Costa Rica's Mario Mora (red jersey) tries to hold off Mauricio Gomez during their Central American under-17 qualifier on November 23, 2016, in Pavas, San Jose, Costa Rica. (Photo: Imagenes en Costa Rica)
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica – Costa Rica (3W-0D-0L, 9 points) clinched a berth in the 2017 CONCACAF Under-17 Championship with a 3-0 win over El Salvador (1-0-2, 3) in the nightcap of a Central American qualifying doubleheader on Wednesday at Estadio Ernesto Rohrmoser.
In the opener, Nicaragua (2-0-1, 6) edged already-eliminated Belize (0-0-4, 0) as Sergio Rodriguez scored two goals in a 2-1 victory.
Both games were originally scheduled to be played Thursday, but were moved up a day in consideration of Hurricane Otto’s impending threat to the region.
The Costa Ricans remained perfect in the competition, topping the Salvadorans, who need to beat Nicaragua on November 26 to earn a place in the CONCACAF. Christian Muñoz (15’ pen) scored in a third straight game to give his side a 1-0 lead from the penalty spot in the 15th minute. Andres Gomez made it 2-0 in the 29th minute with his tournament-best fifth goal, while Jeurgen Sequeira punctuated the scoreline in the 70th minute.
Nicaragua rallied to defeat Belize and capture maximum points in a second consecutive outing. Jesse August put the Belizeans ahead 1-0 in the 39th minute, but the Pinoleros surged in the second half thanks to a brace from Rodriguez (52’, 71’). Both sides were reduced to 10 players in the ninth minute, when Belize’s Gabriel Ramos and Misael Alvarez of El Salvador were ejected for violent conduct. A win or draw against El Salvador will guarantee the Nicaraguans progression.
Costa Rica and second-place Honduras (2-0-1, 6) will face each other in the tournament’s final match, also on Saturday.
The next CONCACAF Under-17 Championship is slated to be contested in Panama from April 21-May 7, 2017. In addition to the host and Costa Rica, the other eight participating teams are Canada, Cuba, Curacao, Haiti, Jamaica, Mexico, Suriname and the United States.
2016 CENTRAL AMERICAN UNDER-17 QUALIFYING
Estadio Ernesto Rohrmoser -- San Jose, Costa Rica
November 17-26, 2016
November 17, 2016
El Salvador 0, Honduras 2
Carlos Mejia 52’ pen; Jose Canaca 90’+4
Costa Rica 4, Belize 0
Christian Muñoz 7’; Jeurgen Sequeira 46’; Mario Mora 49’, 89’
November 19, 2016
Honduras 3, Belize 1
David Cardona 9’; Patrick Palacios 58’; Kenneth Martinez 72’ / Gabriel Ramos 16’ pen
Costa Rica 6, Nicaragua 0
Andres Gomez 13’, 60’, 73’, 78’; Christian Muñoz 32’; Mario Mora 52’
November 21, 2016
Belize 1, El Salvador 2
Jesse August 41’ / Ronald Cerritos 4’; Christian Barillas 43’ pen
Nicaragua 3, Honduras 2
Engel Balladares 68’; Stward Castillo 77’ pen; Sergio Rodriguez 84’ / Luis Enrique Palma 39’; Patrick Palacios 90’+1
November 23, 2016
Belize 1, Nicaragua 2
Jesse August 39’ / Sergio Rodriguez 52’, 71’
Costa Rica 3, El Salvador 0
Christian Muñoz 15’ pen; Andres Gomez 29’; Jeurgen Sequeira 70’
Costa Rica 3-3-0-0-13-0-9
Honduras 3-2-0-1-7-4-6
Nicaragua 3-2-0-1-5-9-6
El Salvador 3-1-0-2-2-6-3
Belize 4-0-0-4-3-11-0
November 26, 2016
El Salvador v Nicaragua
Costa Rica v Honduras
