Cafeteros One Win Away from the Title After

Another Dramatic Five-Set Victory

YAUCO, Puerto Rico, January 21, 2026. – The Cafeteros de Yauco moved to within one victory of dethroning the two-time champions Caribes de San Sebastián after once again prevailing in five sets in Game 4 of the Men’s Volleyball Superior League (LVSM) Finals.

On Wednesday night, before a packed arena, Yauco once again showed poise and finishing strength to secure a 3–2 win (25–18, 25–27, 25–15, 24–26, 15–8). It marked the third match of the series to go the full distance, all won by Yauco. The Caribes’ lone victory came in four sets.

From the opening whistle, the intensity was evident on the court. After the match, Juan Felipe Castañeda, the Cafeteros’ Colombian reinforcement, described the experience as “an honor that fills me with emotion,” noting that this first experience in Puerto Rico motivates him to continue growing “as a player and as a person.”

When asked what Yauco needs to close out the series, he emphasized unity as the key: “We have to work together, like the great family we are. Every player is attentive and ready to help. It’s about staying united and moving forward step by step.”

With Yauco leading 2–1, the Caribes showed signs of life in the fourth set.

Just when it seemed the Cafeteros would close out the match, San Sebastián responded with a 6–2 run, rallying from a 17–21 deficit. The surge included an attack error by Diego Negrón from zone four that tied the score at 23.

The Caribes earned set point at 24–23 with a block on Brandon Rattray and forced a fifth set with a zone-four attack by Corey Chavers to make it 26–24.

However, in the decisive fifth set, Yauco came out determined. They jumped ahead 6–3 on a Castañeda attack and never looked back. They reached match point at 14–8 following two Caribes errors—a missed serve by Howard García and an out-of-bounds attack by Chavers—and sealed the victory when San Sebastián failed to complete its final attack.

After the match, Caribes middle blocker Anthony Negrón acknowledged it was not his team’s best night. “Everything went right for them; they played very well. We tried to hang on in that fourth set, but in the fifth we didn’t have the same precision and made too many mistakes,” he said. On what they need to do to extend the series, he was clear: “We must defend our home court on Friday and keep fighting until the end. This isn’t over. It’s first to four; they need one more, we need more, but we’ll keep defending like champions.”

The series continues Friday, when the Caribes host Yauco at the Luis Aymat Cardona Coliseum at 8:00 p.m., in a do-or-die match for the two-time champions.