Cuba overpower Colombia to pick up first win and stay alive at Men's Volleyball World Championship

Cuba responded strongly to an unexpected first-round pool play loss to Portugal and dominated Colombia on Monday to secure their first victory in the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship and keep their hopes of advancing to the tournament's Round of 16 very much alive.

The Caribbean got the fourth day of matches started in the Philippines with a duel against rookies Colombia, and used their greater experience to handle the pressure in what was a win-or-go-home match for them, triumphing 3-0 (25-22, 25-21, 25-20) at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

• Watch the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship on VBTV

The three points earned with the sweep against the South Americans have made Cuba get to the United States and Portugal, who both won their opening matches on Saturday, in the Pool D standings - they now need to beat the Americans on Wednesday to advance regardless of other results. With no points or sets won in their first two matches in the Philippines, Colombia can no longer make it to the elimination rounds.

Inserted in the Cuban starting lineup after their defeat to Portugal, outside hitter Osniel Melgarejo led his team against the Colombians with 14 points (12 kills, one block, one ace). Opposite José Masso tallied 12 (nine kills, two blocks, one ace) and outside hitter Marlon Yant contributed 11 (ten kills, one block).

"We want to stay humble and face every opponent as if they were the best team in the world," middle blocker Javier Concepción reflected. "We saw what happened in our first match, and we're focused on not getting too confident and preparing well for each match because every team here is dangerous. We needed to win today, and we just pushed hard and gave our best."

Opposite Miguel Ángel Amaranto was the only Colombian player to get to double digits - he topped all scorers with 18 points (16 kills, one block, one ace).

"I think we've been playing well, but we need to be able to keep our level high for longer periods to compete with these teams," said outside hitter Andrés Piza. "It's been a great experience for us, and I feel that the team is improving in every match. We need to continue to grow and to find a way to keep our level high in the difficult moments."

Cuba's recipe for beating Colombia and securing their first victory at the World Championship was outscoring their opponents in both kills (43 to 31) and blocks (seven to six). Each team fired three aces, and the number of errors was similar, with the Cubans giving away 23 points and the Colombians wasting 22.

2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship: Match Schedule & Results

Another Pool D match will be held on Monday in Pasay City, with the undefeated United States and Portugal meeting at 21:00 local time (13:00 GMT).

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