SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic, July 27, 2026. – Puerto Rico secured first place in Pool A and a direct berth to the semifinals of the men’s volleyball tournament at the 25th Central American and Caribbean Games Santo Domingo 2026 after defeating Guatemala 3-1 (25-23, 25-15, 23-25, 25-21) on the final day of the preliminary round.
With a perfect 3-0 record, Puerto Rico became the tournament’s first semifinalist, while Guatemala finished the preliminary phase without a victory and will compete in the classification matches for positions five through eight.
Puerto Rico had to rally in the opening set after falling behind early, finding answers at the decisive moments to edge the set 25-23. The Puerto Ricans took full control in the second set behind effective serving and a consistent attack that allowed them to build a comfortable lead.
Guatemala responded in the third set. Showing greater offensive consistency and holding the lead for most of the frame, the Guatemalans claimed the set 25-23 to extend the match and force Puerto Rico into a hard-fought fourth set. There, Puerto Rico regained its rhythm, pulled away late, and sealed both the victory and the top spot in the pool.
Puerto Rico outscored Guatemala in attacks (60-43), blocks (5-4), and service aces (6-5), while the teams committed a similar number of unforced errors, with Puerto Rico recording 30 and Guatemala 27.
Pedro Molina led Puerto Rico with 22 points, followed by Axel Meléndez with 19 and Klistan Lawrence with 15. Guatemala’s Andy Leonardo was the match’s top scorer with 25 points, while José Pablo Pérez added 13.
After the match, Puerto Rico’s Pedro Molina reflected on his team’s response after dropping its only set of the tournament.
“We let our guard down, and Guatemala was ready to give one hundred percent. We managed to regain control and finish with the victory. The next stage of the tournament is the toughest one. Some of our players have already had two long days, so the coach decided to give them some rest. We don’t know who our next opponent will be, but it will certainly be a very interesting match”.
Guatemala libero Josué González praised his team’s effort despite the loss.
“We played a good match. Even though we made too many team errors, we played with heart and had the determination to win a set. Now we’ll keep moving forward and try to finish in the best possible position in the tournament”.
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