SAN JOSE, Costa Rica - A hotly contested 1-1 draw between defending champion Honduras and Panama wrapped up Group B action Tuesday night at the UNCAF Copa Centroamericana in Costa Rica, leaving three teams tied on two points.
The Hondurans ultimately topped the group by virtue of most goals scored and, as result, advanced to the competition's semifinals and booked a ticket to its 11th CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Later in the evening, Panama and El Salvador will face a draw to determine second and third positions in the three-team group. The second-place team will also advance to the semifinals and qualify for the confederation's biennial championship. The third-place team will play in the Copa Centroamericana fifth-place match.
Both Panama and Honduras - two of six finalists in CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying for Brazil 2014 -- took the field looking for the win.
After some back and forth play to start the match, Marcos Sanchez gave the Panamanians the lead in just the 14th minute, heading home sharply from a Carlos Rodriguez cross.
Honduras, though, leveled matters 17 minutes later. Anibal Godoy handled just outside the Panamanian area, leading to a yellow card and a free kick. Oscar Boniek Garcia delivered the dead ball expertly into the area for Juan Pablo Montes to score firmly with his head.
Garcia was the creator again in the 42nd minute, this time feeding Jerry Bengtson on the break, but the forward could only put his shot off the right post of an onrushing Jaime Penedo's goal.
The second half was less wide open, with Panama - which knew it needed a goal to avoid a draw for second place with El Salvador - taking much of the initiative.
Despite that, clear chances were hard to come by against the solid Honduran defense, and the match wore down without further goal scoring.
Honduras is now unbeaten in its last seven Copa Centroamericana games. Panama is unbeaten in its last 10 UNCAF outings, including four-consecutive draws.
The Copa Centroamericana will return to action on Friday with fifth-place and semifinal action.
