Category: Volleyball

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 18, 2023.- Tread Rosenthal team captain of the United States earned the Most Valuable Player MVP Award on Saturday after his team won back to back at the NORCECA Boys U19 Pan American Cup title in Guatemala.

Tread Rosenthal received the MVP recognition during the closing ceremony at the Guatemala City Dome. Tread also won the individual award for the Best Setter in the tournament.

Also from team USA, outside hitter Sean Kelley was the First Best Spiker, middle blocker Joshua Aruya the Second Best Blocker and libero Kallen Larson the Best Receiver.

From Nicaragua, libero Osmar Peralta was named the Best Libero and Best Digger of the event, and Angelo Guadamuz the award of First Best Blocker.

The award of Second Best Spiker was handed to outside hitter Franco Roark of Puerto Rico.

Costa Ricans Yulius Brown and Stanley Grant received the Best Opposite and Best Scorer awards respectively.

Team captain of Guatemala Adolfo Rivas was granted the recognition of Best Server.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 18, 2023.- United States beat Mexico 3-0 (25-23, 25-22, 25-20) to win back to back Boys U19 Pan American title on Saturday in Guatemala City.

United States won their second gold medal in a row undefeated (5-0) against Mexico just like last year; in 2011 they won a bronze medal also over Mexico. This is Mexico’s third silver medal in a row and in 2017 they beat Chile for the gold; Mexico ended the event 4-2.

The U.S. held a 47-33 advantage in attacks and a huge 10-4 margin in blocks; both teams scored two points from serves. United States committed 16 unforced errors against 26 from Mexico.

Outside hitter Sean Kelly of United States scored a match-high of 16 points on 14 kills and two blocks. Outside hitter Sterling Foley added 12 points on 9 kills, two blocks and one ace, followed by opposite hitter Finn Kearney collecting 11 points on 10 kills and one ace.

Outside hitter Ines Vargas and opposite hitter Julio Serrano topped Mexico’s scores with 12 points each.

Sean Kelly, top scorer of United States: “I feel amazing being back here in Guatemala, there’s a lot of fans supporting us, it’s awesome to play with the team again and we felt so connected. We could have been better, but a win is a win. I believe our serving and blocking can still improve”.

Matthew Fuerbringer, head coach of United States: “I expected a battle. The change the coach made by putting Vargas (#7) as opposite was really good for his team, gave them a lot of options in offense, they have a great setter with good ball control; they’re such a tough team and they don’t make mistakes and they battled. I am really proud of my boys, there were a lot of tough moments being close and it got intense, they could’ve hesitated but instead they went harder and made the plays that mattered”.

Oscar Viña, head coach of Mexico: “My team battled and battled, but there was a moment when they couldn’t give more, mostly when we reached point 22 in the first two sets they lost energy and in the third at point 18 they couldn’t give more. This happens when you face a powerful team like the United States, we need more elements on the team”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 18, 2023.- Puerto Rico battled five sets against Costa Rica 3-2 (24-26, 25-22, 18-25, 25-22, 15-12) to win the bronze medal of the NORCECA Boys U19 Pan American Cup on Saturday in Guatemala.

After the five grueling sets, Puerto Rico celebrated their second consecutive bronze medal, third bronze medal in the history of the event. They also won a silver medal in 2011. For Costa Rica, this is the first time a Central American team plays for a place in the podium.

Puerto Rico bounced back from a nail-biting first set loss only to keep on battling strong to stop Costa Rica who performed formidably.

Puerto Rico came out on top with a 69-52 advantage in kills and a 5-1 margin in aces; Costa Rica held a slim 10-9 margin in blocks. Puerto Rico committed a sizeable amount of 44 unforced errors against 24 from Costa Rica.

Outside hitter Victor Torres led Puerto Rico with 22 points on 19 kills and three blocks, accompanied by outside hitter Franco Roark who produced 17 points on 16 kills and one ace, while team captain Ramon Rosado added 13 points on 11 kills, one block and one ace.

Costa Rican opposite hitter Yulius Brown scored a match-high of 24 points on 22 kills and two blocks. Also contributing to Costa Rica’s campaign was outside hitter Stanley Grant with 16 points on 15 kills and one block, followed by Julian Araya who tallied 12 points.

Ramón Rosado, captain of Puerto Rico: “Costa Rica deserves the credit, in my opinion they are the team that has improved the most in this tournament, even from last year. I am glad about the boys’ performance who in moments of pressure responded and did a great effort”.  

Carlos De Sevilla, head coach of Puerto Rico: “Costa Rica gave a great performance. We started too slow and things weren’t working out, we had too many attacking errors. We enjoyed it and our intentions were to play the final, but we are taking a medal to the island. We battled up to the last point”.

David Córdoba, captain of Costa Rica: “We had a good presentation, we couldn’t win. We gave a good match to all of Costa Rica and this beautiful crowd supported us the whole game. We’ve had great improvement from last year and we hope someday to win a medal at this type of event.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 18, 2023.- Hosts Guatemala took fifth place over Nicaragua 3-0 (26-24, 25-21, 25-22) at the NORCECA Boys U19 Pan American Cup on Saturday.

Guatemala ends with a 4-2 record in fifth place and Nicaragua 2-4 in sixth. This was the second time Guatemala beat Nicaragua in the tournament.

Despite the straight set win, it was a close win for Guatemala who recovered from a three-point deficit (21-24) stealing from Nicaragua’s hands the first set.

