Costa Rica and Honduras remain unbeaten

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, February 5, 2013. - Defending champions Costa Rica along with Honduras remain unbeaten with a 2-0 win-loss record after the second day of action of the XVII Men’s Central American Cup at Teodoro Palacios Flores Gymnasium in Guatemala City.

Costa Rica has a total of 10 points followed closely by Honduras with 8 points with both teams clashing on Wednesday. Panama and Guatemala have 7 and 5 respectively while El Salvador and Nicaragua are still looking to add points.

Costa Rica 3, El Salvador 0

Costa Rica picked up their second win by defeating El Salvador 3-0 (25-13, 25-14, 25-21). Costa Rica had the opportunity to use all their players in a match that lasted only 56 minutes. They were dominant in the attacks with a 40-26 advantage and scored with 3 aces. Richard Smith took charge of Costa Rica’s attack with 12 points, followed by Jeffrey Calderon with 8. Franklin Flores contributed with 8 points for El Salvador.

Honduras 3, Nicaragua 0

Honduras defeated Nicaragua in straight sets (25-14, 26-24, 25-10) for its second win and thus becoming a strong contender for the title. Honduras lost control in the second as Nicaragua became more offensive, but with solid blocks (16-8 advantage) they prevailed to remain unbeaten Carlos Osorio led Honduras with 16 points and Evans Torres added 11. Tito Valdivida topped Nicaragua with 11 points.

Guatemala 3, Panama 2

Guatemala downed Panama in five dramatic sets (25-23, 27-25, 19-25, 21-25, 16-14) for their first win. The hosts were cheered by nearly 1,500 spectators at Teodoro Palacios Flores Gymnasium. Panama battled Guatemala who was in front 2-0 to extend the match to five intense sets. Panama was better in the blocking category by 12-7 margin while Guatemala had an 8-3 advantage in serving aces. Guatemala was led by Andy Leonardo with 24 points, 20 of them in attacks, while Oscar Garcia chipped in with 13 points. Donaldo Ureña notched 21 points in leading Panama and Ricardo Brown contributed 13 points.