Germany Gets Jump on U.S. Women at Grand Prix

B.J. Hoeptner Evans July 31, 2009

Photo: FIVB

Foluke Akinradewo, left, of the United States jousts with Germany during their Grand Prix match on July 31.

B.J. Hoeptner Evans
Manager, Media Relations and Publications
Phone: (719) 228-6800
E-Mail: bj.evans@usav.org

ANAHEIM, Calif. (July 31, 2009) – Germany swept a young U.S. Women’s National Team, 25-15, 25-15, 25-16 in its first 2009 FIVB World Grand Prix pool play match on Friday at Maracanazihno Gym in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Team USA will try to bounce back on Saturday when it plays Puerto Rico at 9 a.m. PT in Rio de Janeiro.

Nicole Fawcett (Zanesfield, Ohio) led the U.S. Women with 11 points on seven kills, a match-high three blocks and one ace. Kristin Richards (Orem, Utah) added eight points on six kills and two blocks.

Germany’s Margareta Kozuch led all scorers with 15 points on 14 kills and one ace. Heike Beier added 10 points on eight kills and two aces.

Team USA out-blocked Germany 7-1. But Germany won the ace race with 10, including five in the first set, while Team USA had three. The U.S. Women were also hurt by 21 team errors as opposed to 11 for Germany.

"Germany played a great match today, especially in serving,” said U.S. Head Coach Hugh McCutcheon (Christchurch, New Zealand). “They were able to control the score during the whole match. We need to play in major competitions such as the World Grand Prix to improve.”

Germany converted 43.88 percent of its kill attempts into points (43/98) while the U.S. Women converted 26.6 percent (25/94).

Among other U.S. scorers, Christa Harmotto (Aliquippa, Pa.) totaled five points on three kills and two blocks. Cynthia Barboza (Long Beach, Calif.) added four points on three kills and one ace. Jordan Larson (Hooper, Neb.) scored four points on four kills.

Angie McGinnis (Fraser, Mich.) scored two points on one kill and one ace and Foluke Akinradewo (Plantation, Fla.) had one points on one kill.

McGinnis, who started at setter, was credited with three running sets on 34 attempts. Courtney Thompson (Kent, Wash.), who substituted for McGinnis in the second set and started the third, was credited with seven on 39 attempts.

U.S. libero Nicole Davis (Stockton, Calif.) was credited with 18 digs on 28 attempts and three excellent receptions on six attempts. Larson led receiving with four excellents on 15 attempts.

McCutcheon started Larson and Richards at outside hitter, Akinradewo and Harmotto at middle blocker, Fawcett at opposite, McGinnis at setter and Davis at libero.

Barboza started the second set for Richards. Thompson subbed for McGinnis and Angie Pressey (Lake Mary, Fla.) also played as a substitute.

The U.S. Women fell behind right away and trailed 4-8 at the first technical timeout (TTO) of the first set and increased the lead to 16-10 at the second TTO. A U.S. block made it 16-11. Germany responded with a four-point run to lead 20-11, causing McCutcheon to call timeout. A left-side kill by Richards ended the deluge, but the damage was done. Germany reached set point first at 24-13 on an ace by Maren Brinker. The U.S. scored twice on a tip and ace by McGinnis. But Germany’s Beier ended the set with a kill at 25-15.

Germany opened up a 5-1 lead in the second set causing McCutcheon to call timeout. Richards responded with a kill to make it 5-2, but Germany held an 8-3 lead at the first TTO. The lead increased to 16-9 at the second TTO and the U.S. never threatened.

Germany jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the third set but the U.S. did not back down. With Germany leading 7-3, a kill and block by Harmotta kept Team USA in the set. Germany led 8-5 at the first TTO, but Team USA scored three straight points on two left-side kills by Richards and Germany’s error to tie the score. With Germany leading 10-9, the Germans went on a 9-1 scoring run to take a commanding 19-10 lead that the U.S. Women could not surmount.

More information and photos are available on the FIVB Grand Prix web site.

The raw match footage can be watched at UniversalSports.com.

The U.S. Women’s Grand Prix media guide is available on the USA Volleyball web site.

