Tag: 2022 U21 Women Pan Am Cup

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 11, 2022.- Argentina beat Mexico 3-1 (26-24, 27-25, 28-30, 25-7) in Saturday’s semifinals to reach the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup final match at La Paz Arena in Baja California Sur.

Argentina was challenged by a resistant home team up to the third set, when Mexico needed five-set points to keep their hopes alive. Argentina entirely dominated Mexico in the fourth set, leaving no doubt in their stunning finish.

Argentina faces the United States for the gold, they met earlier in pool-play play with the U.S. winning 3-1 (25-16, 25-21, 22-25, 27-25) to advance directly into semifinals to beat Chile. This will also be a rematch of the 2017 gold medal match won by the Americans. Argentina also fell in 2015 to Dominican Republic.

On the other hand, Mexico and Chile will battle for the bronze medal. This is the second occasion they meet for third place; Chile took the bronze in 2015. Mexico won the event in 2013 to Dominican Republic.

Argentina led 61-54 in attacks and prevailed by a huge margin in blocks (16-4) and aces (11-4); Mexico was the one with fewer errors (18-24).

Outside hitter Milena Margaria of Argentina scored a match-high of 20 points on 17 kills and three blocks. Middle blocker Avril Garcia and outside hitter Keila Llanos joined the party of points with 19 each; Garcia scoring the most blocks with a total of 7 points.

Outside hitter and team captain Aime Topete led Mexico with 16 points on 15 kills and one ace, followed by opposite hitter Katherine Ramirez with 14 points on 13 kills and one block. Outside hitter Alexandra Goris also contributed with 10 points.

Marcelo Silva, Head Coach of Argentina: “The first three sets were tremendous, it was very close, Mexico defended a lot, maybe they were tired in the last set, I never thought we could have won the fourth set with such a large margin. Now we need our girls to recover and study the United States to decide our game plan”.

Luis León, Head Coach of Mexico: “The first three sets could have gone to either one, they were very close. I believe the difference was Argentina’s level of play in the tournament, with more matches, with rhythm together (two matches more than us). Tomorrow we are going out to win third place”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 12, 2022.- Opposite hitter of the U.S. Merrit Beason was elected the Most Valuable Player “MVP” of the sixth edition of the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup that concluded on Sunday at La Paz Arena in Baja California Sur.

During the awarding ceremony, Merrit Beason was joined by other players who were recognized for their outstanding performance during the event, among them another gold medalist, Chloe Chicoine who was granted the 1^st Best Spiker award.

From Argentina, runner up of the U21 Pan American Cup, Valentina Vaulet was awarded as the best opposite and best scorer, while Avril Garcia was selected as 1^st best blocker.

Cassandra Simental of Mexico, bronze medal winner, received three individual awards as best libero, receiver and digger. Also from Mexico, Regina Perez was granted the award for best setter.

The best 2^nd blocker was Marcelle Baez of Puerto Rico and Canadian Madyson Saris was the 2^nd best spiker and server.

Final Ranking: 1. United States; 2. Argentina; 3. Mexico; 4. Chile; 5. Cuba; 6. Puerto Rico; 7. Canada; 8. Dominican Republic; 9. Costa Rica; 10. Honduras.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 12, 2022.- United States claimed the gold medal of the sixth edition of the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup over Argentina 3-1 (25-20, 21-25, 25-22, 25-14) at La Paz Arena in Baja California Sur.

United States finished undefeated with a 5-0 record. This is the second title for the United States in the history of the event, also beating Argentina in the 2017 edition. United States also qualified to the 2023 FIVB World Championship as one of the two top finishers from NORCECA.

Argentina ended with a 4-2 record (both losses to USA), winning their third silver medal (2015, 2017).

United States led 53-42 in attacks while Argentina held advantages in blocks (12-9) and points from serves (6-5). United States committed 21 errors and Argentina 30.

Opposite hitter Merritt Beason topped the U.S. scorers with 17 points on 14 kills and three blocks, joined by middle blockers Rebekah Allick and Breanna Kelley with 14 and 10 points respectively.

Argentina’s leading attacker was outside hitter Milena Margaria with 17 points and opposite hitter Valentina Vaulet added 13 points.

Daniel Fisher, Head Coach of United States: “We are really happy for the win. I think the girls were feeling a little tense for a while, but we worked through it and settled down in our reception. We also got some nice energy from players coming off the bench and ended the fourth set playing good volleyball. Argentina is very good and put a lot of stress on us with their serves, but that’s what good teams do”.

Rebekah Allick, Middle blocker of United States: “Going into the third set after losing the second, our minds were set on working hard, focus on the controllable and loving hard on each other because we are all so competitive, independent strong women that uplift one another. When I’m given the opportunity, I always take advantage, everyone gets their moments, I’m on a great team”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 12, 2022.- Mexico downed Chile 3-0 (26-24, 25-11, 25-19) to win the bronze medal of the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup on Saturday at La Paz Arena in Baja California Sur.

Mexico snatched the first set from Chile, recovering from a four-point deficit 20-24 in a dramatic 26-24 finish and onward to dominate the next two sets. Mexico also beat Chile with a sweep in pool-play.

Besides winning bronze, Mexico qualified to the 2023 FIVB World Championship. The hosts finished third place with a 3-2 record; this is their second medal in the history of the event, they reached the podium winning gold in 2013. Chile in fourth place ends with 2-3 record.

Mexico held a 44-33 advantage in attacks and an overwhelming 10-2 margin in serves; both teams scored 6 points from blocks. Mexico limited their errors to 13 and scored on 16 points from Chilean errors.

Mexican team captain Aime Topete scored a match-high of 23 points on 19 kills, one block and three aces. The other player with double-figures was opposite hitter Katherine Cruz with 11 points on 7 kills, two points on blocks and two on serves.

Opposite hitter Petra Schwarzman led Chile with 15 points on 13 kills and two blocks.

