Costa Rica Defeats Guatemala to Move

into a Tie for Second Place in Pool A

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, August 5, 2026. – Costa Rica defeated host Guatemala 3-1 (25-21, 25-18, 18-25, 25-15) to pull even with the home team for second place in Pool A of the Boys' U17 Pan American Cup at the Multi-Sport Dome in Guatemala City.

With the result, Costa Rica and Guatemala both hold 1-1 records, while Venezuela leads the pool at 2-0 and Honduras remains in fourth place at 0-2.

Costa Rica controlled the opening two sets, taking advantage of Guatemala's unforced errors to build a two-set lead.

The hosts responded in the third set by racing to an 8-0 advantage, setting the tone for the remainder of the set and cutting the deficit to one. Costa Rica regained control in the fourth set. After a closely contested battle up to 13 points, the Costa Ricans pulled away with a decisive run to seal the victory.

Costa Rica held the edge in kills (47-44) and blocks (10-6), while Guatemala led in aces (4-2). Both teams struggled with unforced errors, with Guatemala committing 34 and Costa Rica 25.

Alejandro Céspedes led Costa Rica with 11 points. Evant Ramos and Kenneth Quirós each added 10 points, with Quirós contributing three blocks.

For Guatemala, Israel Velásquez led all scorers with 17 points, followed by Eduardo Palala with 13.

In the final day of pool play, Costa Rica will face Honduras at 6:00 p.m., while Guatemala will take on Venezuela at 8:00 p.m. with a direct berth in the semifinals still within reach.

Costa Rica's libero Axel Valverde said: "Guatemala has a very good team and a strong serve that gave us a lot of trouble in reception. Tomorrow, we hope to win again and secure our place in the quarterfinals."

Guatemala's libero Adrián Herrera added: "We played well, but at the beginning we lacked attitude and concentration. As the home team, we should have played better. Tomorrow, we hope to give everything against Venezuela, fight for the victory, and try to advance directly to the semifinals."