Canada,
Costa Rica, Mexico and the United States Advance to Women’s
Semifinals in La Sabana
SAN JOSÉ, Costa Rica, April 18, 2026.-
The
teams of Darby Dunn/Alison McKay of Canada, Marcela Araya/Eugenia
Ramírez of Costa Rica, Susana Torres/Abril Flores of Mexico, and
Torrey Van Winden/Lindsey Sparks of the United States secured their
spots in the semifinals of the first stage of the 2026 NORCECA Beach
Volleyball Tour, following an intense day of competition at La
Sabana that included the conclusion of pool play and the
quarterfinal round.
Dunn/McKay (CAN) advanced to the semifinals after defeating Crismil
Paniagua and Bethania Almanzar (DOM) 2-0 (21-9, 21-13). Meanwhile,
Costa Rica’s Araya/Ramírez earned their place with a 2-0 (21-19,
21-15) victory over compatriots Laura Valentina Molina and Aliza
Aguilar.
Van
Winden/Sparks (USA) also secured their semifinal berth with a 2-0
(21-8, 21-12) win over Karla Jamileth Tovar and Daniela Sofía Vigil
of El Salvador. Likewise, Mexico’s Susana Torres and Abril Flores (MEX)
advanced with a 2-0 (21-12, 21-9) victory against Halle Hunt and
Jade Race (USA).
Sunday’s semifinals feature Canada’s Dunn/McKay against Costa Rica’s
Araya/Ramírez, and Mexico’s Torres/Flores facing the United States’
Van Winden/Sparks.
The
day began with the final matches of pool play. In Pool A,
Tovar/Vigil (ESA) defeated Ingrid Núñez/Keila Moreno (CRC) 2-0
(22-20, 21-13), while Dunn/McKay (CAN) cruised past Vernecia Caines/D’Keisha
Jordan of the U.S. Virgin Islands 2-0 (22-8, 21-8).
In
Pool B, Van Winden/Sparks (USA) finished first place after defeating
Paniagua/Almanzar (DOM) 2-0 (21-9, 21-16), with both teams advancing
to the next round. Ana Sofía González Cepek/Ana Sofía Juárez (MEX)
defeated Shajunee Gumbs/Jontelle Hensley Philip of St. Kitts and
Nevis 2-1 (17-21, 21-9, 15-12).
In
Pool C, Molina/Aguilar (CRC) defeated Chante Smith-Johnson/Amanda
Robinson of the Cayman Islands 2-0 (21-6, 21-8), while Torres/Flores
(MEX) beat Paola Alvarado/Marisabel González of Guatemala 2-0
(21-13, 21-15).
Araya/Ramírez (CRC) secured first place in Pool D with a 2-0 (23-21,
21-19) win over Socorro López/Lolette Rodríguez of Nicaragua, and
Hunt/Race (USA) advanced after defeating Canada’s Sophia Hladyniuk/Myriam
Robitaille 2-0 (21-16, 21-15).
With
pool play completed, the quarterfinals marked the start of the
knockout stage, determining the four semifinalist teams of the
tournament.
POOL A: Tovar/Vigil (ESA) 2-0 Núñez/Moreno (CRC) (22-20/21-13); Dunn/McKay
(CAN) 2-0 Vernecia/Jordan (ISV) (22-8/21-8)
POOL
B: Van Winden/Sparks (USA) 2-0 (21-9/21-16); Cepek/Juarez (MÉX) 2-1
Gumbs/Hensley Philip (SKN) (17-21/21-9/15-12)
POOL C: Molina/Aguilar (CRC) 2-0 Smith-Johnson/A.Robinson (CAY)
(21-6/21-8); Torres/Flores (MEX) 2-0 Alvarado/Gonzalez (GUA)
(21-13/21-15)
POOL
D: Araya/Ramirez (CRC) 2-0 López/Lolette (NCA) (23-21/21-19);
Hunt/Race (USA) 2-0 Hladyniuk/Robitaille (21-16/21-15)
QUARTERFINALS RESULTS
Araya/Ramírez (CRC) 2-0 Molina/Aguilar (CRC) (21-19/21-15)
Dunn/McKay (CAN) 2-0 Paniagua/Almanzar (DOM) (21-9/21-13)
Van Winden/Sparks (USA) 2-0 Tovar/Vigil (ESA) (21-8/21-12)
Torres/Flores (MEX) 2-0 Hunt/Race(USA) (21-12/21-09)
C13/16
Lopez/Lolette (NCA) 2-0 Vernecia/Jordan (ISV) (21-4/21-8); Gumbs/Hensley
Philip (SKN) 2-0 Smith-Johnson/A.Robinson (CAY) (21-9/21-10)
C9/12
Hladyniuk/Robitaille (CAN) 2-0 Núñez/Moreno (CRC) (21-12/21-8);
Alvarado/Gonzalez (GUA) 2-1 Cepek/Juarez (MEX) (18-21/21-12/15-10) | 