Guatemala held a 39-33 advantage in attacks and a 2-0 margin in aces. Nicaragua prevailed in blocks by a huge 15-6 margin. Guatemala scored on 29 Nicaraguan errors and handed out 19.

Outside hitter Pedro Villatora led Guatemala with 12 points on 11 kills and one block, middle blocker Sergio Paz and outside hitter Roberto Recinos chipped in with 9 and 8 points respectively.

Middle blocker Angelo Guadamuz was Nicaragua’s top scorer with 12 points on 7 kills and 4 blocks, followed by outside hitter Evans Solís and middle blocker Wesly Rugama with 9 points each.

Luis Fernando Castañeda, head coach of Guatemala: “We were expecting Nicaragua to fight because we had already beaten them in the tournament. It was a match with too many errors from both teams, but we switched our middle in the first set when we were losing and that headed us into the win. The boys did a great job despite the limitations in preparation”.

Jorge Mena, head coach of Nicaragua: “A team that doesn’t practice doesn’t win. We committed too many errors, in the first set we failed 9 serves, in the second set 7 and not being able to win the first set damaged us. We aren’t finishing last, but this is a learning experience because the boy’s physical condition couldn’t respond”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 18, 2023.- Belize finished seventh place at the NORCECA U19 Pan American Cup after defeating Suriname 3-0 (25-19, 25-22, 25-18) on Saturday in Guatemala.

Belize finished the tournament with a 1-4 win-loss record and Suriname 0-5.

Belize prevailed over Suriname in every skill, attacks (36-25), blocks (6-4) and serves (9-2). Suriname committed fewer errors than Belize (24-28).

Outside hitters Preston Smith and Eleazar Mejía led Belize, Smith with 15 points on 14 kills and one block, Mejía with 14 points all from kills.

Suriname’s opposite hitter Meson Anakaba scored 14 points on 12 kills, one block and one ace as their leading scorer.

Albert Humes, head coach of Belize: “This win is very good for our country and by 3-0 it’s even better. Sadly we couldn’t put this type of playing in yesterday’s game but we are satisfied. I would like to thank NORCECA for the invitation and give us this type of exposure, making it a learning experience for our team so we can go back home and get ready for the Central American Championship Belize will be hosting this year, that will be a good boost for our people to come out and support our men’s program”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 17, 2023.- Female referees were appointed as first referee of all the matches during the penultimate day of competition at the NORCECA Boys U19 Pan American Cup in Guatemala.

As part of the initiative of gender refereeing equality of the NORCECA Volleyball Confederation, Cristóbal Marte Hoofiz NORCECA president alongside Referee Coach of the event Professor José Luis Jiménez Lao, appointed the four female international referees of the event as First referee in Saturday’s matches as follows:

-Walda Maldonado of Guatemala, semifinal match United States vs Costa Rica

-Cinthya Hernández of Costa Rica, semifinal match Puerto Rico vs Mexico

-María Alejandra Izquierdo of Nicaragua, classification match 5-8 Belize vs Guatemala

-Yeimy Hernández of Dominican Republic, classification match 5-8 Suriname vs Nicaragua

This is complying with one of the decisions taken during a webinar organized by the NORCECA Referee Commission in commemoration of Women’s International Day that seeks for more opportunities for growth and development of female international referees in the region.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 17, 2023.- The United States will play in the NORCECA U19 Pan Am Cup gold medal match with a perfect record after defeating Costa Rica 3-0 (25-19, 25-19, 25-15) in Friday’s semifinal in Guatemala.

United States will battle Mexico in the final for the second time in a row. The U.S. beat Mexico in last year’s title match here in Guatemala. Costa Rica and Puerto Rico will play in the bronze medal match.

United States was  successful with a 45-20 margin in attacks, 8-2 in blocks and 6-0 in serves, but they handed out 31 points from unforced errors while Costa Rica only allowed 16. This was the second occasion in the tournament that the U.S. beat Costa Rica.

Outside hitter Sterling Foley of USA led all scorers with 15 points on 14 kills and one block, joined by opposite hitter Finn Kearney with 11 points on 9 kills and two blocks.

Opposite hitter Yulius Brown of Costa Rica scored 11 points all on kills.

Tread Rosenthal, captain of United States: “We’ve played great the whole tournament and it feels great to be in the final match. Our team chemistry is great even with the limited time we have together. Mexico will bring a lot of energy tomorrow, but hopefully we’ll take care of them doing a good job”.

Yulius Brown, top scorer of Costa Rica: “Against such a powerful team like the USA I believe we did well in attacks, we failed some serves but we made our best effort. We are coming out strong for the bronze against Puerto Rico who had a different path than ours”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 17, 2023.- Mexico outclassed Puerto Rico 3-0 (25-22, 25-14, 31-29) in semifinals to reach their second consecutive NORCECA U19 Pan American Cup finals in Guatemala.

Mexico managed to advance in the finals with a straight set win after a highly contested and exciting third set. Puerto Rico took on a one-one battle at the end, their effort wasn’t enough to extend the actions further.

Mexico also beat Puerto Rico in last year’s U19 Pan Am Cup semifinals here in Guatemala but in five sets.

Mexico finished with a 54-41 advantage in attacks, a 3-1 margin in aces and committed fewer errors (19-21). Puerto Rico held a slim 4-3 margin in blocks.