Luis León, Head Coach of Mexico: “Both teams had their energy low after losing semifinals. This was our fifth match against Chile, we had three friendly matches and two here in the tournament, we know each other well, statistically, tendencies and trajectories, that’s why the first set was so close and that blew Chile away. We closed the competition well, we reached our goals, qualifying to worlds and reaching the podium”.

Aime Topete, Captain of Mexico: “We were focused in the first set, following our technical staff instructions and we gave our all. I believe that with more energy we can win the gold medal in next tournaments, we have the potential to do so. Now we must work and prepare for worlds”.

LA PAZ, Baja California, June 12, 2022.- Cuba finished the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup in fifth place beating Puerto Rico 3-2 (17-25, 25-15, 25-13, 18-25, 15-11) on Sunday at La Paz Arena in Baja California Sur.

Cuba concluded the event with a 3-1 record and Puerto Rico with 1-3 for fifth and sixth position. Cuba also beat Puerto Rico in pool-play but in four sets.   

The Cuban team prevailed 60-56 in attacks, 8-7 in blocks and 6-4 in serves. Cuba committed 22 unforced errors and Puerto Rico 26.

Cuban Outside hitter Hhitney James scored a match-high of 26 points on 22 kills, 2 blocks and 2 aces, followed by outside hitter Claudia Tarin and middle blocker Lisania Grafort with 15 and 14 points respectively.

Outside hitter and team captain Valeria Flores led Puerto Rico with 21 points on 20 kills and one block, joined by middle blocker Mileidy Paret with 20 points on 16 kills, one block and 3 aces; and middle blocker Marcelle Baez added 10 points.

Rogelio Goytizolo, Head Coach of Cuba: “After losing the opportunity to qualify to finals, our athletes weren’t in their best shape; they went on improving during the match. Puerto Rico was highly motivated; we had some deficiencies in blocking and defense despite winning”.

José Rivera, Head Coach of Puerto Rico: “We are glad, we gave our all. After winning the first set we were expecting their reaction, it was the same as in the past match. We told the players not to settle for only one set and keep pressing. We must continue working in the fundamentals of the game, we did well in blocking and offensively we were present”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 11, 2022.- United States will play for the title of the sixth edition of the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup after winning their semifinal match to Chile 3-0 (25-11, 25-13, 25-9) at La Paz Arena in Baja California Sur.

United States will battle for the gold against the winner of the second semifinal between the host Mexico and Argentina. The Americans had already won a berth to the 2023 FIVB World Championship as one of the top two finishers from NORCECA in the event with Chile beating Cuba in quarterfinals.

This the second time the U.S. plays for the title, the first time was in 2017 when they won the gold to Argentina.

The U.S. dominated Chile with superiority in every skill; attacks (43-18), serves (12-2) and blocks (9-4). United States limited their unforced errors to 9 and Chile to a total of 11.

Middle blocker Beanna Kelley led the Americans with 13 points on 9 kills, 3 blocks and one ace and outside hitter Mckenna Wucherer added 11 points from 7 kills, one block and three aces.

From Chile, outside hitter Dominga Aylwin scored 12 points from 11 kills and one block as their leading scorer.

Alexis Rodríguez, Captain of United States: “We went out with defensive intensity, we knew they were going to be a scrapy team, so we just stuck to that; also, we battled our serving-pass and won that as well. We’re ready for the title match, it will be exciting facing either one: with Mexico we will enjoy the atmosphere and with Argentina an interesting re-match”.

Eduardo Guillaume, Head Coach of Chile: “It’s hard to evaluate when you face an opponent that’s at a higher level than yours, they outplay us in all: height, strength, technique, positioning. We must bet on those teams at our same level of play and learn, improve and one day play like them (USA). Being among the four finalists is already a victory and if we reach the podium, it’ll be a plus”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 11, 2022.- Canada beat Dominican Republic 3-0 (25-15, 25-15, 25-22) to finish seventh place at the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup at the Arena La Paz in Baja California Sur.

Canada with 3-2 record and three consecutive wins finishes seventh place in the event. Dominican Republic with an overall 1-3 record takes eighth place.

A late reaction from Dominican Republic in the third set coming close to recovering from a six- point deficit (15-21) might have extended the action, but Canada’s determination pulled off a straight set victory.

Canada’s offense in attacks ended with a huge 43-16 advantage as well as a comfortable 13-6 margin in points from serves. Canada committed 23 unforced errors against 12 from Dominican Republic. Both teams scored 7 points on blocks.

Outside hitter Madyson Saris of Canada scored a match-high of 21 points, leading in aces with 6 points. Outside hitter and team captain Emoni Bush contributed with 15 points on 12 kills, one block and two aces, while Sullie Sundara picked up 12 points from 9 kills and 3 aces.

Setter Ariana Rodriguez and middle blocker Vallery Martinez led Dominican Republic with 6 points each.

Carolyn O’Dwyer, Head Coach of Canada: “We knew we were facing a strong team like Dominican Republic, but we did a good job executing our game plan, it was an awesome job from the athletes. Two things stood out, a good job from the service line putting a lot of pressure on them and getting them out of system, and we also did a good job attacking high and deep and challenging them in some difficult digs”.

Madyson Saris, Top scorer of Canada: “We prepared well for them, we saw lots of film and we did a good job putting what we watched into the game. Generally speaking, it was a great experience for everyone playing internationally”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 11, 2022.- Costa Rica won the Central American clash to Honduras 3-0 (25-22, 25-15, 25-17) for nineth place of the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup at Arena La Paz in Baja California Sur.

Costa Rica finished the event with 1-4 win-loss record and Honduras with 0-4, for ninth and tenth place accordingly.

Costa Rica set their pace in the second set while having difficulties getting into rhythm in the first set to come out in straight sets.

Costa Rica dominated Honduras with a huge 43-25 advantage in attacks; they also were more effective in blocks (8-4) and serves (9-2) but committed more errors (23-15).

Once again opposite hitter Angelica Rodriguez led Costa Rica’s offense scoring 16 points on 12 kills, 3 blocks and one ace, while outside hitter Nicole Mata added 11 points on 9 kills and two aces. Outside hitter Sofia Torres and middle blocker Dannia Leon chipped in with 7 points each.

