With a Three-Set Victory, Guatemala
Advances to Fifth Place Match
GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, August 2, 2025.- Guatemala needed three
sets to defeat Suriname (25-23, 25-20, 25-17) and move on to the
fifth-place match of the U23 Men’s Pan American Cup, taking place at
the Domo Polideportivo in Guatemala City.
The first set was highly contested, with Guatemala’s attack
prevailing in the end, led by José Pablo Pérez. The second set was
just as tight, but Guatemala managed to pull away slightly to take
it. In the third, Guatemala was more dominant, building an early
lead that allowed them to control the pace.
Guatemala and Suriname had already met in the tournament’s opening
match, also resulting in a straight-set win for the Guatemalans.
The victory sends Guatemala to face Costa Rica on August 3 at 2:00
p.m. for fifth place, while Suriname will battle Belize for seventh
at 12:00 p.m.
Three Guatemalans reached double digits in scoring: José Pablo Pérez
with 18 points (17 attacks, 1 block), Jerry Duran with 16 points,
and Luis Roberto Mendizábal with 10. For Suriname, Gianni Ritfeld
and Jonovan Wijngaarde both scored 9 points.
Guatemala outperformed Suriname in attacks (46-35) and serves (3-0).
Suriname led in blocks (10-6) but committed more unforced errors
(20-16).
José Pablo Pérez said, “Suriname is quite a strong team. We’ve been
working together for a while; there are many young players, but
little by little they’re gaining experience. We achieved the result,
which was the most important thing. We were also able to give
playing time to the younger guys, which is good.”
Guatemala’s head coach Reider Lucas explained, “Despite losing two
straight matches, this result in the 5-8 round puts us in a slightly
more comfortable position. We knew it was going to be a demanding
match, but the guys stayed focused, and we were able to pull off the
victory, which was the most important thing.” |