Outside hitter Ines Vargas scored an impressive 28 points (26 kills, one block, one ace) in Mexico’s victory, while Brandon Ramirez contributed with 18 points (16 kills, one block, one ace).

Team captain Ramon Rosado led Puerto Rico’s offense with 12 points all on kills.

José Adame, captain of Mexico: “This was our goal, to play the final match. We were overconfident in the third set because the score was too low in the second and Puerto Rico took a good advantage, in the first two sets they were silent but in the third they had more energy”.

Oscar Viña, head coach of Mexico: “It was a dramatic finish, but a strong win because it was only in three sets. The third set was close and from the start I told the boys not to relax because we still hadn’t won, Puerto Rico almost won the set and who knows what would’ve happened. I am glad to reach the final once again”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 17, 2023.- Hosts Guatemala downed Belize 3-0 (25-23, 25-16, 25-17) to battle against Nicaragua for fifth place of the NORCECA Boys U19 Pan American Cup.

Guatemala recovered from a four-point deficit (10-14) to start the first set and move on to control Belize the following sets. On the last day of the event, Guatemala plays against Nicaragua for fifth place and Belize faces Suriname for position seven.

The hosts held a 31-26 margin in attacks and Belize 6-4 in the blocking category; both teams scored one ace. Guatemala scored on 39 Belizean errors and handed out 23.

Guatemala’s best attacker was middle blocker Sergio Paz with 14 points from 13 kills and one block.

Outside hitter Eleazar Mejia led Belize with a match-high of 19 points on 18 kills and one block.

Sergio Paz, top scorer of Guatemala: “We got in cold; we had trouble to gain energy and passion which we are known for, little by little we did it and that helped us. Volleyball is a sport where energy is a crucial factor, even more than skills. We are sore and tired, but we will close with our all”.

Daunte Gill, libero of Belize: “We tried our best, we could have done better in our execution and for next time we will come stronger than ever. For tomorrow we will try to focus, keep our head high and see what it brings”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 17, 2023.- Nicaragua beat Suriname 3-2 (28-26, 20-25, 25-18, 19-25, 15-7) to play for fifth place at the NORCECA U19 Boys Pan American Cup in Guatemala City.

Nicaragua will play for fifth place against the winner between Guatemala and Belize; Suriname for seventh place.

It was a party of points in the first set, won by Nicaragua where Suriname lost three set points (24-22), which set the rhythm for the continuing sets. Suriname held a huge advantage in the fourth set only to fall in the tie-break.

The Central Americans held advantages in attacks (58-53) and aces (3-2), Suriname was better in blocking 10-8. In errors, Nicaragua finished with 36 and Suriname with 38.

Opposite hitter Victor Bermudez led Nicaragua’s scorers with 20 points on 18 kills and two aces, accompanied by middle blocker Angelo Guadamez and outside hitter Evans Solis with 15 points apiece.

Suriname´s top scorer was outside hitter Anfernee Lee with 20 points on 16 kills and four points from aces, followed by outside hitter Gianni Ritfeld with 19 points on 17 kills and two blocks, while opposite hitter Meson Anakaba chipped in with 13 points on 10 kills, two blocks and one ace.

Víctor Bermudez, top scorer of Nicaragua: “We had complications in receiving, lack of concentration and we were overconfident committing basic errors. We were able to win thanks to our coaches’ instructions, how to position and our energy improved”.

Jorge Mena, head coach of Nicaragua: “This tournament took us by surprise, the boys are doing a great effort, they don’t give up and we reached the goal, we won’t finish last. Some players, like number 3 (Bermudez) today was on fire, he motivated the team and I made some adjustments in the fifth for the win”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 16, 2023.- Costa Rica beat hosts Guatemala 3-0 (25-21, 25-13, 25-21) to advance into the semifinals of the NORCECA Boys U19 Pan American Cup in the Guatemala City Dome.

Costa Rica will face United States and the other semifinal will be Mexico against Puerto Rico.

Costa Rica left little to none chances for Guatemala to respond to their strong attacks and blocks, dominating the entire match with consistency.

The winners held a huge 13-2 margin in blocks and a 44-33 advantage in attacks, both teams scored two points from serves. Guatemala committed fewer errors (16-18).

Outside hitter Stanley Grant scored a match-high of 22 points on 16 kills, the most blocks of 5 points and one ace, followed by opposite hitter Yulius Brown with 13 points on 10 kills and three blocks, and outside hitter Julián Araya registered 12 points on 11 kills and one block.

Outside hitter Pedro Villatoro topped Guatemala with 9 points and middle blocker Andrés Paz added 8 points.

Robertocarlo Argüello, head coach of Costa Rica: “What made the difference was our pool in the preliminary round, having played against United States, Mexico and Belize helped us gain confidence. We had two experiences last year against Guatemala and we know each other well. Our strength is attacking high over the net, and everything went well. Traveling from Costa Rica our goal was to finish among the first four positions, now we are thinking of reaching the podium”.

Theo Wandel, central de Guatemala: “The team’s concentration wasn’t at its best, we failed in receiving and there was no back row defense, they scored mostly there. We must recover mentally because there are two days of competitions left”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 16, 2023.- Mexico secured their place in the NORCECA U19 Boys Pan American Cup semifinals defeating Nicaragua 3-0 (25-13, 25-20, 25-15) in the quarterfinals on Friday in Guatemala.

