Dominican Republic downs Costa Rica 3-0

LIMA, Peru, September 22, 2016 – Two-time defending champions Dominican Republic outlcassed Costa Rica in straight sets 3-0 (25-11, 25-5, 25-11) in the fourth day of actions at the U23 Women’s Volleyball Pan American Cup taking place in Lima and Cañete.

It was the third victory against one loss for the Dominican team that secured a spot in the semifinals of Saturday. Costa Rica dropped to 1-3.

Gaila Gonzalez notched 13 points, including five aces, while Brayelin Martinez and Natalia Martínez added 11 and 10 points, respectively, in the victory.

The Dominicans held an overwhelming advantage in attacks (36-11) and aces (14-3) and also led 6-2 in blocks.

Wagner Pacheco, coach of Dominican Republic: “We knew the game would be accessible but the most important thing for us was to earn the spot in the world championship and we did it. Now we will try to be in the final. Against Peru it is going to be a very tough match even though only will define the matches in the semifinals. It is never easy to play against Peru and even tougher in Lima but I hope to get a good result.

Braulio Godínez, coach of Costa Rica: “These are two teams completely different. On one side you have the Dominican Republic which is among the top in the world and Costa Rica which is an amateur team. That’s the reason it is very difficult to keep the battle in matches like this one. Our goal was to reach the 10-point mark and we did it within our possibilities. The Dominican Republic team has a lot of consistency and makes few errors. I hope the experience serve us to get a better level.”