexico in Women’s Volleyball at the 2023 San Salvador Central American and Caribbean Games on Wednesday.
First place in Pool A will be decided on Thursday between defending champion Dominican Republic 2-0 and Puerto Rico 2-0; Mexico 0-2 faces Costa Rica 0-2.
Mexico took advantage of Dominicans unforced errors in the first set and had momentum keeping the score close. Dominican Republic went on to lead the second set from start to finish and in the third came from a two-point deficit to perform their best set in the match.
Dominicans’ best skill was their blocking, with a 13 to 7 advantage; they also led 4-2 in points from serves. The match was balanced in points from attacks, with Dominican Republic leading 36 to 32. The winners committed fewer unforced errors (14-22).
Outside hitters Yonkaira Peña and Brayelin Martinez led Dominican Republic with 13 points each. Yonkaira on 12 kills and one block and Brayelin on 9 kills, one block and three aces. Middle blocker Jineiry Martinez, who only played in the first two sets, scored a match-high of six points on blocks.
Outside hitter Melanie Parra, making her return to the Mexican national team, was the leading attacker in the match with 14 points on 10 kills, 3 blocks and one ace. Her teammate Andrea Rangel contributed with 10 attacking points.
Vielka Perarlta, DOM, serves
Yonkaira Peña, top scorer for Dominican Republic: “Mexico did well in taking advantage of our errors, they adjusted their performance. We were able to come out on top without pressure and finished off controlling the third set by limiting our errors. When I had the responsibility to attack, I took it with responsibility as I always do”.
Melanie Parra, top scorer of Mexico: “I have some time without playing for the national team and coming back to a competition with opponents of great quality has its pressure, but my team has quality. Despite the loss we can rescue some good things, I am happy with what we can accomplish. Tomorrow we’re going against Costa Rica, and we can’t give them any opportunities because they have a good defense”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 5, 2023.- Puerto Rico defeated Costa Rica 3-0 (25-13, 25-13, 25-9) improving 2-0 in Pool A in Women’s Volleyball at the 2023 San Salvador Central American and Caribbean Games on Wednesday at the Sports Palace Carlos El Famoso Hernández.
Puerto Rico unbeaten (2-0) will meet defending champion Dominican Republic in their last preliminary round match on Thursday. Costa Rica is set to face Mexico.
The Caribbean team, with variations in their line-up, had no complications in prevailing over the Central American squad 38 to 20 in attacking points, 6 to 4 in points from blocks and a slim 4-3 margin in aces. Puerto Rico benefited from scoring 27 points from opponent errors while limiting their own to eight.
Puerto Rico’s scoring offense was led by three players with double digits. Opposite Genesis Collazo and outside hitter Pilar Victoria with 13 points each, and outside hitter Karla Santos tallied 10 points.
Costa Rica’s leading scorer was opposite hitter Tatiana Sayles with 7 attacking points.
Alba Hernandez, PUR, attacks
Wilmarie Rivera, Setter of Puerto Rico: “We are glad about our second victory, we were able to work on several things on our side of the court and we competed well. There were some variations in our lineup so we can improve and practice and be ready to advance into the next round”.
Marcela Araya, Captain of Costa Rica: “We started off the first points of each set well, but then we lost communication, our intensity was lower and in consequence the result. There is much to improve, but to put in practice. We didn’t play at our best and we must fix it immediately because the tournament is short”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 5, 2023.- Colombia beat Trinidad & Tobago 3-0 (25-9, 25-9, 25-6) in their second win in a row in Pool B at the Women’s Volleyball tournament of the 2023 San Salvador CAC Games on Wednesday in the Sports Palace Carlos El Famoso Hernández.
Colombia is 2-0 leading Pool B and will finish the preliminary round on Thursday against host El Salvador, and Trinidad & Tobago is 0-2, they will play Cuba.
Colombia was dominant with advantages in every element of the game; in attacks (32-16), in blocks (3-1) and in points from serves (7-0), in addition to scoring on 33 opponent errors against seven.
The South Americans used all their players where middle blocker Melissa Rangel led 9 points and outside hitter Ana Karina Olaya followed with 8.
Middle blocker Kaylon Cruickshank led Trinidad & Tobago with 6 points, opposite Alexis Aaliyah and outside hitter Desiree Donald added 5 points each.
Ana Olaya, COL, attacks
Melissa Rangel, Middle blocker of Colombia: “With two wins we are first in our group, it has been with team effort, and we are happy with the results. We have a new team, with young players, where each one does their role. We are helping the younger players to push Colombia’s volleyball forward”.
Antonio Rizola, Head Coach of Colombia: “We are giving one step forward, it’s an important win because everyone in the team performed today. Next, we face the home team, it will be hard, with the support of their fans. We are headed to semifinals”.