Mexico maintained comfortable leads in the first and third sets, but they struggled to recover from a four-point deficit (4-8) in the second while Nicaragua largely improved with a faster game.

Mexico prevailed 35-19 in kills, 9-4 in blocks and 4-1 in serves, while committing 24 unforced errors against 27 from Nicaragua.

The only player with double digits was Mexican outside hitter Ines Vargas with 12 points on 10 kills and two points on serves. Also contributing to the win were opposite hitter Julio Serrano and outside hitter Victor Miranda with 7 and 6 points respectively.

Middle blocker Edu Urbina led Nicaragua with 8 points all on kills.

Alfredo Vazquez, libero of Mexico: “We were overconfident in the second set after a strong first set, it wasn’t our usual performance, there were confusions and technical errors on our side. We are closer to the goal of reaching the final and winning the tournament.

Oscar Viña, head coach of Mexico: “I made several variations in the second set because I need to know how my bench players perform, I made five changes; I saw the opportunity to do it now thinking that our next matches will be more demanding. I was part of the errors; I take the learning”.

Jorge Mena head coach of Nicaragua: “The loss against Guatemala discouraged the team and today it was a dull game. Our goal now is to beat all our opponents and to finish in fifth place, which isn’t a bad position for us in the tournament”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 15, 2023.- Puerto Rico won a semifinal spot at the NORCECA U19 Pan American Cup beating Guatemala 3-0 (25-19, 25-18, 25-16) on Wednesday at the Guatemala City Dome.

Puerto Rico topped pool B 3-0 reaching Friday’s semifinals, while the host Guatemala finished second 2-1 and will face Costa Rica in the quarterfinal round on Thursday.

Puerto Rico blocked Guatemala the entire match by a huge 12-4 margin, they also led 34-24 in kills and 3-1 in aces. Both committed a similar number of errors, Puerto Rico 24, and Guatemala 26.

Opposite hitter Dylan Velazquez led Puerto Rico with 16 points on 13 kills and 3 blocks, followed by outside hitter Victor Torres with 11 points and outside hitter Franco Roark chipped in with 7 points.

Guatemala’s leading scorer was middle blocker Sergio Paz with 8 points.

Dylan Velázquez, top scorer of Puerto Rico: “This was our best match so far, all our practice paid off, all went well; we defended and served well, putting the ball in. We are now in the semifinals, we are going to give our all and we have a small dispute against Mexico, we want to win if we get to face them”.

Carlos De Sevilla, head coach of Puerto Rico: “We are glad, the boys executed the game plan we practiced today, we felt comfortable compared to other matches. Without taking any merit from Guatemala, we pressured them, the blocking was in position and the boys performed well. Now we must rest and prepare for the next match”.

Luis Fernando Castañeda, head coach of Guatemala: “Today was our turn to lose, Puerto Rico plays very well and they adjusted their serves well, complicating our reception. The team battled against one of the powerhouse of the area, but we lack experience and practice matches which in the end affects us. We continue to work, now we must focus on tomorrow’s match against Costa Rica”. 

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 15, 2023.- Nicaragua finished third in pool B beating Suriname 3-0 (25-22, 25-18, 25-22) and will face Mexico in quarterfinals at the NORCECA U19 Boys Pan American Cup in Guatemala.

Nicaragua with 1-2 record in pool B finished third to move into the quarterfinal round to face Mexico that finished second in pool A. Suriname ended the preliminary round 0-3 and will play for positions 5-8.

Nicaragua controlled the attacks with a 36-31 margin and Suriname held a slim 8-7 advantage in blocks. Both teams scored one ace. Nicaragua committed 22 errors and Suriname a total of 31.

Opposite hitter Victor Bermudez and outside hitter Evans Solis led Nicaragua with 14 points each; Bermudez on 12 kills and two blocks, Evans on 13 kills and one block.

Outside hitter Anfernee Lee led Suriname scoring 12 points on 11 kills and one block, joined by opposite hitter Meson Anakaba who tallied 11 points on 9 kills and two blocks.  

Cristhoper Castillo, captain of Nicaragua: “Today the other outside hitter made the difference, we have made many variations during the tournament and today things worked well. Tomorrow, we face Mexico, a strong opponent and we will give our all”.

Jorge Mena, head coach of Nicaragua: “It wasn’t an option to lose, we needed the win to be in the next round. We practiced well in the morning session and the players were obedient during the game, they saw that the force isn’t enough and that they have hit against the blocking, that made us win”.

Siryan Meijer, setter of Suriname: “It was a close match but we always make childish mistakes at the end of the sets. We really wanted to win today and play in the quarterfinals, we are disappointed. The team needs to be more enthusiastic, aggressive and communicate better”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 15, 2023.- Mexico defeated Belize 3-0 (25-13, 25-14, 25-15) and finished second in pool A of the NORCECA Boys U19 Pan American Cup in Guatemala.

Mexico finished pool-play with a 2-1 win-loss record and will play in Thursday’s quarterfinals. Belize ends with 0-3 and will play for positions 5-8.

Mexico prevailed over Belize with a 26-20 advantage in attacks, 10-4 in blocks and 6-1 in aces. In errors, Mexico committed 17 against 33 from Belize.

Opposite hitter Julio Serrano topped Mexico attackers with 10 points on 6 kills and 4 blocks, followed by middle blocker Diego Hernández and outside hitter Brandon Ramírez with 8 and 6 points respectively.

