GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, June 27, 2026. – Venezuela rallied from one set down to defeat Nicaragua 3-1 (23-25, 25-23, 25-19, 25-16) and secure a place in the fifth-place match at the 2026 Men’s U21 Pan American Cup, being held at Teodoro Palacios Flores Gymnasium in Guatemala City.
Venezuela will face the Dominican Republic for fifth place, while Nicaragua will take on host Guatemala in the seventh-place match.
After dropping the opening set, Venezuela responded with a 49-42 advantage in attacks and a 5-1 edge in aces. Both teams finished with eight blocks, while the South Americans committed fewer unforced errors (32-36).
Yoisbel Galeno once again led Venezuela in scoring with 19 points, while Ángel Matute added 16. For Nicaragua, Álvaro Quesada also scored 19 points and Joaquín Padilla contributed 13.
Nicaragua came out strong, racing to a 5-0 lead behind the offense of Inti Zapata and Elías Zeledón. The Nicaraguans extended their advantage to 10-4 with an ace and a block by Braulio Velásquez. Venezuela fought back to tie the score at 18, capitalizing on three consecutive Nicaraguan errors. A block by Álvaro Quesada on Venezuela’s leading scorer Yoisbel Galeno gave Nicaragua a 24-21 lead, but they missed two set points before Quesada finished the set with a successful attack for a 25-23 victory.
The second set opened with both teams battling evenly, tied at 8-all. Venezuela moved ahead 14-10 behind the serving of Alberth García and attacks from Jean Franco Sanabria and Jonas Flores. Galeno and Matute helped the South Americans maintain the lead, but Nicaragua rallied from 18-21 to tie the score at 21 after two errors by Galeno and a powerful spike from Joaquín Padilla. Galeno earned set point with a kill, Padilla answered for Nicaragua, and a service error by Elías Zeledón handed Venezuela the 25-23 win to level the match.
The third set remained closely contested until the score was tied at 17. Venezuela then took control, benefiting from two consecutive Nicaraguan errors and a kill from Galeno to build a 20-17 advantage. The South Americans stayed in front, and two consecutive blocks closed out the set 25-19 for a 2-1 lead.
Venezuela controlled the fourth set from the start, building a comfortable eight-point lead (19-11) behind the scoring of Harold Lárez and Ángel Matute. With several substitutions in the closing stages, the Venezuelans comfortably finished off the set and the match to book their meeting with the Dominican Republic for fifth place.
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