CUERNAVACA, Morelos, July 9, 2025. – Venezuela celebrated its first victory at the U19 Boys’ Pan American Cup by defeating Puerto Rico in straight sets 3-0 (25-23, 25-19, 25-22) at the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos (UAEM) Gymnasium in Cuernavaca.
With this result, Venezuela evens its record to 1-1 in Pool A, while Puerto Rico remains winless at 0-2.
The match was tightly contested point by point. Puerto Rico showed composure in the first two sets by coming back from behind but failed to hold on to an early 4-0 lead in the third.
Blocking was the key to Venezuela’s success, with a clear advantage of 14-7. They also led in service points 4-2. Puerto Rico had a slight edge in attacks 36-35. Venezuela committed 19 unforced errors, compared to 22 by Puerto Rico.
Top scorers of the match were Venezuela’s Jean Sanabria with 14 points and Gandy Lugo with 12. Middle blocker Harold Larez also stood out with a match-high of six effective blocks.
On Puerto Rico’s side, outside hitter Gustavo Pérez was the only player to reach double digits, finishing with 10 points.
Venezuela will close pool-play on Thursday against Canada, while Puerto Rico will face the United States. The team that finishes first in the pool will advance directly to the semifinals.
Venezuela’s Head Coach, Ivan Nieto, stated: “It wasn’t an easy win, the score doesn’t reflect what truly happened. The Puerto Rican team is very similar to ours; they have the same skill set and playing style. But today, the balance slightly tipped in Venezuela’s favor in terms of tactics. We were able to finish on defense, counterattacks, or transitions that were crucial, and that they (Puerto Rico) couldn’t close, especially after the 20-point mark. It was tight.”
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