Rayquelle Dickson, setter of Trinidad & Tobago: “We had good defense for moments, we have to try to be more consistent and as a setter I have to be more ready when the balls are coming at me. We close against a tough opponent (Cuba) and Trinidad will come with heads up high as always”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 4, 2023.- Host El Salvador took down Trinidad & Tobago in straight sets 3-0 (25-17, 25-23, 25-21) on opening day of Women’s Volleyball at the 2023 Central American and Caribbean Games at the Sports Palace Carlos El Famoso Hernández.
El Salvador came from behind in 0-4 in the first set gaining confidence to start off winning. In the second set their impressive recovery from a seven-point deficit (3-10) shut down Trinidad & Tobago’s momentum for a close 25-23 win and went on to lead third set from start to finish.
El Salvador earned their first Pool B victory with advantage only in points from attacks 38 to 26, while Trinidad & Tobago led with a huge 12 to 4 in blocking points and a considerable 10 to 6 in points from aces. El Salvador scored on 27 opponent errors while committing 13.
Outside hitter Gabriela Funes of El Salvador was the match leading scorer with 16 points on 13 kills and three aces. Team captain Adriana Flores added 10 attacking points contributing in the win.
Opposite Krystle Esdelle led Trinidad & Tobago with 13 points followed by outside hitter Channon Thompson with 12 points. Team captain Jalicia Ross scored the most blocks with 5 points and middle blocker Kaylon Cruickshank led in aces with 5 points.
On Wednesday El Salvador (1-0) will play against Cuba (1-0) and Trinidad & Tobago (0-1) faces Colombia (1-0).
Gabriela Funes, ESA, attacks
Adriana Flores, Captain of El Salvador: “The first set helped to analyze our opponent and that helped us organize better to come from behind in the second set, with a better performance. Next is Cuba, a strong opponent, but facing a team of that level of play gets us out of our comfort zone and we will try to do our best. We have a game plan, just like today, let’s see what happens”.
Andrea Genova, Head Coach of El Salvador: “It’s motivating to start with a win, in front of such fantastic supporters. Tomorrow, we face a powerhouse, Cuba has an incredible history, and we will face the match with more confidence because of this match. In the second set, we were overconfident compared to the first and that’s why we failed too many serves; fortunately, with the changes, the players scored more, which was the key for winning the set and the match”.
Jalicia Ross, Captain of Trinidad & Tobago: “All matches in these Central American Games are an opportunity to learn and get together. We committed too many unforced errors in the second set while having the lead and we need to start finishing. Once we have the momentum, we must keep going with it”.
Saleem Ali, Head Coach of Trinidad & Tobago: “My team didn’t play tonight, they didn’t finish the balls and we were jumping too high, tapping just a little”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 4, 2023.- Colombia beat Cuba 3-1 (25-21, 25-18, 18-25, 26-24) to start their 2023 San Salvador Central American and Caribbean Games campaign on Tuesday at the Sports Palace Carlos El Famoso Hernández.
Cuba improved in defense to lead the third set from the beginning to keep up with Colombia’s 2-0 set lead and forcing a fourth set. Colombia with three kills in a row and two opponent errors came from behind (14-19) to an even 19 in the fourth set, for a dramatic 26-24 win while trailing a Cuban set point (23-24).
Colombia’s blocking was stronger than Cuba’s with a 13 to 8 advantage. Cuba dominated in kills 57 to 51, and both teams were leveled in aces (3-3). Colombia benefited from 27 unforced Cuban errors against 20.
Colombian opposite hitter Dayana Segovia led all scorers with 16 points on 14 kills and two blocks. Also standing out were outside hitters Ana Karina Olaya and Laura Grajales who tallied 12 and 11 points respectively. Middle blocker Melissa Rangel joined in with a match-high of 5 kills from blocks, out of her 11 scoring points.
Cuba’s outside hitter Ailama Cese topped her team with 15 points on 14 kills and one ace. Middle blocker Dayana Martinez contributed with 13 points on 10 kills and 3 blocks. Opposite Dezirett Madan scored 12 attacking points and outside hitter Diaris Perez added 10.
On day two of competition, Cuba faces the host country El Salvador and Colombia will play Trinidad & Tobago.
Colombia celebrates against Cuba
María Alejandra Marín, Captain of Colombia: “Colombia always battles up to the end; we battle every ball and that’s what made us win. Cuba has strength, a high block, and aggressive attacks, we were smart, touching balls, serving well and the double change worked out, and Karina responded as she should. The twelve of us are ready to contribute to any given moment”.
Antonio Rizola, Head Coach of Colombia: “This is a different team from last year, with great responsibility for outside hitters Ana Karina and Laura who contributed well; Valerin and Melissa in the middle, assumed their role knowing they are the only one to be on the court, it’s not easy for them. We played with heart”.
Tomás Fernández Arteaga, Head Coach of Cuba: “The players had a lot of nerves, they stole our initiative in serves and we couldn’t combine. But we won all the longer rallies and scored. We failed in serves and the tactical strategy of our setter was slow, according to the score she should have given the ball to the player who wasn’t marked”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 4, 2023.- Dominican Republic started the 2023 San Salvador Central American and Caribbean Games over Costa Rica 3-0 (25-7, 25-11 25-17) at the Sports Palace Carlos El Famoso Hernández on Tuesday.
