U.S. Women’s Junior National Team Sweeps Guadalupe

Candice Kasischke
Intern, Media Relations and Publications
Phone: (719) 228-6800
E-Mail: candice.kasischke@usav.org

Unofficial DataVolley Stats - Official Stats

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (July 6, 2010) – The U.S. Women’s Junior National Team handily defeated Guadalupe 25-8, 25-7, 25-6 in 50 minutes on Tuesday evening at the NORCECA Women’s Junior (U-20) Continental Championships held at Tijuana, Mexico.

Earlier on Tuesday, the U.S. Women’s Junior National Team swept El Salvador. The Americans have yet to allow either team more than eight points in a single set.

Team USA, part of the four-team Pool C in the 10-team tournament, improves to 2-0 while Guadalupe falls to 0-2. The U.S. concludes group action on July 8 versus Mexico at 7 p.m. PT.

The U.S. team opened the first set with a 10-point streak finishing with a 25-8 win. In both the second and third sets, Guadalupe managed to take the only tournament leads against the U.S. at 3-2. However, the U.S. quickly regained control ending in a 25-7 second-set victory and a 25-6 win to conclude its first day of play.

“I am very proud of my team because they played hard the entire time,” U.S. Women’s Junior National Team Head Coach Rob Browning said. “Another good effort by our team to stay focused throughout the match. Everyone that got into the game played well. The level will need to be raised tomorrow night against a strong host team from Mexico.”

In 2008, many of the members of this year’s U.S. Women’s Junior National Team defeated Mexico in a close scoring game for the gold medal at the NORCECA Girls’ Youth Continental Championship. Browning and his team are looking forward to the anticipated rematch against Mexico on Wednesday.

The NORCECA Women’s Junior Continental Championship is a qualifier into the 2011 FIVB Women’s Junior World Championship. The top three teams at the NORCECA earn berths into next year’s pinnacle event for the age group.

Team USA captain Carly Wopat (Goleta, Calif.) led the team in scoring with 11 points and was the only player to reach double figures. She scored with nine kills, one ace and once block. Haleigh Hampton (Huntington Beach, Calif.) added nine tallies including five kills and match-high four blocks. Jane Croson (Lakewood, Calif.) and Reeves both registered eight points by getting six kills and two blocks each. Elizabeth McMahon (Liberty Township, Ohio) scored seven points all on kills. Stephanie Holthus (Elgin, Ill.) racked up six points including five kills and one ace. Samantha Cash (San Diego, Calif.) and Carly Thomas (Swansea, Ill.) contributed four points apiece. Molly Kreklow (Delano, Minn.) added an ace and Sam Wopat (Goleta, Calif.) charted a kill to the team’s score.

Browning started the Guadalupe match with Thomas as setter, Holtus and Reeves as outside hitters, Hampton and Carly Wopat as a middle blocker, Liz McMahon (Liberty Township, Ohio) as an opposite. Jennifer Bonilla (Reseda, Calif.) was the designated libero. Croson and Kreklow were subs in all three sets.

Team USA dominated the match statistically. The Americans’ kills outnumbered Guadalupe’s 42-8. The U.S. out-blocked Guadalupe 9-1. The U.S. served eight aces while preventing Guadalupe from scoring any points off of service. The U.S. also prevented its opponents from creating any running sets while having 25 of its own. The U.S. team also managed a 23-4 dig advantage.

Guadalupe’s Yannick Ferbac scored four points and was the leading scorer for her team.

In Pool C, Mexico is 1-0 in the tournament and is set to play El Salvador at 7 p.m. On Wednesday, Guadalupe will battle El Salvador at 1 p.m. to wrap-up their pool play.

In Pool A, Tuesday evening, the Dominican Republic is facing Costa Rica at 5 p.m. On Wednesday, Canada, which is 1-0 in the tournament, will play Dominican Republic at 3 p.m. to conclude pool play.