Outside hitter Eleazar Mejía of Belize led all scorers with 15 points on 14 kills and one block.

Oscar Viña, head coach of Mexico: “The most difficult match of this phase was against United States, we tried, but slowly we will find more opportunities in which we might take advantage and we are a more experienced team than the other teams in this pool. Now we must focus on the quarterfinals, our goal is to reach the semifinals. We are aiming to play for a medal, we have prepared for that”.

Albert Humes, head coach of Belize: “My team got really tired during this phase of the competition, the short time to prepare showed and the longevity wasn’t there, so today they were flat. Mexico did a good job scouting us and they executed well”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 15, 2023.- United States earned a ticket into semifinals winning pool A after defeating Costa Rica 3-0 (25-18, 25-20, 25-17) at the NORCECA Boys U19 Pan American Cup on Wednesday in Guatemala City.

United States topped pool A undefeated (3-0) to play in Friday’s semifinals. Costa Rica finishes (1-2) and waits for the result between Mexico and Belize to learn their final pool A position.

The Americans had the opportunity to use new players on the court, finishing with a huge 46-23 margin in kills, 8-1 in blocks and 6-0 in aces. They scored on 31 opponent errors against 15 of their own.

Outside hitter Victor Loiola led the U.S. with 15 points on 13 kills, one block and one ace. Also contributing to the win were opposite hitter Marek Turner and Joshua Aruya with 10 points each.

On Costa Rica side, outside hitter Stanley Grant led with 11 points all on kills.

Victor Loiola, top scorer of United States:  “We had some new faces in today, everybody did their job and capitalized on that energy from the start; we played a good match. As a team we need to improve our pre-count checklist, going through what we must see on the other side of the net, what they are going to run and how we are going to stop it”.

Matthew Fuerbringer, head coach of United States: “After the match I spoke to the team about completing our first stage, completing our goal of 3-0 and winning the stage. Now it’s a lot about recovery, we must be smart to recover and get together to watch some video with the guys so everyone can get better, especially those whose first time on the court was today; get as much time as we can in this day and a half to get ready for the medal round”.

David Córdoba, captain of Costa Rica: “United States is a physical team, they are very structured during the game and I believe they weren’t superior the entire match, we couldn’t take advantage of those moments when they weren’t, we were one or two points of catching up with them Now we wait for the result of the next match”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 14, 2023.- Guatemala picked up their second win defeating Nicaragua 3-1 (21-25, 25-20, 25-18, 25-18) at the NORCECA Boys U19 Pan American Cup on Tuesday night at the Guatemala City Dome.

Guatemala improved their record 2-0 to remain undefeated and will face Puerto Rico (2-0) to decide pool B winner. Nicaragua drops to 0-2 and will close pool-play against Suriname (0-2).

Guatemala recovered from falling in the first set, struggling to catch up from a three-point deficit in the second (15-18) and holding Nicaraguans better blocking to even the scores. From there on Guatemala controlled Nicaragua.

The hosts held huge advantages in kills (50-39) and aces (11-3), while Nicaragua finished with a 10-2 blocking margin. Guatemala handed out 29 points in errors and Nicaragua a total of 33.

Outside hitter Roberto Recinos and middle blocker Sergio Paz led Guatemala’s attackers with 16 and 11 points respectively.

Outside hitter Evans Solís once again topped Nicaragua’s offense scoring a match-high of 18 points and middle blocker Edu Urbina added 12 points.

Luis Fernando Castañeda, head coach of Guatemala: “The coaching staff is confident of our team and we knew they could recover for the win. The changes turned out well, we were facing a strong opponent and our serves worked better after falling in the first set. It’s important to keep on winning”.

Jorge Mena, head coach of Nicaragua: “We have many rookies on the team and they can’t keep up with the pressure. Guatemala has a team with more experience and that made us hesitate, we lack consistency which makes us commit too many errors at crucial moments. It’s not an option to lose tomorrow so we can advance into the next round”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 14, 2023.- Costa Rica won a five-set thriller 3-2 (25-14, 21-25, 30-32, 25-18, 15-11) over Central American rival Belize at the NORCECA U19 Pan American Cup in Guatemala.

This was Costa Rica’s first win in pool A improving their record 1-1, while Belize stands with 0-2.

Belize turned up the heat winning the second set but not before missing two set points. Brayden Richardson put an end to a marathon third set 32-30 with a monster block. Costa jumped to an early 8-0 advantage in the fourth and remained on top to reach a tie-break finish.

Costa Rica led in blocks 15-13, while Belize dominated 53-50 in kills and 3-2 in aces. Costa Rica scored on 49 Belizean errors and handed out 31 points.

Outside hitter Stanley Grant topped Costa Rica with 24 points on 20 kills and 4 blocks, joined by outside hitter Julian Araya with 13 points (12 kills, one ace) and opposite hitter Yulius Brown with 12 points (10 kills, 2 blocks).

Belizean Eleazar Mejía led all scorers with 28 points, the most so far in the tournament, on 26 kills, one block and one ace. Opposite hitter Daniel Musa added 14 points on 9 kills, 4 blocks and one ace; and outside hitter Preston Smith scored 13 points on 11 kills and 2 blocks.

On Wednesday, Costa Rica (1-1) plays against the United States (2-0) and Belize (0-2) faces Mexico (1-1).

