SAN JOSÉ, Costa Rica, July 15, 2026. – Panama dominated from start to finish to defeat Nicaragua in straight sets 3-0 (25-21, 25-22, 25-14) and capture the bronze medal at the third edition of the AFECAVOL Men’s Final Four.
Panama never let its guard down throughout the tournament and, after a challenging start, earned a well-deserved place on the podium by defeating Nicaragua, the same team that had beaten them convincingly in straight sets during the preliminary round.
Although the opening two sets were closely contested, Panama imposed its game to take a two-set lead. In the third set, the Panamanians set the pace from the outset, built a comfortable advantage, and never allowed Nicaragua back into the match, closing out the victory in commanding fashion to secure third place.
In a match fueled by redemption, Panama gave Nicaragua little room to respond and led the key statistical categories in attacks (42-33), blocks (11-8), and aces (2-0). Nicaragua also committed 20 unforced errors, compared to 16 by Panama.
Panama displayed a balanced offensive effort, with three players reaching double figures in scoring. Daniel Andrade led the team with 16 points, while Víctor Araúz and David De León added 10 points each.
For Nicaragua, Axel Gutiérrez once again carried the offensive load with a match-high 20 points, while Denis López contributed eight.
After securing the bronze medal, Panama’s David De León said: “This is a very young team, and it took us some time to come together during the tournament. We faced many challenges in our preparation and on our way to this event, but we overcame them. There’s no denying this is a very demanding competition, and all we can do is thank God for this medal.”
Meanwhile, Nicaragua’s libero Miguel Castillo commented: “This wasn’t the result we wanted. Things just didn’t go our way, and I think it reflects the inconsistency many of us had in training. The Final Four has become a very demanding tournament played over a short period of time, so physical condition plays a major role.”
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