TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras, November 14, 2026. – Nicaragua advanced to the final of the 21st AFECAVOL Central American U21 Women’s Championship with a 3-1 (25-10, 25-18, 18-25, 25-11) semifinal victory over El Salvador and awaits the winner of the match between Costa Rica and Guatemala to compete for the title.
Nicaragua imposed its rhythm from the start against an El Salvador team that paid a heavy price for the nerves and pressure of competing in a semifinal. In the opening set, El Salvador committed ten unforced errors compared to just two by Nicaragua, a difference the Nicaraguans capitalized on to build a commanding lead and dominate 25-10.
Nicaragua maintained its superiority in the second set with a powerful offense and greater efficiency. Karen Bird, who had stood out with seven points in the opening set, led the early attack, while Lucía Ruiz and Ixtchel Talavera took on greater roles as the match progressed.
El Salvador attempted to respond through Galilea Guardado, Tatiana Gómez and Evelyng Ramírez, but Nicaragua remained in control throughout the first two sets. It was not until the third that the Salvadorans found their rhythm, capitalized on their opponents’ unforced errors and raised their level of play to take the set 25-18 and stay in contention.
However, Nicaragua regained its offensive strength in the fourth set, reestablished control and prevented another comeback by El Salvador. With a convincing 25-11 victory, the Nicaraguans secured their place in the final and guaranteed themselves a podium finish.
Lucía Ruiz led Nicaragua’s offense with 17 points, followed by Karen Bird with 16 and Ixtchel Talavera with 14. For El Salvador, Galilea Guardado was the leading scorer with 11 points.
Statistically, Nicaragua dominated in attacks 50-26, blocks 8-5 and service aces 9-3. El Salvador earned 30 points from opponent errors, while Nicaragua benefited from 26 Salvadoran errors.
Claudia Noguera, head coach of Nicaragua: “We knew we couldn’t afford to be overconfident, and we told the players that before the match. El Salvador, like every team, wants to reach a final and will fight with everything they have. Our mistakes cost us the third set, but we managed to win the match, which is what matters most. We are now guaranteed a place on the podium, and we will try to change the color of the medal.”
Lucía Ruiz, Nicaragua’s leading scorer: “We are very happy because we achieved part of our goal in this tournament. We hope to keep improving and getting good results. We expected El Salvador to be a little more aggressive, but we didn’t back down either. We stayed focused and maintained our rhythm. El Salvador showed that they can play, they took a set from us, and it was an incredible match against them.”
Dany Calderón, head coach of El Salvador: “At this age, things are difficult, and a lack of preparation for these types of situations often affects players mentally. We have to stay calm and understand that we are playing in a semifinal. That took its toll on us in the first two sets, when the players were desperate to do things we hadn’t planned instead of sticking to our style of play.
Every national team has its own strengths. Belize has height, while our strengths are intensity and fighting spirit. But when we stop using our strengths and try to play like our opponents, we lose our identity. The same thing happened against Nicaragua. In the third set, the players managed to take control, play their game and execute what we had worked on.”