U.S. Women’s Jr. Team Downs Dominican Republic

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

Unofficial DataVolley Stats * Official Match Statistics

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (July 26, 2011)- The U.S. Women’s Junior National Team defeated the Dominican Republic 25-11, 25-15, 25-23 on Tuesday evening in its first match of the second round of pool play in the FIVB Women’s Junior World Championships Peru 2011 held in Lima at the Eduardo Dibos Gymnasium.

Team USA handily won the first two sets, but had to come from behind to win the third set. At a 22-18 score in Dominican’s favor, a power outage occurred in the gym. After 56 minutes, the lights turned on and the U.S. team’s play turned up. The Americans won the next seven of eight points to take a 25-23 three set match victory.

The U.S. team, now playing in Pool E, won its first round of pool play in Pool C and remains undefeated after its victory against the Dominican Republic on Sunday. Team USA will face Italy at 4:15 p.m. PT on Wednesday. The Dominican Republic Team finished the first round with a 2-1 record and is now 0-1 in the second round.

U.S. captain Kelly Reeves (San Diego) led the U.S. Women’s Junior Team with 14 points on 13 kills and an ace. Moneshia Simmons (Buford, Ga.) added 11 points, contributing four kills, six blocks and an ace. Haley Eckerman (Waterloo, Iowa) and Carly Wopat (Goleta, Calif.) each scored 10 points apiece. Eckerman racked up her points by adding nine kills and a block, while Wopat scored six kills, three aces and a block.

Haleigh Hampton (Huntington Beach, Calif.) scored eight points with six kills and two blocks. Stephanie Holthus (Elgin, Ill.) and Hannah Allison (Siloam Springs, Ark.) both contributed a block apiece and Andrea McHugh (Yorba Linda, Calif.) scored an ace for Team USA’s victory.

Reeves contributed nine digs and 13 receptions. Natalie Hagglund (Poway, Calif.) added 13 digs and two receptions. Plum contributed 17 assists out of 42 total set attempts and had 13 digs. Allison added four assists out of 10 attempts.

Browning started Reeves and Eckerman at outside hitter, Hampton and Wopat at middle blocker, Plum at setter and Simmons as opposite. Hagglund was the designated libero. McHugh subbed in early on in all three sets. Allison played in the second and third sets. Holthus contributed court action later on in the second set.

Team USA carried a 12-2 block margin against Dominican and accumulated a 6-1 ace advantage. The U.S. team racked up 38 kills on 110 attacks for 34.5 kill percent, while its opponent scored 2 kills on 129 attempts.

U.S. Women's Junior National Team Head Coach Rob Browning was excited for his team victory.

“We are really excited about this victory,” Browning said. “We are aware that in this pool, every team is competitive and we need to always be prepared.”

“Both teams did a great job tonight,” Eckerman said. “Even though we had a little trouble, we played through it and came out on top.”

The Dominican Republic’s Binet Stephens Ana Yorkira scored 11 points and was the leading scorer for her team.

Head Coach Wargner Pacheco congratulated both Browning and the U.S. team for its win.

“I congratulate the head coach of the USA for this good match,” Pacheco said. “I think that USA is one of the best teams next to Brazil, Peru and China. The USA team was really focused in the match tonight and they read our movements and knew how to block us.”

In Pool E’s other match beginning the second round on Tuesday, Italy will face Peru at 6:15 p.m. PT. Dominican Republic will play Peru at 6:15 p.m. PT on Wednesday.

On Tuesday in Pool F, Brazil def. Belgium, 25-22, 25-20, 25-21 and Slovakia will play China at 6:15 p.m. PT. Slovakia and China will play at 6:15 p.m. PT and China is set to play Belgium at 4:15 on Wednesday.

In Pool G on Tuesday, Cuba defeated Korea, 25-23, 18-25, 26-24, 25-17 and Japan defeated Tunisia, 25-9, 25-15, 25-14. On Wednesday, Japan will play Korea at 7:30 a.m. PT and Tunisia will face Cuba at 9:30 a.m. PT.

In Pool H on Tuesday, Russia defeated Egypt, 25-10, 25-20, 25-11 and Poland defeated Serbia, 25-21, 25-17, 14-25, 18-25, 15-11. Russia will face Poland at 7:30 a.m. PT and Egypt will play Serbia at 9:30 a.m. PT on Wednesday.

In the first set, Team USA took immediate control and established a 13-5 advantage. The U.S. team’s performance was strong all around with its undeniable offense and tenacious defense. The U.S.’s pressure and strong blocking stirred up the Dominican and forced the team to hit a lot of balls out of bounds. Team USA took a comfortable, 25-11 victory.

