Tegucigalpa, Honduras, June 13, 2024.- Costa Rica kicked off the inaugural AFECAVOL Women’s Final Four Tournament with a 3-0 win (25-22, 25-23, 25-12) over El Salvador in the opening match of the event.
Costa Rica dominated El Salvador in all aspects of the game. Costa Rica outperformed in attacks (42-26) and serves (5-0), in blocking the teams were balanced but they led 5-3 over El Salvador
Tamara Espinoza and Tatiana Sayles were key players in Costa Rica’s attack, each scoring 14 points. Espinoza scored 3 aces, while Tannia Carazo added 8 points to Costa Rica’s victory.
For El Salvador, Marcela Alejandra Soriano led the team with 8 points, followed by Daniela Alexandra López with 7 points.
Tatiana Sayles, captain of Costa Rica, commented after the match “El Salvador is a very tough team; they challenged us a lot with their defense in the first two sets. It wasn’t until the third set that we managed to focus on what we wanted, and that’s why there was such a difference in the third set.”
Carmen Chávez, captain of El Salvador, said “We played really well in the first two sets, but in the third set, we struggled a bit with our reception. Our setter got hit in the face with the ball, which distracted her for a few moments. By the time we regained our focus, the gap was too wide to close.”