Mets Dominate and Move Closer to the LVSM Grand Final

GUAYNABO, Puerto Rico, November 10, 2024.- The Mets de Guaynabo defended their home court at Mario “Quijote” Morales Coliseum to take control of Semifinal A in the Men’s Superior Volleyball League (LVSM) of Puerto Rico, leading the series 2-1 over Cafeteros de Yauco.

The previous two games went to overtime, but this time was the opposite: the home team has won all three matches.

After the victory, outside hitter Gianluca Grasso of the Mets said, “We served better, defended a little better on the court, and played with a bit more heart and awareness. You know, we used our blocking and coverage effectively, and thanks to all the hard work we’ve put in these last two weeks, we finally came out with a three-set win.”

Grasso, recognized as “Comeback Player of the Year” in this season's awards, emphasized that the key to advancing to the final series is sticking to their established plan. He added, “We need to keep doing what we did today, focusing on our serves, keeping the pressure on, and playing our game. I think in the last two games, we lost sight of the game plan a little, which made things difficult, but now we know what we need to do to carry today’s approach into the next two games.”

The scores in favor of the Mets were 25-22, 25-15, and 25-23.

Guaynabo outperformed Yauco with a 49-35 advantage in attacks, 41-24 in digs, and 37-36 in passes. Both teams tied in blocks with five each and in service aces.

Gianluca Grasso led the Mets with 19 points (17 in attacks, one block, and one ace), followed by Egyptian Hisham Yousri with 15 points and naturalized Cuban Inovel Romero with 12. Kevin Rodríguez contributed 18 assists.

For the Cafeteros de Yauco, Mark Frazier was the only player to score in double digits with 18 points.

The series returns to Raúl “Pipote” Oliveras Coliseum in Yauco next Wednesday, November 13, for the fourth game of the series. The match is scheduled to start at 8:00 PM.

The semifinal series is best-of-seven. The Kia Cup Grand Final will begin two days after the conclusion of the last semifinal.

SEMIFINAL SERIES A

GAME #1 - Wednesday, November 6 – 8:00 PM Yauco at Guaynabo / 2-3 (21-25, 20-25, 25-16, 25-20, 15-11)

GAME #2 - Friday, November 8 – 8:00 PM Guaynabo at Yauco / 2-3 (28-30, 14-25, 25-17, 25-22, 15-13)

GAME #3 - Sunday, November 10 – 5:00 PM Yauco at Guaynabo / 0-3 (25-22, 25-15, 25-23)

GAME #4 - Wednesday, November 13 – 8:00 PM Guaynabo at Yauco

GAME #5 (IF NECESSARY) - Friday, November 15 – 8:00 PM Yauco at Guaynabo

GAME #6 (IF NECESSARY) - Monday, November 18 – 8:00 PM Guaynabo at Yauco

GAME #7 (IF NECESSARY) - Thursday, November 21 – 8:00 PM Yauco at Guaynabo