SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic, July 26, 2026. – Puerto Rico became the only unbeaten team in Pool A of the men’s volleyball tournament at the 2026 Central American and Caribbean Games Santo Domingo after defeating Venezuela 3-2 (26-24, 31-33, 29-27, 23-25, 15-10) in a thrilling five-set battle.
The victory improved Puerto Rico’s record to 2-0, while Venezuela suffered its first loss to fall to 1-1. Preliminary round play concludes on Monday with Puerto Rico (2-0) taking on Guatemala (0-2) and Venezuela (1-1) facing defending champion Cuba (1-1).
The match was a true roller-coaster, with momentum swinging back and forth throughout more than two hours of play. The second set turned into a marathon, featuring numerous ties, lead changes, and consecutive service errors by both teams before Venezuela dramatically leveled the match by edging the set 33-31.
Venezuela mounted another comeback in the third set after trailing 19-21, rallying to tie the score at 21 and extending the set into another tense finish. Puerto Rico, however, remained composed in the closing points to claim the set 29-27. Venezuela answered once again by winning the fourth set 25-23 to force a tiebreak, but Puerto Rico took control early in the fifth and secured the victory with a 15-10 finish.
Puerto Rico held advantages of 69-65 in attacks and 15-11 in blocks, while Venezuela led the service category with seven aces to Puerto Rico’s four. Both teams committed 36 unforced errors.
Opposite hitter Jair Santiago led Puerto Rico with 26 points on 21 kills and five blocks. Outside hitter Klistan Lawrence added 21 points (18 kills, two blocks, and one ace), while Pelegrín Vargas contributed 16 points, Ismael Alomar scored 12, and Eliel Salva added 10.
For Venezuela, opposite Jesús Gómez finished with 25 points on 23 attacks and two blocks. Emerson Rodríguez added 16 points, Paul Viloria contributed 11, and Gabriel Miguel Álvarez finished with 10.
Puerto Rico head coach Jamille Torres said after the victory: “We were a little careless with our serving, and we could have finished the match earlier. But we were playing against a very strong and resilient Venezuelan team that has my respect. I’m very happy with my group; they deserved this victory, and now we’ll look to secure our semifinal berth in our next match.”
Venezuela’s leading scorer, Jesús Gómez, commented: “We started slowly but improved as the match went on. We managed the situations well and scored the points we needed to force a thrilling fifth set. I congratulate Puerto Rico on a very good match, and they know they have a great rival in Venezuela. Now it’s time to turn the page and focus on the next match.”
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