Outside hitter Andrea Aceituno was Honduras leading scorer with 11 points on 10 kills and one ace.

Henry Rodríguez, Head Coach of Costa Rica: “We played one more match than Honduras, and they had a rest day, that’s why I think we had difficulties to get in rhythm. We had nice games for our team’s growth. I am satisfied with this result, it was expected. Before going in July to the Central American Championship in Belize, we must adjust, many things we practiced and didn’t do, and each player must self-correct”.

Marvin Ulloa, Head Coach of Honduras: “The players demand too much of themselves, our instructions are to go one step at a time, first execute well and then think about winning. There’s a combination of anxiety and errors before thinking in the actions of the game and playing well”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 10, 2022.- Chile outplayed Cuba 3-0 (26-24, 25-22, 27-25) and will clash with the United States in the semifinals of the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup in Arena La Paz in Baja California Sur.

With Chile’s victory over Cuba, United States and Mexico won the two berths for the 2023 FIVB World Championship as the top two NORCECA finalists of the event.

Chile will face the United States in one of the semifinals, while Argentina meets Mexico in the other semifinal. Cuba will play Puerto Rico for fifth place, a rematch of pool-play won by Cuba.

In the third set, the South American team missed two match points in a dramatic finish before celebrating their win in straight sets.

Chile had a spectacular night outplaying Cuba in serves 9-5 and committing fewer errors (15-24). Cuba led 45-40 in attacks and finished with a slim 6-5 margin in blocks.

Outside hitter Florencia Giglio topped Chile with 15 points on 14 kills and one ace, Dominga Aylwin followed with 14 points on 10 kills, one block and three aces, while opposite hitter Petra Schwartzman tallied 10 points on 7 kills, one block and two aces.

Opposite hitter Yalain De La Peña led Cuba with 15 points on 10 kills, 2 blocks and 3 aces, accompanied by setter Beatriz Lopez with 11 points on 10 kills and one block, and by Lisania Grafort with 10 points on 9 kills and one block.

Eduardo Guillaume, Head Coach of Chile: “From the beginning I’ve been saying that I like my team, it’s a group of girls that work hard and today luckily things came out better. We are happy. Now we must prepare for what’s next”.

Rogelio Goytizolo, Head Coach of Cuba: “We met with an organized opponent in defense, they fought every single ball. On the contrary, we were erratic in blocking and defense, which caused us to lose the match to Chile. Our best pieces had a poor performance and provided little for our team’s success”.

LA PAZ, Baja California, June 10, 2022.- Argentina dominated Puerto Rico 3-0 (25-20, 25-12, 25-13) to move into the semifinals of the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup being held at Arena La Paz in Baja California Sur.

Argentina (3-1) will play against the host Mexico in Saturday’s semifinals. Puerto Rico (1-2) will face the loser of the other quarter final match between Cuba and Chile.

The tournament qualifies the two top teams of NORCECA to the 2023 FIVB World Championship.

Argentina won their quarter final pushed by Puerto Rico only in the first set, then they went forward with no complications grabbing their semifinal spot.

The South Americans held a huge 42-19 advantage in attacks and a comfortable 8-3 margin in both blocks and aces. Puerto Rico committed fewer errors (17-20) than Argentina.

Opposite hitter Valentina Vaulet and middle blocker Avril Garcia scored 12 points apiece as Argentina’s leading scorers. Vaulet with 10 kills and two aces, and Garcia with 7 kills and 5 blocks. Outside hitter Milena Margaria added 9 points.

Outside hitter and team captain Valeria Flores led Puerto Rico with 8 points on 7 kills and one block, joined by outside hitter Grace Lopez with 6 points on 4 kills and 2 serves.

Victoria Caballero, Captain of Argentina: “We are always focused on our game, every match is intense and important. We were focused on our serves, putting in the ball at the firs and we played defensively as well”.

Valeria Flores, Capitana de Puerto Rico: “We lacked communication and energy, added to the fact that we are tired, but mostly we didn’t execute. They (Argentina) had more energy than us. Our expectation for our next performance is to win”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 10, 2022.- Canada will face Dominican Republic for seventh place at the Women’s U21 pan American Cup after defeating Honduras 3-0 (25-17, 25-15, 25-9) in a classification match for 7-10 places in La Paz Arena of Baja California Sur.

On Saturday, Canada (2-2) goes up against Dominican Republic (1-2) who beat Costa Rica earlier. A Central American battle between Honduras (0-3) and Costa Rica (0-4) will decide ninth place.

Honduras had some exciting digs mostly in the first and second sets, but nothing to get Canada out of their game system.

Canada overwhelmed Honduras with a huge 35-10 margin in attacks and 18-3 in serves, they also did better in blocks 8-6. Canada committed more errors than Honduras (22-14).

Outside hitter Maryn Boldon of Canada led all scorers with 14 points on 7 kills, 3 blocks and 4 aces, followed by outside hitter Madyson Saris with 13 points on 10 kills and 3 aces, and opposite hitter Lucy Borowski contributed with 11 points on 8 kills and three points from serves.

Outside hitter Genesis Oyuela scored 8 points from 6 kills and 2 aces for Honduras.

Maryn Boldon, Top scorer of Canada: “All our hard work kind of paid off, what we’ve done in practices, we executed what we’ve been working on as a team, we played with a lot of joy, and it helped us to play at our potential. Dominican Republic will push us tomorrow, it’s exciting and hopefully we’ll end on a high note”.

Carolyn O’Dwyer, Head Coach of Canada: “The match got a little close in the first two sets, Honduras was making pretty good digs that challenged us and we made a few errors on our side. Tomorrow against the Dominican Republic we are going to have to work very hard because they are a scrappy team”.

Génesis Oyuela, Top scorer of Honduras: “I believe we could have done more, not every day we get to face Canada. We improved by enjoying the match, this is a great experience for us and it prepares us for our next Central American championship in July in Belize. With these matches we can better understand our strengths and weaknesses”. 

