GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, June 26, 2026. – Mexico defeated Guatemala in straight sets 3-0 (25-23, 25-13, 25-22) in the quarterfinals of the Men’s U21 Pan American Cup to secure its place in the semifinals, joining the United States and Canada, who had already advanced as pool winners.
The semifinal matchups, scheduled for Saturday, will be determined following the conclusion of the match between Costa Rica and Venezuela.
Mexico held the advantage in attacks (48-35) and aces (2-1), while Guatemala led in blocks (5-3). Mexico committed 17 unforced errors compared to Guatemala’s 22.
Cristian Cadena led Mexico with 13 points, while José Luis Samayoa also scored 13 points to pace Guatemala. They were the only players to reach double figures in scoring.
The opening set was tightly contested, with both teams exchanging points until a 23-23 tie. Mexico earned set point after an attacking error from Guatemala’s opposite hitter José Luis Samayoa, and Carlos Grajeda sealed the set with a successful attack to give Mexico a 1-0 lead.
After a 2-2 tie in the second set, Mexico pulled ahead 5-2 with the help of a Guatemalan error, a block by Axel Vicencio on Samayoa, and a powerful spike from Grajeda. The Mexicans remained in control, extending the lead to 12-5 by capitalizing on Guatemala’s errors while Cadena, Vicencio, and Grajeda fueled the offense to comfortably close the set 25-13.
Like the first, the third set was evenly matched. Following a 7-7 tie, Mexico moved ahead 10-8 behind the efforts of Steben Arévalo and Daniel Cravioto. Guatemala responded to level the score at 11-11 with quick attacks through the middle by Christian Álvarez and Samayoa. The teams continued to trade points until Mexico built a 16-14 advantage with an attack by Arévalo and another Guatemalan attack error. Samayoa answered with a kill before Álvarez added a block to tie the set at 16-16. The battle remained close from there, but Santiago Granados produced three consecutive points to propel Mexico to the victory.
Santiago Granados spoke about his role in Mexico’s victory: “My teammates gave me more confidence, and I felt more relaxed and more comfortable with my game.” Looking ahead to the semifinals, he added: “It’s a new chapter, a new opponent, and we’re not going to back down against Canada”.
Guatemala’s leading scorer José Luis Samayoa said: “We stayed very focused in the first and third sets and were effective. I think Mexico came out much stronger in the second set. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to get the victory”.
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