Mexico beats a resilient Guatemalan team in three sets.

LANGLEY, Canada, September 24, 2013.- Mexico began its participation at the Norceca Men’s Continental Championship with a victory over Guatemala in three sets (25-18, 25-14, 25-23).

Daniel Vargas of Mexico was the top scorer of the match with 13 points (3 aces), while Jesus Valdemar Valdes finished with 12 and Tomás Aguilera scored 11.

Jose Alfredo Gonzalez topped with 10 for Guatemala while Jeyson Nery recorded 8.

Guatemala had a 3-1 advantage in the second and 5-3 in the third, that was even tighter. Both teams were tied at 21.

“It was not a lucky day. I suffered a lumbar injury and I couldn’t play as I really wante, but we could get some positive things after this match after working well in the third set. We found out that We can make things go right,” said Oscar Daniel Gonzalez, captain of Guatemala.

Reider Lucas Mora, coach of the Central American team said: “We knew We were going to face a team under renovation but with a lot of experience. We also knew this was going to be a strong tournament. But overall our main goal was to get enough game exposure to reach an acceptable  level.”

Mexican coach Sergio Hernandez, there were some mistakes, but the result was important. “Fortunately We won, not as We should, but winning is important to keep the rhythm for our next match”, He stated.

“It is important to start with a win. We are glad for doing it and I want to congratulate Guatemala for their effort they showed in the last set,” said captain Jorge Quinones.

Mexico will match Canada on Wednesday and Guatemala has the day off and will wait for a rival to play on the classification round.