LA PAZ, Baja California, June 10, 2022.- Dominican Republic beat Costa Rica in straight sets 3-0 (25-11, 25-15, 25-18) in a classification match for positions 7-10 at the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup at Arena La Paz in Baja California Sur.

Dominican Republic will play for seventh place against the winner between Canada and Honduras, while Costa Rica plays the loser for ninth place.

The Caribbean team had some complications in the third set but quickly came out to win their first match of the event prevailing with 36-21 margin in attacks, a slim 5-4 margin in blocks and a comfortable 12-3 advantage in serves.

Three Dominicans scored double-figures, led by setter Ariana Rodriguez with 14 points on 9 kills, one block and 4 aces, outside hitter Marcelly Perez scored 12 points on 10 kills and 2 aces, and middle blocker Alanae Margaritha scored 12 points.

Costa Rica’s top scorer was opposite hitter Angelica Rodriguez with 6 points.

Cristian Cruz, Head Coach of Dominican Republic: “We were aware we could win this match, but we are still struggling with confidence from the players. Tomorrow is an important match and today I tried to move our lineup because everyone is necessary to face our opponent, which could be Canada. We used a 6-2 system, using two setters that are also outside hitters, it’s an alternative for tomorrow”.

Henry Rodríguez, Head Coach of Costa Rica: “Against big teams like this one, we try to score the most points we can and try to push them to win the set, without letting our opponent move too much ahead; today we did it in the third set, against the Queens of the Caribbean. We improvised with another player as libero, trying to be ready for our last match that could be against Honduras”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 9, 2022.- The United States advanced directly into semifinals winning pool B over Argentina in an exciting 3-1 (25-16, 25-21, 22-25, 27-25) at the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup at the Arena La Paz in Baja California Sur.

The Americans join Mexico in the semifinals as the top ranked pool winners, while Argentina will play the quarter finals after finishing second in pool B against Puerto Rico on Friday. The other pool winner was Cuba that will play in the quarter finals against Chile.

The tournament grants two berths to the 2023 FIVB World Championship for the two NORCECA top finishers.

The U.S. jumped to comfortable leads early in sets one and two, Argentina’s pressure for the service line in the third helped them to recover from a five-point deficit (13-18) only to put tension extending the actions to a fourth and final set, led by Argentina up to 18 all.

The United States held a 59-41 advantage in attacks and a comfortable 15-9 margin in blocks, while Argentina controlled serves 10-5. The U.S. handed out 27 points from unforced errors and Argentina 20.

Opposite hitter Merritt Beason of United States scored a tournament-high of 28 points, on 25 kills and three blocks. Also contributing to the U.S. victory were outside hitter Norah Sis with 15 points on 13 kills, one block and one ace and middle blocker Breanna Kelley with 12 points on 7 kills and 5 blocks.

Argentina’s leading scorers were opposite hitter Valentina Vaulet with 21 points on 16 kills and leading in aces 5 points, middle blocker Avril García who added 14 points on 9 kills, 3 blocks and two aces, and outside hitter Milena Margaria tallied 11 points on 10 kills and one block.

Daniel Fisher, Head Coach of United States: “We were playing very consistently, I liked how we performed both offensively and defensively. Congratulations to Argentina for changing the game with a very strong service game; that got the crowd going. I thought we settled back in the middle of the fourth set, by receiving the ball better and we got some nice contributions from Elia Rubin coming off the bench. We are excited for playoffs”.

Marcelo Silva, Head Coach of Argentina: “It was a beautiful match. They (United States) played well the first two sets; we were able to carry out what we needed in the next two. I believe some critical points weren’t called. I am glad because the team fought up to the end”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 9, 2022.- Chile beat Honduras 3-0 (25-13, 25-18, 25-7) to advance into the quarterfinal round of the sixth edition of the Women’s U21 Pan Am Cup being held at La Paz Arena in Baja California Sur.

Chile with 1-1 record advanced into the quarterfinal round as second place of pool B of the event that grants tickets for the top two NORCECA teams to the 2023 FIVB World Championship. Honduras with 0-2 will play matches for 7-10 places.

The South Americans held an overwhelming 40-16 advantage in attacks, a 2-0 margin in blocks and a considerable 12-2 margin in serves. Honduras committed one less error (20-21) than Chile.

Outside hitter Doming Aylwin of Chile was the only player with double figures, scoring 13 points on 8 kills and 5 aces. Middle blocker Enikki Canedo and outside hitter Daniela Maureira contributed with 7 points each.

Opposite hitter and team captain Dazly Duran led Honduras with 6 points on 4 kills and 2 aces.

Ana Erskine, Captain of Chile: “We started with great energy, confident of our game and wanting to do things well, we showed it on the court. We must improve in being more offensive while attacking under our opponents’ pressure”.

Dazly Duran, Captain of Honduras: “It was a difficult match, we had a good second set, but our energy has been affecting us. This tournament is good preparation for us. Chile was good in attacking and their serving frequency was effective, finding spaces to hurt us”.

Eduardo Guillaume, Head Coach of Chile: “After studying Honduras we thought this could be the outcome. This match helps us to gain more confidence and improve our game level. We performed orderly, in the second half of the second set we decided to serve to put the ball in play and take the opportunity to work in our counterattack. Now in the quarterfinals we wait for our opponent. Dominga (7) did it well, she is tuning up and is one of our younger players, born 2005”.

Marvin Ulloa, Head Coach of Honduras: “We had preparation matches before coming here, but the team hasn’t performed at their capacity. Only in the second set we are executing the game fundamentals. I am taking as homework to have more preparation matches for next tournaments”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 9, 2022.- Cuba won first place in pool A beating Dominican Republic in straight sets 3-0 (25-23, 25-17, 25-17) at the sixth edition of the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup at La Paz Arena in Baja California Sur.

