Venezuela Advances Directly to Semifinals

After Defeating Guatemala

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, August 6, 2026.- Venezuela advanced directly to the semifinals of the Boys’ U17 Pan American Cup after defeating Guatemala 3-0 (25-21, 25-15, 25-20) at the Multi-Sports Dome in Guatemala City.

Venezuela secured its place in the semifinals and will have a rest day on Friday, August 7, when the quarterfinals will be played. The United States will face Guatemala at 4:00 p.m., while Costa Rica will take on Canada at 6:00 p.m.

Venezuela remained ahead on the scoreboard throughout the match. In the first set, Guatemala managed at times to challenge the Venezuelan defense and stay close. In the next two sets, the Guatemalan offense struggled against Venezuela’s solid blocking, as the South Americans controlled the match to complete the straight-set victory.

Venezuela held the advantage in every scoring category, leading 40-25 in attacks, 9-4 in blocks and 5-1 in aces.

Three Venezuelan players scored in double figures. Josué García and Julio César Calles led the team with 12 points each, while Alejandro Rondón added 10. Guatemala’s Óscar Velásquez led all scorers with 13 points.

Venezuela head coach Marin Perez expressed his satisfaction with the qualification: “We are very happy to advance directly to the semifinals. Our main goal is to reach the podium, so we are going to give our best effort.”

Regarding his team’s performance, he added: “We did not play as well today as we did in our previous two matches; however, the players were able to come through in the difficult moments.”

Guatemala head coach Luis Fernando Castañeda: “We have a team that fights, but in the end our lack of experience took its toll. The players still need to develop the savvy necessary to close out matches. Now we have to keep working and fight in these quarterfinals, which will not be easy.”