LEÓN, Guanajuato, Mexico, June 13, 2026.- Mexico rallied from two sets down to defeat the Dominican Republic 3-2 (21-25, 24-26, 26-24, 25-18, 15-11), completing a dramatic reverse sweep to earn a place in the championship match of the 2026 NORCECA Men’s Final Four at the Domo de la Feria in León, Guanajuato.
The victory sends the host nation into a second consecutive title showdown against defending champion Puerto Rico, while the Dominican Republic will close the tournament against Guatemala for the bronze medal.
Mexico came out with great intensity and quickly built an 11-5 lead behind effective attacks from Franky Hernández and Diego González, combined with a string of Dominican errors. However, the Dominican Republic responded with a solid offensive effort led by captain Henry Tapia, who sparked the comeback and helped level the score at 19. In the closing stages of the set, blocks by Luther Rosario and powerful serves from Edward Rojas proved decisive as the Caribbean side turned the score around and secured the opening set.
The second set remained even until the score was tied at seven, but Mexico once again managed to pull away. Axel Téllez played a key role with four blocks that pushed his team to a 13-9 advantage, while Mauro Fuentes kept the offensive momentum going to extend the lead to 15-12. Strong attacks from Diego González and Juan García allowed the hosts to stay in control, but the Dominican Republic capitalized on several Mexican errors, and a block by Moisés Ortiz on Téllez tied the score at 18. Tapia earned a set point with an attack off García’s block, but Franky Hernández answered to tie the score at 24. A direct kill by Tapia followed by another block from Rosario on Hernández gave the Dominicans a two-set lead.
The Dominican Republic controlled the early stages of the third set, with Moisés Ortiz standing out at the net to give his team a 14-10 advantage. Mexico responded through Yasutaka Sanay, who fueled the comeback, while a block by Eduardo Garza on Wilfrido Hernández tied the score at 15. From that point on, the set became a fierce battle with repeated ties until 23-all. The Caribbean squad reached match point after a Mexican attacking error, but a missed Dominican attack kept the hosts alive. Franky Hernández earned set point for Mexico, and an attack by Henry Tapia that sailed out forced the match into a fourth set.
The fourth set was equally competitive. Mexico created distance with a block by Axel Téllez on Héctor Cruz and a reception error by Wilfrido Hernández on Eduardo Garza’s serve to move ahead 15-11. The hosts maintained control with an attack from Sanay and a block from Juan García on Rosario to stretch the lead to 19-13. After missing one set point opportunity, a powerful attack by Diego González closed the set and sent the match to a deciding fifth.
In the tiebreaker, Mexico stayed in front throughout, outperforming the Dominican Republic in every aspect of the game. Axel Téllez, Yasutaka Sanay, and Franky Hernández led the Mexican offense, while Héctor Cruz carried the Dominican attack. The match ended with two consecutive Dominican errors, sealing the hosts’ spectacular comeback victory.
The statistics reflected the closeness of the contest. Mexico led in attacks (57-49), blocks (13-12), and aces (5-3), while unforced errors finished at 40 for the hosts and 36 for the Dominican Republic.
Mexican outside hitter Franky Hernández was the match’s top scorer with 22 points, including 20 attacks and two aces. Middle blocker Axel Téllez also played a key role with 14 points, including a match-high seven blocks, six attacks, and one ace.
For the Dominican Republic, outside hitter Héctor Cruz led the scoring with 19 points, followed by captain Henry Tapia with 17 and middle blocker Moisés Ortiz with 10.
Franky Hernández said after the victory: “Our desire to win kept us motivated. We were ahead in the first two sets, but unfortunately, they played those moments better than we did. We stayed calm, fought our way back, and thank God we were able to get the victory. We kept telling ourselves that we had nothing to lose, and that helped us relax, enjoy the match, and play the kind of volleyball we like to play. Tomorrow will be another great match. We expect the best from ourselves, and may the better team win.”
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