Cuba with 2-0 record and 9 points sealed their way into the next round but will have to wait if it’ll be in the quarter finals or directly into semifinals after the result between United States and Argentina. The event qualifies two NORCECA teams to the 2023 FIVB World Championship.

Dominican Republic with 0-2 record will play classification matches for places 7-10.

Cuba topped Dominican Republic in every skill, with 36-28 margin in attacks, 10-4 in blocks and 7-5 in service points. Cuba finished with 20 unforced errors and Dominican Republic with 22.

With double-figures, once again middle blocker Lisania Grafort led Cuba with 15 points on 9 kills, 4 blocks and one ace, outside hitter Claudia Tarin followed with 12 points on 10 kills, one block and one ace, while outside hitter and team captain Thainalien Castillo contributed with 10 points on 7 kills and 3 aces.

Outside hitter Marcelly Perez and middle blocker Alanae Margaritha scored 8 points apiece on Dominican Republic’s side.

Thainalien Castillo, Captain of Cuba: “Our team unity was crucial, there was excellent communication, we fought together, we were strong minded in our actions. We were more secure today than yesterday. Our coaches’ instructions were to use our strength, for this is what we train for many hours”.

Crismely Rodriguez, Captain of Dominican Republic: “Despite giving our all on the court, the result wasn’t favorable. Cuba won because they played with more energy, I believe that the attitude.

Rogelio Goytizolo, Head Coach of Cuba: “The team never gave up, they played with lots of guts, there were ups and downs, but the girls are getting into a good dynamic. I think we can improve in blocking”.

Cristian Cruz, Head Coach of Dominican Republic: “We have been training well, we had a good preparation, we have been working hard but without competition and it showed in our mind deficiency. The pressure blocked them; it didn’t let them develop their potential”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 9, 2022.- Canada´s impressive 22-3 margin in serves earned them their first win at the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup defeating Costa Rica 3-0 (25-16, 25-18, 25-11) at La Paz Arena in Baja California Sur.

Canada concludes the preliminary round with 1-2 record for third place in pool C, while Costa Rica ends in fourth (0-3). Both teams will play for positions 7 to 10 of the event.

Canada’s best performance was in the third set, offensively dominating Costa Rica not only with an impressive margin in serves but with a huge 36-14 advantage in attacking. The North American team also led 4-3 in blocks but committed more errors than Costa Rica (25-13).

Outside hitter Madyson Saris led Canada with 15 points on 10 kills and 5 aces, accompanied by team captain Emoni Bush with 14 points on 7 kills, two blocks and 5 aces; outside hitter Sullie Sundara also added 11 points on 7 kills and 4 aces.

Opposite hitter Angelica Rodriguez and outside hitter Nicole Mata scored 8 and 7 points respectively for Costa Rica.

Emoni Bush, Captain of Canada: “The difference between the third set with the first two is that we had high expectations going into the match and we were pressuring ourselves, we were tentative; in the third we played our game and had much more fun”.

Nicole Mata, Captain of Costa Rica: “We got anxious because we were close in the first two sets, but we should respect Canada who reacted and were more offensive in the third”.

Carolyn O’Dwyer, Head Coach of Canada: “We really took off in the third set, a big piece of it was from the service line, putting in aggressive serves and making Costa Rica uncomfortable. We are now in the classification section, not where we wanted to be, but we will be playing two more matches”.

Henry Rodriguez, head Coach of Costa Rica: “We did well, and I am glad. After being under 2-0, they lost concentration in the third. The player maturity is of influence, there are four born in 2006 and this tournament is a great deal for the two Central American championships that are close. Our libero was resented, and I preferred to give her a break after a small injury in the first set”.

LA PAZ, Baja California, June 8, 2022.- Mexico won pool B and advanced into semifinals after sweeping Chile 3-0 (25-17, 25-12, 25-20) at the sixth edition of the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup in La Paz Arena of Baja California Sur.

Host Mexico finished the preliminary round with a 2-0 record and 10 points to move directly into the semifinals. Chile (0-1) will face Honduras (0-1) to decide pool B second place and who will be in the quarterfinals.

The event qualifies the top two NORCECA teams to the 2023 FIVB World Championship.

Mexico’s presence over the net overwhelmed their opponent with a huge 45-24 margin in attacks, they also held a comfortable 6-1 advantage in serves. Both teams scored 6 points on blocks and committed 18 unforced errors.

Three Mexican players scored double-figures led by outside hitter and team captain Aime Topete with 16 points on 13 kills and 3 aces; opposite hitter Katherine Ramirez contributed with 14 points on 11 kills, one block and two aces, and outside hitter Alexandra Goris registered 13 points on 12 kills and one ace. Chile had opposite hitter Petra Schwarzaman as leading scorer with 9 points.

Aime Topete, Captain of Mexico: “Our team effort and our training reflects on our performance, the month of concentration had this objective of finishing first in our group, and we reached it”.

Luis Alberto León, Head Coach of Mexico: “I saw my team much better than yesterday, obviously Chile was more challenging than Honduras; we are getting into rhythm. What might cause a decrease in our level of play is two rest days before semifinals and we will face a team with much more rhythm”.  

Eduardo Guillaume, Head Coach of Chile: “Mexico is more experienced than our team. My team needs more matches like this one after two years and a half without competing. I like my team very much, they all train hard, they are responsible, and they try to learn every day, but the situation overcame them. Tomorrow, we hope to win against Honduras to move forward in the tournament, finishing second in our group gives us one more match, exactly what we need to play more, therefore we came”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 8, 2022.- United States defeated Canada 3-0 (25-17, 25-19, 25-22) at the Women’s U21 Pan Am Cup and will face Argentina for the top spot of pool C at La Paz Arena in Baja California Sur.

The U.S. and Argentina remain unbeaten and will battle to win pool C, the two top ranked pool winners will advance into semifinals while the third pool winner will play quarter finals alongside second places in each pool.

Canada (0-2) will face Costa Rica (0-2) in their last pool-play match.

