Men’s Competition Kicks Off Fiercely at U23 Tour in Juan Dolio

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic, May 23, 2025.- The teams from Costa Rica, Canada, Nicaragua, the United States, and El Salvador had a strong start at the NORCECA U23 Beach Volleyball Tour in Juan Dolio, each closing the opening day of the men’s competition with two wins in as many matches.

In Pool B, Costa Rica’s duo of Julián Araya and Jhostin Varela delivered commanding performances in their two outings. They first defeated Canada’s Aidan Labossiere and Mason Doering 2-0 (21-10, 21-13), then followed up with a convincing 2-0 victory (21-5, 21-9) over Jared Brown and Kanif Wathey of the U.S. Virgin Islands.

In Pool C, Canadians Connor Dorsey and Aiden Hilkowitz claimed two straight-set victories; 2-0 (21-7, 21-10) against Kymani Greenidge and Cole Sommer of the U.S. Virgin Islands, and 2-0 (21-18, 21-14) over Trinidad and Tobago’s Jerome Morrison and Jahreef Miguel.

Nicaragua’s team, Josué Meneses and Jesy Umaña, also enjoyed a strong start in the same pool. They defeated Morrison/Miguel (TTO) 2-0 (21-12, 21-11) and then Greenidge/Sommer (ISV) 2-0 (21-10, 21-6).

In Pool D, Gage Basey and Thomas Hurst of the United States dominated their two matches, first against Honduras’ Jairo Gálvez and Isaac Méndez (2-0, 21-10, 21-7), and then against Suriname’s Atman and Guy Lieveld (2-0, 21-8, 21-12).

Likewise, El Salvador’s Gabriel Vargas and Carlos Mejía had a successful debut, defeating Gálvez/Méndez (HON) 2-0 (21-13, 21-13) and then overcoming Suriname’s Atman/Lieveld 2-0 (21-18, 21-8).

In Pool A, the Dominican duo of Ramón De Jesús and Rolvin Maldonado secured a victory over Cayman Islands’ Stephen Watson and Dylan Lynee with a score of 2-0 (21-10, 21-17).

Other results:

Stephen Watson/Dylan Lynee (CAY) d Daniel Delgado/José Guevara (GUA) 2-1 (18-21, 21-13, 15-9), Julián Bristo/Jedediah Pencheon (SKN) d Jared Brown/Kanif Wathey (ISV) 2-0 (21-10, 21-11), Aidan Labossiere/Mason Doering (CAN) d Bristol/Pencheon (SKN) 2-0 (22-20, 21-16).