2009 FIVB World Grand Prix
July 31-Aug. 2 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

U.S. Women’s National Team Roster
# - Name (Pos, Ht, Hometown, College)
1 – Nicole Fawcett (OH, 6-4, Zanesfield, Ohio, Penn State)
4 C – Angela McGinnis (S, 5-11, Fraser, Mich., Florida)
6 – Nicole Davis (L, 5-6, Stockton, Calif., Southern California)
7 – Angie Pressey (OH, 5-8, Lake Mary, Fla., California-Berkeley)
8 - Cynthia Barboza (OH, 6-0, Long Beach, Calif., Stanford)
9 – Alexis Crimes (MB, 6-3, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., Long Beach State)
10 - Kristin Richards (OH, 6-1, Orem, Utah, Stanford)
11 - Jordan Larson (OH, 6-2, Hooper, Neb., Nebraska)
14 - Heather Hughes (OPP, 6-2, Fallbrook, Calif., Loyola Marymount)
15 - Courtney Thompson (S, 5-7, Kent, Wash., Washington)
16 - Christa Harmotto (MB, 6-2, Aliquippa, Pa., Penn State)
18 – Foluke Akinradewo (MB, 6-3, Plantation, Fla., Stanford)

Head Coach: Hugh McCutcheon (Christchurch, New Zealand)
Assistant Coach: Karch Kiraly (San Clemente, Calif.)
Assistant Coach: Beth Launiere (Salt Lake City, Utah) – at Brazil and Chinese Taipei
Assistant Coach: John Speraw (Irvine, Calif.) – at Thailand and Finals
Technical Coordinator/Team Leader: Jamie Morrison (Dana Point, Calif.)
Athletic Trainer: Jill Wosmek

Pool A Standings
Germany 1-0, 2 points
Brazil 1-0, 2 points
Puerto Rico 0-1, 1 point
USA 0-1, 1 point

Schedule and Results for U.S. Women's National Team

Pool A - at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (Maracanazihno Gym)
July 31: Germany def. USA, 25-15, 25-15, 25-16
Aug. 1: vs. Puerto Rico, 1 p.m.
Aug. 2: vs. Brazil, 10 a.m.

Pool D - at Li Miao, Chinese Taipei (Miao Li Country Gymnasium)
Aug. 7: vs. Dominican Republic, 2:30 p.m.
Aug. 8: vs. Netherlands, 2:30 p.m.
Aug. 9: vs. Germany, 4:30 p.m.

Pool I - at Bangkok, Thailand (Keelawes Gym)
Aug. 14: vs. Russia, 2 p.m.
Aug. 15: vs. Puerto Rico, 2 p.m.
Aug. 16: vs. Thailand, 4:30 p.m.

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On July 31, 2009 Christi Phillips wrote

http://www.universalsports.com/mediaPlayer/media.dbml?&id=633557&DB_MENU_ID=&DB_OEM_ID=23000
On July 31, 2009 Jeffrey Pelc wrote

OH - Nicole Fawcett OH - Jordan Larson MB - Christa Harmotto MB - Foluke Akinradewo OPP - Heather Hughes S - Angie McGinnis L - Stacey Sykora This lineup will work! I promise! McGinnis was the last person cut from the Olympic roster last year - a perfect candidate for setter. Fawcett was the AVCA DI National POY and Larson was the runner up - what more do you want on the outside?! Akinradewo and Harmotto each led the nation in hitting percentage in 2007 and 2008, respectively. Plus, Akinradewo did it by hitting .499 with 4.10 kills per set! That doesn't happen with middle blockers! It's unheard of. Hughes is the only opposite on the roster, so she is there by default. And Sykora is amazing. Best defensive player of the generation. So listen Hugh, put this roster in and let's win some matches, ok?
On July 31, 2009 Jason Texas wrote

I am a little upset for consequence the defeat, but I trust this new team and I think they're going to change this situation. However, I dislike the roster, too. I'd rather Stacy Sykora instead of Nicole Davis as oficial libero. Davis is not so bad, but she is inconstant. I like Akinradewo and Harmotto, but I'd rather Tracy Stalls and Alexis Crimes as middle blocker. I can't say what I think about this new team, yet. All I have to say, for while, is that all them are very talented and I am optimist, because the competition have just begun.
On August 01, 2009 Pong T wrote

This is a strong offense team. It just didn't show in this match. - Every time we can pass, we can do serious damage. Unfortunately the main issue of this match was passing which stopped us totally. The German kept serving Barboza and Richards and they succeeded almost every time. - Blocking was the next issue. There were many blocks that left the line opened. The German also tooled our blocks very well. - I compared how the coach spent time with the players during the timeouts. The German coach was all about techniques even if his team executed well. Hugh was more like philosophy. I admire Hugh and his crew but, if I was a player, I would want to know what I could do better on the court. - Team coordination overall which is normal for any new US teams. Most players just came out of NCAA courts last year with solid performance and good energy. They should be able to adjust quickly and come back strong.
On August 01, 2009 Jason Texas wrote

I don't know what happened in this match, but I think they can do much better than they have done against Germany. That's why I am very excited to see next matches. I don't think a sudden change is going to happen and they're going to play 100% well. However, I guess the team will improve slowly and correct the mistakes they have done previously. And one more thing, that is the first time this team is playing against the best volleyball teams in the world. Probably they should be nervous during the first match, but I think that everything is going to be all right.