Guatemala Struggles to Defeat Belize

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras, June 23, 2024.- The Guatemalan National Team struggled to overcome Belize, winning 3 sets to 2 (17-25, 25-18, 25-21, 23-25, and 16-14), in the opening match of the VI Central American Women's U23 Championship, at the Jorge Galeno Gymnasium in Tegucigalpa.

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The first set was quite balanced up to the 6-point mark, after which Belize took control, doubling Guatemala’s points 16-8. In the second and third sets, the Guatemalan team regained control. In a thrilling fourth set, Belize once again dominated, but ultimately, in another gripping set, Guatemala secured the game.

Guatemala outclassed in attack points 51-37, while Belize outperformed Guatemala in blocks 15-10 and in aces 10-8.

María Andrea Santa Cruz and Naomi Monney were the offense leaders of Guatemala’s attack, each scoring 22 points. Santa Cruz's points included one block and 3 aces, while Monney contributed 3 blocks and one ace.

For Belize, Gareth Bruce and Nisaan Martínez scored 13 points each. Martínez was spectacular with 5 blocks, while Bruce had 3 successful serves.

María Andrea Santa Cruz said, “The game was very close; we didn’t expect to play 5 sets, but in the end, we made it. It was a team effort; we were all ready to help each other. Belize  is very strong; they are quite tall players and have a very tight block, which complicated things for us a lot. Thank God we managed to get the victory”.

Gareth Bruce from Belize commented, “I think both teams played very well, played very hard. We’ve played Guatemala a couple of times, and they have a faster game than us. I think our team fought to the end and we did our best”.