The United States dominated Canada scoring on 29 opponent errors while limiting their own to 10 and prevailing in serves by a slim 6-5 margin; Canada led 34-31 in attacks and both teams scored 9 points on blocks.

Opposite player Merritt Beason topped the U.S. with 11 points on 7 kills, two blocks and two aces, outside hitter Norah Sis followed with 10 points on 8 kills and 2 blocks, and outside hitter Chloe Chicoine added 8 points.

Canadian outside hitter Madyson Saris scored a match-high of 15 points on 11 kills, 3 blocks and one ace. Also contributing to Canada’s scoring offense was outside hitter and captain Emoni Bush collecting 12 points all on kills and outside hitter Sullie Sundara chipped in with 10 points on 7 kills, 2 blocks and one ace.

Merritt Beason, Top Scorer of United States: “In all sense we were starting a little bit slow because it was tougher and we were not playing our real game, today was more challenging getting into the groove of things. For tomorrow we are going to focus on our side of the net and try to stay in control and prepare well. Volleyball is such a chemistry sport and our best skill as we all love and support each other”.

Madyson Saris, Top Scorer of Canada: “The team had a good grip, we played hard and I’m proud about the fight we did on the floor, especially against a team like the USA. We battle hard in long rallies and tomorrow we will give it our all”.

Daniel Fisher, Head Coach of United States: “We started off every set too slow. Canada changed number 4 (Bush) from position to opposite and it was good for them. I want to face Argentina tomorrow, we will study them, they have very strong attackers, and it will be a tough match. I am confident in my team that they will do well”.

Carolyn O’Dwyer, Head Coach of Canada: “A big difference today was our serve-pass game, we were able to get our opponent out of system with our serves. Overall, it was more representative of the team that we are”.

LA PAZ, Baja California, June 8, 2022.- Argentina beat Costa Rica 3-0 (25-12, 25-12, 25-11) to claim their second win at the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup being held at La Paz Arena in Baja California Sur.

With 2-0 record and 10 points in pool C, Argentina is guaranteed at least second place resuming pool-play against the United States. Costa Rica has 0-2 record and will face Canada.

Argentina held advantage over Costa Rica with overwhelming margins, 24-15 in attacks, 11-2 in aces and 9-3 in blocks, and committing fewer errors (15-21).

Opposite hitter Constanza Perez led Argentina scoring 11 points on 7 kills and 3 aces, outside hitter Milena Margaria and middle blocker Josefina Ossvald tallied 8 points apiece.

From Costa Rica, opposite hitter Angelica Rodriguez scored 9 points all on kills.

Juana Giardini, Setter of Argentina: “We always battled and gave our all, it was a nice match, we had fun and the result is very important for our objective. The game was smooth, we put pressure with our serves, and we looked to score every possible point in attacks, but never forgetting our defense”.

Marcelo Silva, Head Coach of Argentina: “I was able to play with everyone because we need to be prepared for tomorrow and play our best against the United States that has a higher level than the two opponents we’ve faced here”.

Angélica Rodríguez, Top Scorer of Costa Rica: “We weren’t afraid of Argentina, we were standing well on the court, we gave a good performance. Today our attitude improved, and we closed our blocking, following our coaches’ instructions”.

Henry Rodríguez, Head Coach of Costa Rica: “Today our performance was good for a young team, this is the base of our U18 team, comparing to yesterday’s performance against a tough opponent, with good tactics and who I consider to be one of the finalists of the tournament (United States). The team was settled on the court, they received more and we scored good points over Argentina that has better height”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 8, 2022.- Cuba started the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup defeating Puerto Rico 3-1 (23-25, 25-16, 29-27, 25-22) on day two of competition at La Paz Arena in Baja California Sur.

Cuba came from losing the first set in their first outing in pool A pulling off their first victory of the event that qualifies two NORCECA teams to the 2023 FIVB World Championship. In the second set, Puerto Rico kept the pressure as Cuba failed three-set points (24-20) and then another three before the close 29-27 finish for Cuba.

Puerto Rico concludes pool-play with 1-1 record and 4 points and waits for their final position to learn if they advance into the next round.

The final stats of the match show the close win for Cuba who led 48-46 in attacks, 14-11 in blocks and 12-11 in serves. Cuba committed 21 unforced errors and Puerto Rico with 25.

Cuban middle blocker Lisania Grafort scored a match-high of 24 points, including the most aces with 7 points, 13 kills and 4 blocks. Her teammates outside hitter Claudia Tarin and opposite hitter Yalain De La Peña contributed with 15 and 14 points respectively.

Three outside hitters led Puerto Rico’s offense, Grace Lopez with 18 points, Valeria Flores with 13 points and Elena García with 12 points.

Pool A resumes on Thursday with Cuba (1-0) facing Dominican Republic (0-1).

Lisania Grafort, Top Scorer of Cuba: “Our combativity helped us prevail over Puerto Rico, everyone did their part, they fulfilled their role on and off the court. Personally, I trust my team and myself to get good results”.

Rogelio Andrés Goytizolo, Head Coach of Cuba: “We faced a settled team on the court that didn’t hand out balls. My team is hungry despite their lack of experience, we are out of the ice of not competing internationally. Our middle, Grafort, was effective in serving and punished Puerto Rico over the net”.

Valeria Flores, Captain of Puerto Rico: “We’ve had two tough matches, today we weren’t as organized as yesterday in blocking; not all matches are the same and we are moving forward”.

José Rivera, Head Coach of Puerto Rico: “Cuba’s presence and strength was crucial, they served well, and we are suffering the consequences from yesterday’s five sets, some players are physically hurt. We battled up to the end and Cuba won by their own merit”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 7, 2022.- Mexico claimed their first victory in pool B in the opening day of the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup over Honduras 3-0 (25-7, 25-18, 25-6) at La Paz Arena in Baja California Sur.

Hosts Mexico had a solid performance in the first and third set in their first outing at the qualifier event to the FIVB World Championship subduing Honduras with a huge 45-16 advantage in attacks and 14-3 in serves. Mexico also led by a slim 3-2 margin in blocks and committed fewer errors (10-13) than Honduras.

