BELIZE CITY, Belize, August 12, 2023 – Guatemala only needed one set to become the Champion of the 22nd edition of the AFECAVOL Men’s Central American Volleyball Cup, and they achieved this against Panama on the last day of competition, winning the game 3-0 (25-19, 25-20, 25-18).
Guatemala comfortably dominated in attacks with a 16-point difference, tallying 41-25. The blocks, were 10-4 in favor of Guatemala, while in services, Panama was more effective with 6 to 3.
Panama earned 22 points from Guatemala’s errors and conceded 21 to their opponent.
Outside hitter and captain of Guatemala, Carlos López, with 18 points, all from attacks, was the top scorer for his country. For Panama, outside hitter Félix Williams scored 14 points, with 10 from attacks, one from a block, and two from service.
Guatemala finished the tournament with five wins and one loss, while Panama closed with two wins and four losses.
INTERVIEWS
Reider Lucas, Guatemala Coach: “I said at the beginning in the preliminary inquiry that it was going to be a very balanced tournament, and at the same time, it was going to be very competitive due to the rivalry among the countries. This makes the event even more beautiful. As you can see, the champion is decided on the last day. We are very happy; this is the fourth edition we have won. We trusted a lot of young athletes, and we knew that with them, we could achieve a result. We have athletes with a longer life in volleyball, which helps us a lot within the group. We missed some athletes due to personal commitments, but they are part of this process.”
Horacio Angulo Calderón, Panama Coach: “We faced a quite solid team; we tried to play our game, but Guatemala worked very well. The assessment I make of the tournament is that it’s quite competitive. Guatemala lost to Costa Rica. The teams came to do their job, and it shows that fatigue reveals many things at some point; my team fell due to physical fatigue, we tried and fought until the end.”
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