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CORDOBA, Mexico, October 8, 2015 - Puerto Rico qualified to the
semifinals at the NORCECA Men's Continental Volleyball
Championship after winning in three sets against Costa Rica by
scores of 25-17, 25-19 at 25-19 in the quarterfinals round.
Hector Soto had 12 points for that Puerto Rican squad, that is
already part of the top four teams of the competition and
secured a berth in the Final 4 Tournament which gives one ticket
to the Olympic Games in 2016.
On the Costa Ricas side, Richard Smith Hall closed the match
with 12 points. Puerto Rico beat their Central American rival
with an 8-4 advantage in blocks and 4-2 in team aces after one
hour and 11 minutes of game time.
"I want to congratulate Puerto Rico for this victory. For us
this match was difficult, but we came here trying to play one
day at a time, trying to improve," said Costa Rican captain,
Javier Alvarez.
Meanwhile, the captain of Puerto Rico, Hector Soto stated: "I
think as a team we are obviously happy to qualify to the
pre-Olympic tournament, but I'm not satisfied at all, because we
have not reached our best level during the tournament. Today we
played more disciplined in our blocking game."
Costa Rica coach Cesar Salas, congratulated the Puerto Rican
team and also remarked: "We have had an evolution in terms of
our volleyball. Previously, playing against Puerto Rico was
difficult. Today, there are still difficulties, but we could
defend ourselves. We have tried to serve, and work on
everything, and plying with combinations, so the team has grown
to face rivals at this level. "
Javier Gaspar, coach of Puerto Rico, said: "Congratulations to
Costa Rica and its working group. They have improved their
level. We have tried to do our best at this Pre-Olympic
qualifying tournament after three matches. As I said before, we
had not been able to prepare as a team for this tournament, Our
players are in their clubs, but I think we will gradually join
together as a team. Tomorrow, we will have a bigger challenge in
the semifinals phase." |