Stanley Grant, top scorer of Costa Rica: “Belize is a strong opponent, it has very good players that can make the difference during a match. Costa Rica had a lot of courage to recover coming from behind, we were superior. We are happy and hoping for more wins”.

Robertocarlo Argüello, head coach of Costa Rica: “Since we saw them at the Central American championship, where they finished third place, we were expecting them to be a tough opponent. We had difficulties in the second and third sets, committing too many errors. We were able to order them giving the necessary instructions during time-out, they understood that they must give the ball to the setter for us to manage the game. I believe Costa Rica still isn’t performing at its level, we must go on learning”.

Nicanor Requena, captain of Belize: “Costa Rica had a little more hustle than we did, but the team played well, and we are very proud of our performance”. 

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 14, 2023.- The United States battled to down Mexico 3-1 (23-25, 25-19, 25-19, 25-20) on Tuesday in pool A at the NORCECA Boys U19 Pan American Cup in Guatemala.

In the first set Mexico remarkably recovered from an eight-point deficit (8-16) to win the first set, challenging the U.S. in every way. United States slowly gained control but still it was a one-on-one clash. This was the U.S. second tournament win (2-0) and Mexico’s first loss (1-1).

United States led 53-39 in kills, 9-6 in blocks and 4-3 in serves. Mexico had fewer errors (32-25).

Opposite hitter Finn Kearney and outside hitter Sterling Foley led United States with 16 points each; Finn on 13 kills and three blocks, Sterling on 15 kills and one block. Outside hitter Sean Kelly also contributed in the win with 14 points on 10 kills one block and the most aces with 3.

Mexico’s leading scorer was outside hitter Ines Vargas with 15 points on 14 kills and one ace, followed by Victor Miranda with 11 points on 10 kills and one ace.

United States will face Costa Rica (0-1) and Mexico goes against Belize (0-1) on the last day of the preliminary round.

Finn Kearny, top scorer of United States: “The difference from the first set from the rest of the match was our energy and passing, when we were able to get in system, we were unstoppable. Once we got a big lead, and we didn’t give up. We expect a lot of wins”.

Matthew Fuerbringer, head coach of United States: “We had a high-level match, Mexico was really good and in the first two sets we weren’t. In system we were great the entire match, so that was a good improvement from our past match. Mexico dig a lot of balls, they kept everything in play, a well-coached team, a very smart team and that’s a great win for us today, they made us compete at a high level the entire match”.  

Ines Vargas, top scorer of Mexico: “We were focused and more into the game at the start, we tried very hard, we were confident and we came behind from eight points; if we continue to perform like this we might play the final match against them. United States studied us well, our weaknesses and that’s how they won”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 14, 2023.- Puerto Rico scored their second win at the NORCECA Boys U19 Pan American Cup beating Suriname 3-0 (25-17, 26-24, 25-19).

After a closely contested second set, where Suriname thrilled with longer rallies and reaching an even 24,  Puerto Rico came out on top in their second win in pool B.

Puerto Rico led with a huge 40-20 advantage in attacks and 11-2 in serves, they also held a slim 5-4 margin in blocks. Suriname committed fewer errors (20-34).

Outside hitter Victor Torres of Puerto Rico scored a match-high of 17 points on 12 kills, one block and 4 aces. Outside hitter Franco Roark and opposite hitter Dylan Velázquez contributed with 12 and 10 points respectively.

Opposite hitter Meson Anakaba led Suriname with 11 points on 10 kills and one block, joined by outside hitter Leong Lee with 9 points.

Pool-play finishes on Wednesday with Puerto Rico (2-0) facing Guatemala (1-0) and Suriname (0-2) against Nicaragua (0-1).

Víctor Torres, top scorer of  Puerto Rico: “Our strength is the hard work we’ve been doing in practice. There are things to improve, everyday we’re doing it better. The second set was close because of some technical errors that shouldn’t be hard to correct during practice”.

Mesón Anakaba, top scorer of Suriname: “I think I could have done much better than I did today, I am going to work hard to improve. We had more fighting spirit in the second set, but because of our mistakes we not only lost the set but the match as well”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 13, 2023.- Host Guatemala opened the NORCECA U19 Pan American Cup with a strong 3-0 (25-19, 25-8, 25-14) victory over Suriname on Monday night at the Guatemala City Dome.

Guatemala had no complications in their tournament debut in pool B, especially in set two, leaving Suriname with little opportunities to respond.

The home team led by a 27-21 margin in attacks, 6-3 in blocks and a huge 10-0 advantage in serves. Guatemala benefited from 32 opponent errors against 17 on their side.

Middle blocker Sergio Paz led Guatemala with 13 points on 9 kills, two blocks and two aces while opposite hitter Meson Anakaba led Suriname with 12 points on 11 kills and one block.

On day two of competition Guatemala (1-0) faces Nicaragua (0-1) and Suriname (0-1) plays against Puerto Rico (1-0).

Adolfo Rivas, captain of Guatemala: “Guatemala looked powerful, we showed how much we have trained, but our nerves made us fail serves which we normally don’t. Tomorrow we are going to face Nicaragua and we will give our all”.

Luis Fernando Castañeda, head coach of Guatemala: “It’s always good to start with the right foot, with a victory. We didn’t know anything about Suriname and they boys did a good job. The fans helped the team control their nerves. One of the key elements today was directing our serves. We will prepare for the game against Nicaragua who plays strong, we have faced them on other occasions”.

