Sarabia/Osuna, Tucker/Caldwell, Bucklin/Penberthy, & Stanley/Araya Secure Two Wins in a Thrilling Start at the NORCECA Tour in Costa Rica

San José, Costa Rica, December 6, 2024.- The duos Sarabia/Osuna from Mexico, Tucker/Caldwell from the United States, Bucklin/Penberthy from the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Stanley/Araya from Costa Rica each claimed two victories in an electrifying start to the ninth stop of the 2024 NORCECA Tour at La Sabana sand courts in Costa Rica.

In Pool A, the Mexican duo Miguel Sarabia and Jorman Osuna exceled with two consecutive wins. In their debut, they overcame the Dominican pair Hayerling De Jesús and Rolvin Maldonado in a hard-fought 2-1 (21-19, 21-13, 15-11). Later, they secured another victory against Canada’s Luke de Greeff and Guillaume Rivest with a 2-0 (21-19, 21-17) win.

Meanwhile, the Dominican representatives achieved an important 2-1 (21-16, 16-21, 15-7) victory over Guatemala’s Santiago Penagos and Javier Lucero, who ended winless.

Pool B saw the dominance of the U.S. team of Silila Tucker and Cody Caldwell, who delivered commanding performances in their two matches, defeating Costa Rica’s Edwin Delgado and Juan Diego Delgado (21-09, 21-11) and St. Kitts and Nevis' Julian Bristol and Jedediah Pencheon (21-09, 21-14).

Guatemala’s Luis García and Edgar Maldonado secured a crucial victory against Delgado/Delgado in a closely contested 2-1 (21-17, 19-21, 15-10) match.

Pool C featured equally intense action. The U.S. Virgin Islands duo of Tyler Penberthy and Garrett Bucklin stood out with two victories, including a thrilling 2-1 (19-21, 21-14, 15-10) win over Mexico’s Ines Vargas and Gabriel Cruz. Earlier, Penberthy/Bucklin defeated Barbados’ Jonathan Alleyne and Ronald Rice 2-0 (21-09, 21-11).

Nicaragua’s Denis López and Dany López earned an important 2-0 (21-10, 21-16) victory against Alleyne and Rice, who were unable to secure any wins on the day.

Costa Rica topped in Pool D, where Stanley Grant and Julián Araya delivered a flawless debut. In their first match, they defeated Devin Van Siclen and William Clemens (ISV) 2-0 (21-15, 21-18) and later overcame Sean Tucker and Kyle Hamilton (BER) with a similar score (21-16, 21-15).

El Salvador’s Gabriel Vargas and Carlos Mejía also impressed, defeating Bermuda’s representatives 2-0 (21-18, 21-09) before falling to the U.S. Virgin Islands team in their final match.

The group stage concludes Saturday morning, followed by quarterfinal matches and placement games. The tournament promises to maintain the excitement and quality through every set.

MEN’S RESULTS

POOL A Sarabia/OSUNA (MEX) -De Jesús/MALDONADO (DOM) 2-1 (21-19/21-13/15-11)/ de Greeff/Rivest (CAN)-Lucero/Penagos (GUA) 2-0 (21-15/21-15) / De Jesús/MALDONADO (DOM)-Lucero/Penagos (GUA) 2-1 (21-16/16-21/15-7) /Sarabia/OSUNA (MEX)-de Greeff/Rivest (CAN) 2-0 (21-19/21-17) POOL B Maldonado/García (GUA)-Bristol/Pencheon (SKN) 2-0 (21-13/21-16)/Tucker/Caldwell (USA)-Delgado/Delgado (CRC) 2-0 (21-09/21-11)/Tucker/Caldwell (USA)-Bristol/Pencheon (SKN) 2-0 (21-09/21-14) /Maldonado/Garcia (GUA)- Delgado/Delgado (CRC) 2-1 (21-17/19-21/15-10) POOL C Bucklin/Penberthy (ISV)-Alleyne/Rice (BAR)   2-0 (21-09/21-11) /Lares/Cruz (MEX)-López/López (NCA) 2-0 (21-19/21-12) /López/López (NCA)-Alleyne/Rice (BAR) 2-0 (21-10/21-16) /Bucklin/Penberthy (ISV)-Lares/Cruz (MEX) 2-1 (19-21/21-14/15-10 POOL D MEJIA/Vargas (ESA)-Tucker/Hamilton (BER) 2-0 (21-18/21-09) / Stanley/Araya (CRC)-Clements/Van Sicien (ISV) 2-0 (21-15/21-18)/Stanley/Araya (CRC)-Tucker/Hamilton (BER)  2-0 (21-16/21-15) /Clements/Van Sicien (ISV)-MEJIA/Vargas (ESA) 2-0 (21-10/21-18)