In the second set, the two teams battled early on to an 8-6 score in favor of the Americans. The Dominican team was having more success with its attacks which made a more competitive set, at first. The U.S. responded right away and gained a 14-10 advantage by out-blocking and out-serving the Dominican Republic. Team USA drilled its attacks down the line and placed the ball very efficiently, causing Dominican Republic to scramble. The U.S. propelled its momentum to take a 25-15 victory.

In the third set, the two teams played it close to an 11-all tie. Dominican Republic stepped up its offensive play and took a 15-13 lead. The U.S. fought back and tied the score, 16-all. At a 22-18score in Dominican Republic’s favor, a power outage occurred. The U.S. won the final seven of eight points and came back to defeat the Dominican Republic with a 25-23 victory.

2011 U.S. Women’s Junior National Team
# - Name (Position, Height, Hometown, H.S. Grad Year, Club/School, Region)
1 - Hannah Allison (S, 5-11, Siloam Springs, Ark., 2010, Ozark Juniors/University of Texas, Delta)
2 - Stephanie Holthus (OH, 6-0, Elgin, Ill., 2010, Fusion/Northwestern University, Great Lakes)
3 - Natalie Hagglund (L, 5-9, Encinitas, Calif., 2010, Encinitas WAVE/University of Southern California, SCVA)
4 - Lauren Plum (S, 5-9, Poway, Calif., 2010, Coast VBC/University of Oregon, SCVA)
6 - Haleigh Hampton (MB, 6-6, Huntington Beach, Calif., 2010, Cal Juniors/Long Beach State University, SCVA)
7 - Haley Eckerman (OH, 6-3, Waterloo, Iowa, 2011, Iowa Rockets/University of Texas, Iowa)
9 - Kelly Reeves (OH, 6-0, San Diego, Calif., 2010, Encinitas WAVE/UCLA, SCVA)
10 - Sallie McLaurin (MB, 6-2, Midwest City, Okla., 2010, Oklahoma Charge/University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma)
11 - Moneshia Simmons (OH, 6-0, Buford, Ga., 2010, NFC Volleyball /Clemson University, Southern)
15 - Madelyn Hutson (MB, 6-6, Brentwood, Tenn., 2011, Impact/University of Texas, Southern)
16 - Andrea McHugh (OH, 5-10, Yorba Linda, Calif., 2010, Laguna Beach/Notre Dame, SCVA)
17 - Carly Wopat (MB, 6-2, Goleta, Calif,. 2010, Santa Barbara VBC/Stanford University, SCVA)

2011 U.S. Women’s Junior National Team Alternates
Name (Position, Height, Hometown, H.S. Grad Year, Club/School, Region)
Jennifer Bonilla (L, 5-10, Reseda, Calif., 2010, Sports Shack/University of Illinois, SCVA)
Samantha Cash (MB, 6-3, San Diego, Calif., 2011, Coast/Pepperdine, SCVA)
Mackenzie Dagostino (S, 5-10, Tampa Bay, Fla., 2012, Tampa Bay Juniors/University of Maryland, Florida)
Madison Kingdon (OH, 6-0, Phoenix, Ariz., 2011, Arizona Storm/University of Arizona, Arizona)
Molly Kreklow (S, 6-0, Delano, Minn., 2010, Mizuno Northern Lights/ University of Missouri, North Country)
Liz McMahon (OH, 6-6, Liberty Township, Ohio, 2011, Team Z/University of Illinois, Ohio Valley)
Alyssa Warren (L, 5-9, Joliet, Ill., 2010, Sports Performance/Seton Hall University, Great Lakes)

2011 U.S. Women's Junior National Coaching Staff
Head Coach: Rob Browning, Saint Mary’s College (Calif.)
Assistant Coach: Erik Sullivan, University of Texas
Assistant Coach: Jill Kramer, West Virginia University
Team Leader/Assistant Coach: Denise Corlett, Stanford University

2011 FIVB Women’s Junior World Championship

First Round (July 22-24)
Pool A (at Trujillo, Peru)
July 22: Slovakia def. Tunisia, 25-15, 25-10, 25-14
July 22: Peru def. Egypt, 25-18, 25-17, 25-16
July 23: Slovakia def. Egypt, 25-20, 25-10, 25-10
July 23: Peru def. Tunisia, 25-7, 25-11, 25-10
July 24: Tunisia def. Egypt, 26-24, 25-22, 21-25, 20-25, 17-15
July 24: Peru def. Slovakia, 25-21, 25-22, 25-20

