XALAPA, Mexico, September 3, 2024.- Cuba defeated Chile 3-1 (19-25, 25-23, 27-25, 25-13) on the first day of competition at the Women’s U23 Pan American Cup in the International Velodrome of Xalapa, Veracruz.
Cuba recovered after losing the first set with a 45-42 advantage in attacks and scoring 36 points on Chile’s errors compared to their own 22. Chile had the edge in blocking with 14-8 and scored one more point in aces, 8-7.
Cuba’s captain, Whitney James, led her team with 16 points (14 attacks, 2 aces). Opposite hitter Lisania Grafort added 10 points, all on attacks.
Chilean opposite hitter Petra Schwartzman was the top scorer of the match with impressive 29 points (21 attacks, 5 blocks, 3 aces). Outside hitter Dominga Aylwin contributed 11 points, including 5 blocks, followed by middle blocker Maria Ignacia Nielsen with 10 points.
On the second day of Pool A, Cuba (1-0) will face Costa Rica (0-1) at 2:00 PM, and Chile (0-1) will take on the Dominican Republic (1-0) at 6:00 PM.
Chile quickly earned a six-point lead (16-10) in the first set, capitalizing on Cuba’s reception errors, along with Petra Schwartzman’s offense and Maria Ignacia Nielsen’s blocking. Cuba came back from a seven-point deficit in the second set (13-20) with attacks from Lisania Grafort and Thainalien Castillo. Yensy Kindelan stopped Chile with a block, and Whitney James’ attack tied the match. Cuba took the third set after losing two set points to Petra, but a block by Lisbeysis Hernández put Cuba ahead. With a 4-1 advantage in blocks and 2-0 in aces, Cuba dominated the fourth and final set.
Whitney James, captain of Cuba: “The key to our recovery was patience, a lot of patience. We focused on correcting our mistakes and calming down. This is the first match of the tournament, and it’s normal to have ups and downs; training is one thing, and playing a match is another. We concentrated on our game”.
Camila Donoso, captain of Chile: “Cuba finished extraordinarily; they started blocking us, especially at the end of the match, making it difficult for us to score, and as a result, we got frustrated. It’s only the first match; we’re used to the pressure of coming from behind, and I’m sure we’ll bounce back”.
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