CUERNAVACA, Morelos, July 13, 2025. – Panama secured a hard-fought seventh-place finish at the U19 Boys’ Pan American Cup after edging Suriname in a thrilling five-set battle, 3-2 (22-25, 25-19, 12-25, 25-22, 15-8) at the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos (UAEM) Gymnasium in Cuernavaca.
In a roller coaster of a match, Panama claimed revenge after falling to Suriname in the preliminary round. This time, they came out on top by leading in kills (64-53) and aces (5-2). Suriname held the advantage in blocks (11-7) and committed fewer errors (23 to Panama’s 33).
Panama’s Wen Downer delivered a tournament-high of 29 points at the moment, powering the team’s offense. He was supported by Kendrieck Newby, who chipped in with 18 points in the victory.
For Suriname, Javier Nasibdar led with 21 points, followed by Gianni Ritfeld with 17. Both Jahmit Jambo and Revelino Sandel contributed 10 points each.
Horacio Angulo, head coach of Panama, spoke after the match: “We tried the entire match to beat them, we went for it, and we did it. This was a very tough tournament, and our team is new and young. I’m grateful for the boys’ effort. We didn’t want to finish in last place, and we achieved that.”
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