Costa Rica Tops Panama for Bronze at the

VII AFECAVOL U23 Central American Championship

CHIRIQUÍ, Panama, September 20, 2025 – The Costa Rica National Team climbed to third place at the VII AFECAVOL U23 Men’s Central American Championship after defeating Panama 3-0 (25-19, 25-18, 29-27).

Panama was slow to get going and tried to extend the match, especially in the third set, but Costa Rica shut the door thanks to its powerful attack.

For Costa Rica, five players scored in double digits, with the top three being Staley Grant with 24, Ignacio Sánchez with 17, and Yulius Brown with 13.

For Panama, Víctor Araúz finished with 15 points and Víctor Pérez added 11.

ÁLBUM CRC VS PAN

Costa Rica was highly effective on attack, scoring 58 points compared to Panama’s 33. Panama narrowly led in blocking (7-4) and service points (5-4), but they committed 19 unforced errors compared to Costa Rica’s 13.

After the match, Costa Rica’s coach César Salas said: “Thank God we reached the podium, even though our goal was to make it to the final. We didn’t achieve that, but we are not sad, overall, the team had a great tournament. This is a very young group that will undoubtedly continue to grow.”

Panama’s coach Horacio Angulo added: “We have to be honest; the team didn’t have the necessary preparation. Still, people were able to see what these guys are capable of. To compete for medals with this new format, proper preparation is needed. You can have a team with very talented players, but that means nothing without preparation.”