PR to face Colombia, Nicaragua & Panama in baseball super round at CAC Games

Island women win gold in basketball

By THE STAR STAFF

Puerto Rico will open the men’s baseball super round at the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games Santo Domingo 2026 today against Colombia.

The island team, which overcame a four-run deficit to defeat Curaçao 8-4 in its final game in the group stage on Sunday to secure a spot in the super round, will also face Nicaragua and Panama in the current phase in a bid for a spot in the medal round.

The game against Colombia is set to begin at 11 a.m. Team Puerto Rico will play Nicaragua on Wednesday at 3 p.m. and wrap up against Panama on Thursday at the same time.

All games will be held at Quisqueya Juan Marichal Stadium in Santo Domingo.

Puerto Rico advanced with a 2-1 record alongside Cuba and the Dominican Republic from Group A. Panama, Colombia and Nicaragua secured the three available spots from Group B.

Results from games between qualified teams during the opening round will count toward the super round standings. Each team will play three additional games against opponents from the other group.

At the conclusion of the current stage, the top two teams will play for the gold medal, while the third and fourth-place teams will face off for the bronze on Aug. 7.

On Sunday, meanwhile, Puerto Rico claimed four gold, three silver and four bronze medals while also securing spots in semifinals and finals across several disciplines.

The women’s basketball team won the gold medal by defeating Mexico 57-44 in the final. Diann Jackson led the offense with 18 points, and Arianis Rivera added 15 to secure the championship for Puerto Rico, which won the bronze medal at the 2023 CAC Games in San Salvador.

The island delegation also won two medals in shooting sports. Jennifer Valentín Traverzo won gold in the individual 10-meter air pistol event and was part

Puerto Rico won a silver medal in the men’s team competition in artistic gymnastics, while island grapplers took two bronze medals courtesy of Alek Ortiz (87 kilograms) and James Ford III (130 kg). Puerto Rico finished the wrestling competition with seven medals: one gold, two silver and four bronze.

In 3x3 basketball, both the men’s and women’s teams won their two matches of the day and qualified for the semifinals. The men’s and women’s table tennis teams also advanced to the semifinals, guaranteeing at least one medal for both categories.

The women’s handball team lost 24-22 to the Dominican Republic but still advanced to the semifinals, while the women’s volleyball team lost 3-0 to Cuba in their debut match.

In other events, Stephanie Pinheiro was eliminated in boxing, while Julián Ortiz advanced to the quarterfinals; Puerto Rican sailors qualified for the next phase; and the road cycling competition concluded with Christopher Morales finishing in sixth place.