Puerto Rico Secures Final Berth to the

FIVB Girls' U19 World Championship

SAN JOSÉ, Costa Rica, July 22, 2026. – Puerto Rico claimed the final available berth to the 2027 FIVB Girls' U19 World Championship and advanced to the semifinals of the NORCECA Girls' U19 Continental Championship with a straight-set victory over Costa Rica, 3-0 (25-14, 25-16, 25-23).

Puerto Rico will face defending champion United States in the semifinals, while Mexico will take on Canada in the other matchup. Costa Rica, meanwhile, will play the Dominican Republic for fifth place on the tournament's final day.

Puerto Rico set the pace from the opening whistle with a more consistent attack and strong serving. After taking control of the opening set, the Puerto Ricans raced to a 7-1 lead in the second and maintained their momentum to move within one set of securing a World Championship berth.

Costa Rica responded in the third set and kept the contest close throughout. The hosts took a 20-19 lead and later tied the score at 21-21 and 22-22, but Puerto Rico responded in the decisive moments, closing out the set 25-23 to seal both the victory and qualification to the World Championship.

Puerto Rico held a 36-18 advantage in attacks and led 7-4 in service aces. Costa Rica finished with an 11-8 edge in blocks but gave away 24 points on unforced errors compared to Puerto Rico's 20.

Anna Aquino led Puerto Rico's offense with 12 points, followed by Carinialys Román with 11. Costa Rica's Luciana Vargas finished as her team's top scorer with 10 points.

Following the victory, Puerto Rico head coach Leira Ortiz said: “We are very happy to have qualified for the World Championship. We came to this event with an Under-17 team, but we believed we could compete. Now we will face the semifinals, which were another one of our goals. First, we wanted to qualify for the World Championship, and now we'll fight for a medal.”

Costa Rica head coach Yuliana González commented: “We knew Puerto Rico was a very strong opponent. We struggled to find our rhythm early in the match and managed to improve in the third set, but it wasn't enough. I always tell my team that we only look back on learning. Now we have to focus on our next match and be ready for it.”