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Puerto Rico wins first ever Men’s NORCECA title

DURANGO, Mexico, August 23, 2021. - Puerto Rico won their first NORCECA Men’s Continental Championship title defeating Canada 3-0 (25-18, 25-21, 25-23) in the gold medal match at Auditorio del Pueblo in Durango, Mexico.

Puerto Rico made history on Monday night with their first championship win, adding their one silver medal and two bronze; Canada finishes second for sixth occasion, they also have one gold and 14 bronze medals.

Puerto Rico concludes the NORCECA Championship with a 4-1 win-loss record and Canada with a 3-3 record.

Opposite hitter Gabriel García led Puerto Rico to gold with 11 points on 10 kills and one ace, outside hitter Pelegrin Vargas registered 10 points and middle blocker Jonathan Rodríguez collected 9 points.

Canada’s top scorers were outside hitter Brandon Koppers with 14 points on 12 kills and 2 blocks, and opposite hitter Xander Ketrzynski added 11 points.

Oswald Antonetti, Coach of Puerto Rico: “What a beautiful feeling reaching your goals, but how beautiful is making history. Teams must be tenacious, have personality and a substance of values and identity to make things like this happen. We are enjoying the moment, each play and the process, listening to  “La Borinqueña” (Puerto Rico national anthem) will be really emotional”.

Gabriel García, Puerto Rico top scorer: “This was teamwork, we believed in ourselves, in the system and each other individually. We enjoy victory as a team, winning was the only thing on our minds this morning”.