MORELOS, Mexico, August 11, 2026.- Mexico continued its perfect run at the 2026 Men’s Pan American Cup after bouncing back from dropping the first set to defeat the Dominican Republic 3-1 (24-26, 25-14, 25-17, 25-22) at Poliforum 2 of the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos (UAEM).
Mexico improved its record to 3-0 in Pool B, while the Dominican Republic moved to 1-1.
On Wednesday, Mexico will have a rest day, while the Dominican Republic will face Curaçao. Mexico will close pool play on Thursday against Cuba.
Mexico held a commanding advantage in attacks 57-38, blocks 7-3 and aces 9-1. The Dominican Republic committed fewer unforced errors, 26 compared to Mexico’s 37.
Diego González led Mexico’s offense with 20 points, followed by Franky Hernández with 18 and Yasutaka Sanay with 14. Alexis Cruz was the only Dominican player in double figures with 14 points.
The Dominican Republic staged a strong comeback to take a tight opening set. Mexico held a 23-19 advantage, but the Dominicans rallied down the stretch to claim the set 26-24.
Mexico responded emphatically in the second set. After a more balanced start, the hosts gradually pulled away and built a comfortable lead, reaching 20-12 on their way to leveling the match with a convincing 25-14 win.
Mexico remained in control in the third. The hosts took the lead early and extended their advantage as the set progressed, reaching the closing stretch ahead 20-12 before finishing it 25-17 to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
The Dominican Republic applied pressure again in the fourth set and went ahead 16-14. Mexico tied it at 16-16, and from there the teams traded points until 20-20. Mexico made the decisive break down the stretch, moving from a 21-20 lead to 24-20 before sealing the victory 25-22.
Franky Hernández, outside hitter of Mexico: “The Dominican Republic is a very strong opponent, and whenever we face each other the matches are intense; it’s a classic. It was a very good match, and we knew it was very important to come away with the win. I think it was the most important match of the pool. Tomorrow we’re going to recover because Cuba is next to close the pool, and we have to go all out.”
Alexis Cruz, leading scorer of the Dominican Republic: “It was an intense match. We lost our focus a lot during the match, and that is a weakness we have as a team. When we are focused, we put on a good show, but it seems like we forget to do the things we need to do. We had better rhythm and concentration to win our match against Cuba.”
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