XALAPA, Mexico, September 5, 2024. – Nicaragua defeated Suriname 3-0 (25-21, 25-12, 25-15) to advance to the quarterfinal round as third place in Pool B of the U23 Women’s Pan American Cup at the International Velodrome in Xalapa, Veracruz.
Nicaragua (1-2) will face the loser between the Dominican Republic and Cuba in quarterfinals on Friday. Suriname (0-3) will play in the matches for positions 5 to 8 in the event.
Nicaragua controlled every element of the game, with a 39-22 advantage in attacks, 7-6 in blocks, and 8-3 in serves, while scoring 21 points from opponent errors compared to 17.
Brittany Forbes of Nicaragua led all scorers with 18 points (13 attacks, 2 blocks, 3 aces). Brisa Pérez contributed 12 points, all from kills.
Sharon Balkaran, captain of Suriname, led her team with 11 points (10 attacks, one block).
The first set was the most contested, despite Suriname recovering from a four-point deficit (16-20), Brittany Pérez, along with María José Rivera and Brisa Pérez, put Nicaragua ahead. From the sixth point onward, the Central Americans were always in the lead in the second set, topping Suriname with a huge margin, using the offense of its three key players. Nicaragua started the third set with a significant lead (6-1) and claimed victory in straight sets, with Brittany and María José leading the offense.
Claudia Noguera, Head coach of Nicaragua: “This victory guaranteed us a spot in the quarterfinals. It is the first time that Nicaragua has reached the quarterfinals in this Pan American age-group, which is gratifying. I told the players that this is a new experience for them and to take advantage of all the resources and everything they can gain from this championship. We will continue to fight to climb up the rankings”.
Claudius Straal, Head coach of Suriname: “We had a great first set. In the next sets we had too many passing errors as well as serving errors which is the most important thing in volleyball. Maybe we’ll have a rematch against them and do better”.
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