Defending champion Dominican Republic, aiming for their eight CAC title, had no difficulties in earning their first Pool A victory prevailing 42-16 in points from kills, 10-6 in blocks and 3-1 in points from serves. Dominicans finished with 12 unforced errors and Costa Rica with 20.
Dominican Republic used all his players, with outside hitter Yonkaira Peña and opposite Gaila Gonzalez as top scorers with 11 points each. Gonzlez scored a match-high of 4 points on blocks. Outside hitter Brayelin Martinez added 8 points.
Outside hitter Tamara Espinoza and opposite hitter Tatiana Sayles led Costa Rica with 8 and 7 points respectively.
Dominican Republic (1-0) plays against Mexico (0-1) on Wednesday, and Costa Rica (0-1) faces Puerto Rico (1-0).
Brenda Castillo libero of Dominican Republic
Niverka Marte, Captain of Dominican Republic: “It’s an important win, we had personal goals during the match, we must get into rhythm and get used to the change of ball. We focused on not committing errors. The teams’ performance could have been better, but we are coming from a long competition (VNL), so we left Korea finishing our last match straight here. Alondra Tapia is one of the young prospects in the team and we are glad she’s here”.
Marcos Kwiek, Head Coach of Dominican Republic: “We have a big responsibility, we will try to defend our crown, knowing that each competition is different. We are coming from a long tournament, and we are tired with the time zone change, these are elements that interfere with our performance”.
Tatiana Sayles, Opposite of Costa Rica: “We were aware that the match was going to be hard. We set the goal of doing our best in every point and every set. They were hard points, we tried to be patient, stick together, and follow instructions. We improved with each set. Our goal is to compete, learn and do our best in every match”.
Pablo Acuña, Head Coach of Costa Rica: “It’s a challenge and an honor to start a tournament with the Central American champions, we take it with respect and seriously. There’s a big difference in their level of play and we must accept it, we did the best we could under the circumstances. I think we could have done better in the first two sets; Dominicans and we got relaxed in the third set. Dominican Republic is an elite team”.
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador, July 4, 2023.- Puerto Rico defeated Mexico 3-1 (25-15, 25-20, 21-25, 25-23) in the opening match of the Women’s Volleyball tournament of the 2023 San Salvador Central American Games at the Sports Palace Carlos El Famoso Hernández.
Puerto Rico stormed past Mexico in the first set and second sets, jumping an early six-point lead (12-6) and a four-point lead (13-9) respectively. Mexico’s offensive efforts kicked in the third, recovering from a four-point deficit (8-12) up to a 25-20 win and forcing a fourth close set win for Puerto Rico.
Both teams scored 10 points from blocks and Puerto Rico held a 3-1 advantage in points from serves, but Puerto Rico’s offense in points from attacks, 61 to 47, were the major difference in their Pool A opening win. Unforced errors were balanced, Puerto Rico with 25 and Mexico a total of 22.
Opposite hitter Brittanny Abercrombie of Puerto Rico scored a match-high of 26 points from 25 kills and one ace. Outside hitter Paola Santiago added 20 points on 16 kills, two blocks and two aces. Outside hitter Elaine Vazquez also contributed to the win with 18 points (16 kills, 2 blocks).
On Mexico’s side, outside hitter Melanie Parra and Grecia Castro led with 14 and 13 points respectively; Parra on 12 kills and one ace, and Grecia all on kills. Team captain Andrea Rangel and middle blocker Jocelyn Urias scored 10 points each.
On Wednesday, Puerto Rico faces Costa Rica and Mexico will play defending champion Dominican Republic.
Paola Santiago, PUR, spikes
Shara Venegas, Captain of Puerto Rico: “We have known each other since we were girls with Mexico, we know each other well. We prepared well and were strongly focused to come out with the victory. We are headed back to the Villa very happy after winning such an important match because of the competition format”.
Fernando Morales, Head Coach of Puerto Rico: “The Central American Games is an important event followed by many in Puerto Rico and we are celebrating this win with a lot of joy. Our aggressiveness in the beginning was important, Mexico was going to come out to pressure us from the beginning and being on top 2-0 gave us confidence. They (Mexico) responded strongly, and we were able to resist. I congratulate my young players Paola Santiago and Alondra Vázquez for a job well done”.
Andrea Rangel, Captain of Mexico: “Our performance was more stable in the third and fourth sets. We were pressured for the importance of the game, literally it was a classification match and I think it’s not good for anyone, having a first match that decides who moves in Central American Games and at 10:30 in the morning isn’t favorable for anybody. We continue to work, to learn and take advantage of every match to keep on improving”.
Nicola Negro, Head Coach of Mexico: “We didn’t start the game well. We lacked rhythm at the beginning, we weren’t organized. In the third set we were more balanced, and we played two sets well, but our block-defense wasn’t disciplined at the closing of the fourth set”.
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