Brendan Hiwat, captain of Suriname: “We trained for this tournament, and I think we can do a lot better. The guys were a little bit nervous and that kicked in. Our coach told us just to play. We need to train our pass harder; it wasn’t that good. Tomorrow is another day, and we must figure out where we came short”.

Antoine Vliet, head coach of Suriname: “My guys didn’t play well, I think it was the nerves. I don’t know what happened in the second and third set. We need to come back stronger, this is just the beginning”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 13, 2023.- Puerto Rico recovered from falling in the first set to beat Nicaragua 3-1 (21-25, 25-19, 25-16, 25-20) in their opening match at the NORCECA U19 Pan American Cup being held at the Guatemala City Dome.

Nicaragua had a remarkable first set, taking Puerto Rico off balance, forcing the match to go to overtime. Puerto Rico gained confidence ending with a 51-43 advantage in attacks, 10-4 in blocks and 5-2 in serving points.

Both teams committed a similar number of errors, Nicaragua committed one less error (30-31).

Three players led Puerto Rico scorers, starting with opposite hitter Dylan Velásquez with a match-high of 20 points (17 kills, 3 blocks). Outside hitter Franco Roark added 17 points (11 kills, 2 blocks, 4 aces) and outside hitter Victor Torres contributed with 14 points (12 kills, 2 blocks).

Outside hitter Evans Solis scored 15 points all on kills, the only player with double-figures from Nicaragua.

Puerto Rico’s next opponent is Suriname and Guatemala’s is Nicaragua.

Ramón Rosado, captain of Puerto Rico: “This is a new group, we have seven new players and in the beginning we were too nervous. We will go on adjusting slowly, I believe we lost the first set because we were nervous, added to the fact that we play on a much smaller court than this one. We were able to adjust in the second set and we hope to go on improving. With the new rule we were able to pass well with our reception, we have practiced that a lot and it helped us to open the game and attack easily”.

Carlos De Sevilla, head coach of Puerto Rico: “I believe the nerves of the first match and making our tournament debut made things difficult in the first set, without taking away the merit to Nicaragua who came to play strong. We learned that we must always perform well and motivate the team. I liked that we came from behind and recovered from a not so good first set, we are missing a lot, we committed too many errors in blocking and defense”.

Cristhoper Castillo, captain of Nicaragua: “The energy in the first set was better, we started off the second set overconfident after winning the first and we got into Puerto Rico’s system. I believe we were united as a team”.

Jorge Mena, head coach of Nicaragua: “We came out to win, no matter our opponent. We weren’t able to keep up with Puerto Rico, which is an elite team. We kept on fighting, but the team had ups and downs and Puerto Rico went up, it’s a satisfying result”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 13, 2023.- Mexico won the battle to Costa Rica 3-0 (25-23, 25-20, 25-16) to start the NORCECA U19 Pan American Cup in Guatemala City.

Costa Rica surprised Mexico in the opening, evening the score on several occasions up to point 23, but a service error gave Mexico the advantage to take the win and control the rest of the game, earning their first win in pool A.

Mexico led in every skill, 37-28 (attacks), 9-7 (blocks) and 3-0 (serves); and committed fewer unforced errors (24-26).

Outside hitter Antonio Vargas and opposite hitter Julio Cesar Serrano led Mexico attackers; Vargas with 17 points on 12 kills, 2 blocks and 3 aces; and Serrano with 14 on 12 kills and two blocks.

Two players also led Costa Rica’s offense, outside hitter Stanley Grant with 15 points on 14 kills and one block, while opposite hitter Yulius Brown added 10 points on 9 kills and one block.

On Tuesday, Mexico (1-0) will face United States (1-1) and Costa Rica (0-1) will go against Belize (0-1).

José Alejandro Adame, captain of Mexico: “We were too hyped, we lost our heads, and we had no control. We were able to win because as Mexicans we are strong, and we never give up. Tomorrow is against the United States and it will be really hard, we hope to give them a scare”.

Oscar Viña, head coach of Mexico: “We had no control in the beginning, we made a double-change and that made them lose control even more because of a bad position. Mexico improved in serves, reception, but mostly our blocking was successful and that helped us a lot”.  

David Córdoba, captain of Costa Rica: “Our attitude was better in the first set, the team was down after having the first set in our hands and we lost it; that had a bad effect on us in the next two sets. The mental part played a trick on us, more than technique and tactics. Mexico plays at a different rhythm, and we had difficulties in dominating the game to get into our rhythm and not in theirs”.

Robertocarlo Argüello, head coach of Costa Rica: “The anxiety killed them, watching that the first set was even and that we should have been calmer, we lost a serve and Mexico moved ahead. We reorganized things in the second set but we weren’t able to play fast, we also made adjustments and it made things even harder. We couldn’t motivate the team. Tomorrow, we face Belize, we saw them against United States, they did well, and we will study our strategy”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 13, 2023.- The United States started the NORCECA U19 Pan American Cup with a straight set win 3-0 (25-11, 25-21, 25-22) in pool A over Belize at Guatemala City Dome.

The U.S. recovered from a three-point deficit (11-14) in set two and struggled to get back on track in the third after Belize pushed harder getting into a better rhythm of play.

United States led by a huge 33-10 margin in attacks and 10-3 in serves; Belize held a slim 6-5 margin in blocks, while committing fewer errors (27-35).