Outside hitter and team captain Aime Topete scored 18 points in Mexico’s victory, on 13 kills, one block and 4 aces, while outside hitter Katherine Ramirez contributed with 10 points all on kills and Grecia Ung followed with 9 points all on kills.

Opposite hitter Dazly Duran and outside hitter Andrea Aceituno scored 5 points apiece for Honduras.

On the second day of competition in pool B, Mexico (1-0) plays against Chile and Honduras (0-1) has a rest day.

Luis Alberto Leon, Head Coach of Mexico: “I am satisfied with the scores of the first and third sets, as well as the result. We committed too many errors in the second set due to lack of concentration and they made us a lot of points that I hope won’t affect the groups’ result”.

Marvin Mora, Head Coach of Honduras: “We had a good second set because the players took risks and believed in themselves. I always tell my team that we have the right to fail, but not the right to not try. We had a bad last set. Due to our last-minute changes in our line-up, I think it wasn’t that bad, we had some highlights. We will adjust and this is an excellent preparation for the Central American Championship next month”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 7, 2022.- The United States overpowered Costa Rica 3-0 (25-8, 25-4, 25-8) in their debut at the sixth edition of the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup at the Arena La Paz in Baja California Sur.

The U.S. team grabbed their first win in pool C of the event that grants two tickets to the 2023 FIVB World Championship using all their players in a match short of one minute of an hour.

The Americans’ serves were too much for Costa Rica, ending with an impressive 14-0 margin in aces; they also were superior in attacks (39-10) and blocks (7-0), and scored 75 points on opponent errors against 20.

Outside hitter Chole Chicoine led the United States with 13 points on 10 kills and 3 aces; opposite hitter Merritt Beason and outside hitter Raven Covin contributed with 8 and 6 points respectively.

Opposite hitter Angelica Rodriguez scored 5 points for Costa Rica as their leading scorer.

On day two of the event, the United States (1-0) will face Canada (0-1) and Costa Rica (0-1) meets Argentina (1-0).

Daniel Fisher, Head Coach of United States: “We kept our service pressure strong the whole match. It was a good opportunity for us to play a lot of players, we are a new team together, the hitter and setters are still learning from each other, we’ve only trained for a week, so it was a nice beginning for us”.

Nicole Mata, Captain of Costa Rica: “This our first tournament together, our first match and it was against a strong opponent. Many of the players shook off their nerves and anxiousness of the first match. We are not done yet; we have two more pool matches and we are turning the page”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 7, 2022.- Argentina had a strong beginning at the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup defeating Canada 3-0 (25-17, 25-8, 25-22) at La Paz Arena in Baja California Sur.

Argentina started off their pool C campaign with no difficulties and showed a solid performance overpowering Canada.

Argentina led 36-22 in attacks, 7-2 in blocks and finished with an overwhelming 12-4 margin in serves. Canada committed one less error than Argentina (19-20).

Opposite hitter Valentina Vaulet led Argentina with 16 points on 12 kills and 4 aces, followed by outside hitter Milena Margaria with 13 points on 8 kills, one block and 4 aces.

On Canada’s side, middle blocker Jenna Pollock scored 7 points.

On Wednesday in pool C, Canada faces the United States and Argentina goes up against Costa Rica.

Victoria Caballero, Capitana de Argentina: “We were focused on what was needed, serving well, receiving well, and defending well. We are a short team, we focused on defending and receiving which is our strength.”

Marcelo Silva, Head Coach of Argentina: “We played in the world championship last year, but we are coming out of the Pandemic where our training had to be creative. I am glad for my teams’ superior performance, they were concentrated during the three sets, they controlled the ball and knew where to direct their serves. They were more concentrated than Canada in every action of the game who could not take advantage of their height in attack”.

Emoni Bush, Captain of Canada: “We had a little bit of nerves starting out, but we brought it together in the first set; we finished the game a lot stronger than we started. We need to limit our errors; we are a strong team with strong hitters”.

Carolyn O’Dwyer, Head Caoch of Canada: “We started off nervous causing us to play a little tentative and it took us a while to get out of it to play a little more aggressive style which is how we play. Argentina did a great job and a lot was on our side”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 7, 2022 – A new record for the highest scoring match was the result of the traditional duel between Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic to start the U21 Women’s Junior Pan American Cup at Arena La Paz on Tuesday.

The five-set battle won by Puerto Rico 3-2 (25-23, 27-29, 25-22, 24-26, 16-14) totaled 231 points erasing the previous mark of 216 set on May 14, 2019 when Puerto Rico defeated Chile 3-2 (26-24, 19-25, 27-25, 17-25, 15-13).

Roosevelt Comarazamy, NORCECA Press Officer, made the announcement from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, the site of the organization’s headquarters.

LA PAZ, Baja California, June 7, 2022.- Puerto Rico edged Dominican Republic in five thrilling sets 3-2 (25-23, 27-29, 25-22, 24-26, 16-14) at the inaugural match of the Women’s U21 Pan American Cup at Arena La Paz in Baja California Sur.

Puerto Rico won their first match in pool A of the qualifying event to the 2023 FIVB World Championship against a tough Dominican squad that led by a slim margin in every skill, with 55-54 in attacks, 17-16 in blocks and 7-5 in serves, while benefiting from 42 opponent errors and allowing 35.

Outside hitter Grace Mar López scored a match-high of 27 points leading Puerto Rico’s scorers; on 23 kills, 3 blocks and one ace. Opposite hitter Paola Martell followed with 11 points on 9 kills, one blocks, and one ace, and middle blocker Marcelle Baez also added 11 points on 5 kills, 5 blocks and one ace.

Middle blocker Florangel Terrero led Dominican Republic scoring 21 points on 18 kills, 2 blocks and one ace; setter Ariana Rodriguez contributed with 17 points on 11 kills and 6 blocks, and setter Sophia Reynolds chipped in with 10 points all on kills.