In Pool B, Trinidad & Tobago is set to face Cuba at on Tuesday at 1 p.m. On Wednesday, a match between Cuba and Puerto Rico, which is 1-0, is set for a 5 p.m. to finish pool play.

In the first set, the U.S. had an immediate side-out from Hampton’s kill to earn possession of the ball. With a 1-0 lead, McMahon scored the next four points for the U.S. to spark its nine-point streak. Down 10-0, Guadalupe was able to score its first point off of an error by Team USA. The U.S. turned up its offense once again and ended the match 25-8.

In the second set, the teams played it close for the first eight points. Guadalupe managed a 3-2 lead but the U.S. came and scored the next 12 points making it 14-3. Guadalupe only scored four more points in the set and the U.S. claimed a 25-7 victory.

For the first few points of the third set, the teams played back and forth. However, the U.S. had an eight-point streak from Guadalupe’s 4-3 advantage, making the score 11-4. The U.S. team did not allow Guadalupe to score after a 12-6 lead. The U.S. put together a 13-point streak to end the match 25-6.

2010 U.S. Women’s Junior National Team

NORCECA Women's Junior Continental Championship
July 5-10, 2010 * Tijuana, Mexico
(All Times Listed as Pacific Time)

Pool A
July 5: Canada def. Costa Rica, 26-24, 25-18, 25-21
July 6: Dominican Republic vs. Costa Rica, 5 p.m.
July 7: Canada vs. Dominican Republic, 3 p.m.

Pool B
July 5: Puerto Rico def. Trinidad & Tobago, 25-10, 25-9, 25-20
July 6: Trinidad & Tobago vs. Cuba, 1 p.m.
July 7: Cuba vs. Puerto Rico, 5 p.m.

Pool C
July 5: Mexico def. Guadalupe, 25-6, 25-11, 25-8
July 6: United States def. El Salvador, 25-8, 25-4, 25-7
July 6: United States def. Guadalupe, 25-8, 25-7, 25-6
July 6: Mexico vs. El Salvador, 7 p.m.
July 7: Guadalupe vs. El Salvador, 1 p.m.
July 7: United States vs. Mexico, 7 p.m.

Classification Matches

Quarterfinals
July 8: (HR1) 2A, B, C vs. (HR2) 2A, B, C, 5 p.m. (Match 15)
July 8: (LR) 1A, B, C vs. (LR) 2A, B, C, 7 p.m. (Match 16)

Classification 7-10
July 8: (HR1) 3A, B, C vs. 4C, 1 p.m. (Match 13)
July 8: (HR2) 3A, B, C vs. (LR) 3A, B, C, 3 p.m. (Match 14)

Classification 7-8 and 9-10
July 9: Loser Match 13 vs. Loser Match 14, 1 p.m. (Match 17)
July 9: Winner Match 13 vs. Winner Match 14, 3 p.m. (Match 18)

Semifinals
July 9: (HR1) 1A, B, C vs. Winner Match 15 or 16, 5 p.m. (Match 19)
July 9: (HR2) 1A, B, C vs. Winner Match 15 or 16, 7 p.m. (Match 20)

Classification 5-6
July 10: Loser Match 15 vs. Loser Match 16, 3 p.m. (Match 21)

Bronze-Medal Match (Classification 3-4)
July 10: Loser Match 19 vs. Loser Match 20, 5 p.m. (Match 22)  

Gold-Medal Match (Classification 1-2)
July 10: Winner Match 19 vs. Winner Match 20, 7 p.m. (Match 23)

Tags: 2010 U.S. Women's Junior National Team, 2010 U.S. Women's Junior National Training Team, Carly Thomas, Carly Wopat, Haleigh Hampton, Jane Croson, Jennifer Bonilla, Kelly Reeves, Liz McMahon, Molly Kreklow, NORCECA, NORCECA Continental Championship, NORCECA Women's Junior Continental Championship, Rachel Williams, Rob Browning, Sam Wopat, Samantha Cash, Stephanie Holthus