Opposite hitter Finn Kearney of United States led all scorers with 13 points on 11 kills, one block and one ace; followed by outside hitter Sean Kelly with 10 points on 7 kills, two blocks and one ace.

Outside hitter Eleazar Mejía and opposite hitter Daniel Musa scored 6 and 5 points respectively for Belize.

On day two of the event, United States faces Mexico and Belize goes up against Costa Rica.

Tread Rosenthal, captain of United States: “The first set was good, Belize played great the next two sets and we just folded in ourselves a little bit, we lost focus and maybe got too relaxed. We will get better; we have physical players and that will help us later”.

Matthew Fuerbringer, head coach of United States: “Belize did a great job in the last two sets, credit to them. Our serving went down a little bit and even when we did serve well, they (Belize) did a much better job in getting used to the speed of our serves which kept them in play and made a good out of system in swings in plays against us. It was a different type of team to play against; we saw some things we must clean up on our end, but overall, I got everyone in the match today, some of the guys it’s the first time wearing the  U.S. jersey of the U.S. I guess that when you win so easily in the first set it sets a mood and when we weren’t beating them early in the second set  guys got a bit anxious”.  

Nicanor Requena, captain of Belize: “In the last two sets the reception and defense was a lot better, allowing us to incorporate our middles more into the game because of the better passing. It was a good start in the tournament, I expect to see some wins later in the games. We’re getting used to the ball and the new rule”.

Albert Humes, head coach of Belize: “The first set we were nervous, the team gave too much respect towards the United States, but they started to gain confidence and the last two sets were o.k. I think we need to work in the last part of the game, it showed our lack of focus. It was a nice beginning”.

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 12, 2023.- The Boys U19 NORCECA Pan American Cup will serve for coaches and teams to better prepare for a new volleyball rule that will be implemented and tested as during this year’s age group FIVB World Championship.

NORCECA president Cristobal Marte Hoffiz and Referee Coach of the event Prof. José Luis Jiménez Lao in compliance to the FIVB regulations, explained coaches the details of the rule which states that at the first hit of the team, it is forbidden to make the service reception with an overhand fingers action.

For this matter, coaches were handed out a written description of the rule clarifying that the service reception is only permitted by a digging action or any action that does not involve overhand fingers (setting mode).

The FIVB goal is to reduce the high number of service errors in a match by encouraging variety in the type of service style, to encourage the use of floating serves for those players who are not so consistent using the jump serve, to continue encouraging the spectacular jump serve leading to an “ace” for those players who are very strong in this action and who are consistent in using it, to create longer rallies getting better attack/defence balance and to reduce pseudo rallies and one-attack rallies. 

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, March 12, 2023.- Coaches of the eight teams attending the Boys U19 NORCECA Pan American Cupare ready for the event that opens on Monday with United States facing Belize. 

On Sunday morning, teams went through the preliminary inquiries where they were explained that all participating teams are qualified and eligible to participate in the NORCECA U19 Continental Championship 2024, the qualifying event to the FIVB U19 World Championship.

The official competition game ball will be MIKASA V200W, marking the formal kick off of the new partnership between the NORCECA Volleyball Confederation and MIKASA Corporation.

Coaches shared their insights prior to compete:

Albert Humes, head coach of Belize: “This is the first time for this youth category in Belize to compete at this level and we are really excited to see what they can do to keep our volleyball progressing. This team is not the same one we competed with in the Central American championship back in September and I believe it’s a better one, so I expect a lot of things. We are not satisfied with just coming to represent Belize, we are here to create hard work”. 

Robertocarlo Argüello, head coach of Costa Rica: “90 percent of the players are going to this years’ world championship in Argentina. We are glad about the strong competition of our pool in this tournament, alongside United States, Mexico and Belize who showed great level at the Central American championship. This tournament helps us to strive for Argentina. We are here to compete, not to participate and we want to do things well, that’s why we’ve been training hard and it’s not by chance that we are the current Central American champions”.

Luis Fernando Castañeda, head coach of Guatemala: “Guatemala always comes out to compete the best we can and being the host adds a small pressure to perform better. There are teams of great level and we will face each match the best way possible, aiming for a medal. All the boys are motivated, prepared to battle. We have new members in the process, and we hope they achieve what we expect from them; we have trust in each and every one”.

Oscar Viña, head coach of Mexico: “The goal is to finish in the first two places. We consider the tournament favorite is United States, we know about their quality, so we believe we will have great resistance from Puerto Rico. This is great preparation for our team that will be competing this year in Argentina”.

Jorge Mena, head coach of Nicaragua: “Nicaragua always goes to tournaments to compete and not to participate. We are prepared for the challenge and we will give our best; we will try to win the most matches possible and learn with each one of them. We will put up a fight against the bigger teams”.

Carlos De Sevilla Ríos, head coach of Puerto Rico: “This is a great opportunity to prepare for the world championship in Argentina, put into practice new things and mostly with the new rule. The group is a bit different than last year; we have more height, and we hope to reach the first two positions to battle for the gold medal”.

Antoine Vilet, head coach of Suriname: “The team is prepared, they are a young and talented group. We have two months preparing for this tournament, we are ready to compete, to hit and score a valuable experience”.

Mathew Fuerbringer, head coach of United States: “We’re here to start the qualification process for the World Championship. We have great competition; every game is going to be a challenge for us. The boys have been working really hard and we’re coming to win, we are excited for the competition and to get better”.