On the second day of competition in pool A, Dominican Republic has the day off and Puerto Rico plays against Cuba.

José Rivera, Head Coach Puerto Rico: “The game was intense, against a strong opponent. I am happy for my players for starting a tournament winning, which is positive. Our serving was effective, and our blocks executed well, allowing us to get the Dominican Republic off their offensive system of play”.

Cristian Cruz, Head Coach Dominican Republic: “We had too many ups and downs, we couldn’t develop our offense with our outside hitters, and we had to base our performance on our middles, compromising our passing. Our physical condition was bellow from what we are used to. Tomorrow we rest and we will try to improve during practice to face Cuba on Thursday”.

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 6, 2022.- The sixth edition of the U21 Women’s Pan American Cup that kicks off on Tuesday in La Paz will grant two tickets for the 2023 age-group FIVB World Championship.

With ten competing teams, the two vacancies available at the qualifying tournament for the  FIVB World Championship will automatically qualify two teams from the NORCECA Confederation and not of the South American Volleyball Confederations as only Argentina and Chile are taking part of the competition.

Marcelo Silva, Head Coach Argentina: “We’ve been preparing since April, our main goal here is to prepare for the South American qualifier to the World Championship in August. We are glad to be here, it’s a great opportunity to measure ourselves against interesting opponents; and I’ll evaluate my team”.

Carolyn O’Dwyer, Head Coach Canada: “We had a larger group training in Canada for ten days leading up, so we had a little bit of a longer period than we had in the past which was nice. I think with the change of the age-group we were able to bring some older athletes, giving us some more experience and our expectations are definitely high of what we can do this week, we hope to make Canada proud”.

Eduardo Guillaume, Head Coach Chile: “Getting back to compete is positive, in three years with this team we’ve only played five matches; we are really excited of being here, to have played several friendly matches against Mexico and on the eve of the competition. I’ve been working with this group of players for a long time, we have high expectations from them. They were born in 2004-2005. It will be a tough tournament because of the level of play, we want to qualify among the final four”.

Henry Rodríguez, Head Coach Costa Rica: “It’ll be interesting facing highly competitive teams. Our team is a U18 renovated squad, Central American champions, eight from that team and some others are U16. Our expectations are to improve, have good results and reach our U21 Central American Championship in July in good conditions to win the title”.

Rogelio Andrés Goytizolo, Head Coach Cuba: “As all the teams here, we are aiming for a good competition; our goal is to play the title match. We don’t know anything about our rivals, but our team has young athletes who desire a good outcome”.

Cristian Cruz, Head Coach Dominican Republic: “We had a good base camp, almost eight months working with this new group. This team participated at the U18 World Championship by ranking due to the Pandemic. We share a group with Puerto Rico and Cuba; we know that four players from Puerto Rico competed in Worlds and about Cuba we have no information. We are confident to be playing for medals”.

Marvin Ulloa, Head Coach Honduras: “We just had access to our gymnasium in March. Half of the team was U19 and U20 Central American Champions and competed in last year’s senior Central American Championship. We are suffering the absence of two key players: Nathaly Pérez who is studying in the United States and our team captain Gabriela Gomez who has health issues. We made some internal adjustments, and we hope they understand each other well”.

Luis Alberto León, Head Coach Mexico: “The team is glad, motivated and anxious to begin to compete here in Mexico. This is a strong competition, eight teams from NORCECA fighting for two berths for the World Championship and our objective is one of those tickets”.

José Rivera, Head Coach Puerto Rico: “We renovated our squad for this event, this is the first international experience for 80% of the group and they have a better height, something we identified in the past world championship. The team is healthy and with good energy, excited to compete”.

Daniel Fisher, Head Coach United States: “We had a wonderful preparation, we were able to be with our senior team in Louisiana for the VNL, it was a nice opportunity to train in the morning and watch the matches at night and learn from them. We started seven days of training with 20 players and now we’re here with 12, we feel we have a strong team and excited to be here, we hope for the best”.

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic, June 5, 2022 – The U-21 women’s national volleyball team of Dominican Republic that will participate in the Pan American Cup to be held in the city of La Paz in Baja California Sur from June 7 with representatives from 10 countries left for Mexico. 

The members of the Dominican team met at Las Américas Airport in Santo Domingo with the Dominican Republic´s Ambassador to Mexico, Her Excellency María Isabel Castillo who took the opportunity to pose for photos with the girls and made the trip to Mexico in the same flight.

The Dominicans travelled accompanied by Mr. Ramón A. García, president of the Dominican Volleyball Federation (FEDOVOLI). 

The Dominicans will play in Group A alongside defending champions Cuba and Puerto Rico. 

In the previous five editions of the biannual event, a different champion has emerged. The winning teams have been those from Peru, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, the United States and Cuba. 

LA PAZ, Baja California Sur, June 3, 2022 – Teams from 10 countries will be competing in the U-21 Women’s Pan American Cup whose game schedule runs from June 7 to 12.

In Pool A will lay the Dominican Republic, Cuba and Puerto Rico while Pool B also with three teams includes Mexico, Chile and Honduras. The four teams in Pool C are:  Argentina, Canada, Costa Rica and the United States.

The top two Pool winners will advance to the Semifinals while the Pool winner with the third record will join the three Second Place finishers in the Quarterfinals.

This is the sixth edition of the event that until this year brought together players of the Under-20 age. Cuba won the previous edition held in Lima, Peru.

Peru, Mexico, the Dominican Republic and the United States were the winners of the first four editions that began in 2011.

The competition schedule for the preliminary round is as follows:

June 7

14:00 Dominican Republic v Puerto Rico

16:00 Argentina v Canada

18:00 United States v Costa Rica

20:00 Mexico v Honduras

June 8

14:00 Cuba v Puerto Rico

16:00 Argentina v Costa Rica

18:00 United States v Canada

20:00 Mexico v Chile

June 9

14:00 Costa Rica v Canada

16:00 Dominican Republic v Cuba

18:00 Chile v Honduras

20:00 Argentina v United States