Pool B (at Lima, Peru)
July 22: Brazil def. Italy, 23-25, 25-20, 25-18, 25-16
July 22: Serbia def. Cuba, 25-22, 23-25, 25-17, 25-10
July 23: Italy def. Cuba, 25-16, 25-12, 26-24
July 23: Brazil def. Serbia, 23-25, 25-15, 25-21, 25-18
July 24: Italy def. Serbia, 25-14, 25-15, 25-20
July 24: Brazil def. Cuba, 25-13, 25-15, 25-21

Pool C (at Trujillo, Peru)
July 22: Korea def. Poland, 22-25, 25-22, 24-26, 25-19, 15-10
July 22: USA def. Belgium, 25-21, 25-18, 25-16
July 23: Belgium def. Korea, 25-19, 25-16, 18-25, 25-20
July 23: USA def. Poland, 25-19, 16-25, 29-27, 25-14
July 24: Belgium def. Poland, 20-25, 25-21, 26-24, 25-16
July 24: USA def. Korea, 25-23, 25-14, 25-23

Pool D (at Lima, Peru)
July 22: Dominican Republic def. Japan, 25-14, 25-20, 20-25, 25-22
July 22: China def. Russia, 25-19, 25-19, 27-25
July 23: Dominican Republic def. Russia, 17-25, 25-20, 25-20, 25-20
July 23: China def. Japan, 25-18, 17-25, 25-23, 25-19
July 24: China def. Dominican Republic, 25-23, 25-21, 25-23
July 24: Russia def. Japan, 25-23, 25-22, 25-19

Second Round (July 26-28)

Pool E (at Lima)
July 26: USA def. Dominican Republic, 25-11, 25-15, 25-23
July 26: Italy vs. Peru, 6:15 p.m. PT
July 27: USA vs. Italy, 4:15 p.m. PT
July 27: Dominican Republic vs. Peru, 6:15 p.m. PT
July 28: Italy vs. Dominican Republic, 4:15 p.m. PT
July 28: USA vs. Peru, 6:15 p.m. PT

Pool F (at Trujillo)
July 26: Brazil def. Belgium, 25-22, 25-20, 25-21
July 26: Slovakia vs. China, 6:15 p.m. PT
July 27: China vs. Belgium, 4:15 p.m. PT
July 27: Slovakia vs. Brazil, 6:15 p.m. PT
July 28: Brazil vs. China, 4:15 p.m. PT
July 28: Belgium vs. Slovakia, 6:15 p.m. PT

Pool G (at Lima)
July 26: Cuba def. Korea, 25-23, 18-25, 26-24, 25-17
July 26: Japan def. Tunisia, 25-9, 25-15, 25-14
July 27: Japan vs. Korea, 7:30 a.m. PT
July 27: Tunisia vs. Cuba, 9:30 a.m. PT
July 28: Cuba vs. Japan, 7:30 a.m. PT
July 28: Korea vs. Tunisia, 9:30 a.m. PT

Pool H (at Trujillo)
July 26: Russia def. Egypt, 25-10, 25-20, 25-11
July 26: Poland def. Serbia, 25-21, 25-17, 14-25, 18-25, 15-11
July 27: Russia vs. Poland, 7:30 a.m. PT
July 27: Egypt vs. Serbia, 9:30 a.m. PT
July 28: Serbia vs. Russia, 7:30 a.m. PT
July 28: Poland vs. Egypt, 9:30 a.m. PT

Medal Rounds and Playoffs (July 31)
- the winners of the semifinals will play the final for the 1st and 2nd position.
- the losers of the semifinals will play for the 3rd and 4th position.
- the winners of the play-off 5-8 will play for the 5th-6th position.
- the losers of the play-off 5-8 will play for the 7th-8th position.
- the winners of the play-off 9-12 will play for the 9th-10th position.
- the losers of the play-off 9-12 will play for the 11th-12th position.
- the winners of the play-off 13-16 will play for the 13th-14th position.
- the losers of the play-off 13-16 will play for the 15th-16th position.

Tags: 2011 U.S. Women's Junior National Team, Andrea McHugh, Carly Wopat, FIVB Women's Junior World Championship Peru 2011, Haleigh Hampton, Haley Eckerman, Hannah Allison, Kelly Reeves, Lauren Plum, Madelyn Hutson, mobile, Moneshia Simmons, Natalie Hagglund, Sallie McLaurin