Costa Rica Closes Pool-Play Undefeated and Advances to the Semifinals of Guatemala 2025

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, October 18, 2025.– Costa Rica defeated Nicaragua 3-0 (25-14, 25-13, 25-22), closing pool-play undefeated in the women’s volleyball tournament and securing a spot in the semifinals of the 12th Central American Games Guatemala 2025.

Costa Rica finished Pool A with a 2-0 record, guaranteeing their place in the semifinals. Nicaragua (0-1) will face El Salvador (0-1) on Sunday in the match that will determine the second semifinalist from the group.

Costa Rica took control from the opening set, building a six-point lead (12-6) with contributions from at least five different players. The team maintained their rhythm and comfortably closed the first set.

In the second set, Nicaragua briefly took the lead, but Costa Rica quickly regained control with the strong serving of Ana Victoria “Tori” Rojas, extending their lead to 20-8. The offensive trio of Tatiana Sayles, Tannia Carazo, and Lakysha Thompson powered the team to a 2-0 advantage.

The third set was tighter, with Nicaragua leading 12-10 thanks to María Belén Arcia’s efforts. However, Sayles and Rojas, combined with Nicaraguan errors, turned the score around (16-12). Late in the set, Nicaragua denied two match points with an attack and a block from Josafet Díaz, but Sayles sealed the victory with a block on Arcia.

ALBUM CRC vs NCA

Costa Rica outperformed Nicaragua in attacks (44-31), blocks (7-4), and serves (6-3), while committing fewer errors (11-18).

Top scorer Tatiana Sayles led Costa Rica with 19 points (16 attacks, 2 blocks, 1 ace), followed by “Tori” Rojas with 14 points (9 attacks, 1 block, 4 aces) and Tannia Carazo with 11 points (10 attacks, 1 block). For Nicaragua, María Arcia and Josafet Díaz finished with 7 points each.

Ana Victoria “Tori” Rojas, opposite of Costa Rica, said: “Yesterday things didn’t go as we wanted, and that helped us come in today more focused and determined because Nicaragua is a very strong team, and our rivalry is also intense. Each of us came in to give our best, and the difference was that we worked as a team. You could see the unity, and everyone embraced their role.”

Josafet Díaz, captain of Nicaragua, expressed: “We lacked concentration and communication among ourselves. This is just the beginning, and we’ll work on those aspects. We’re in a group of three, and with a win tomorrow, we can secure a spot in the semifinals. Physically, we’re strong, but we need to improve the mental part of our game.”