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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (May 23, 2026) – The U.S. Men’s Sitting National Team split two matches on Saturday at the USAV Sitting Cup in Orlando, Florida. Ranked sixth in the world, the U.S. finished the day defeating eighth-ranked Canada, 3-0 (25-20, 25-14, 25-21) after falling to Brazil’s Club Athletico Paulistano, 3-1 (19-25, 25-20, 25-20, 25-19) in the morning.
The U.S. will face Club Athletico Paulistano on Sunday in the championship match at 2 p.m.
MATCH STATISTICS vs. BRAZIL
MATCH STATISTICS vs. CANADA
USA vs. Canada
Zach Upp led all players with 12 kills, eight service aces and 20 points. Eric Duda also reached double digits with 10 points on nine kills and an ace.
“We play Canada a lot, unlike club teams [like Athletico], which we have never seen before. This was a confidence booster. We scrimmaged Canada a lot in the past couple years, so we are familiar with their team and we know their systems,” Upp said. “We knew we could do it. We need to go back to what we had in that first set this morning and take care of business. We slowed down (this morning) and got lazy, but we know we can do it. We just need to trust in ourselves.”
Ben Aman and Roderick Green shared team-high honors with three blocks apiece. Each scored nine points with Aman recording four kills and two aces, and Green contributing five kills and an ace. Fabricio da Silva Pinto registered five kills and a block for six points, and James Stuck added four kills and an ace for five points.
Canada took a 7-3 lead to begin the match but three Upp aces evened the score at seven each. A kill and an ace by Aman gave the U.S. its first lead, 10-9. Fabricio followed with a kill for a two-point advantage, but Canada scored two quick points to even the set again. Two Upp kills sparked a four-point run to give the U.S. its biggest lead of the set to that point, 16-12. Upp’s sixth kill and ninth point of the set made it 19-14. The U.S. led by at least four points the rest of the set and ended it on a kill by Stuck.
Trailing 4-3 in the second set, the U.S. scored four points in a row, the last on an Aman block that ended one of the match’s longest rallies, for a 7-4 lead. Fabricio’s third kill of the match extended the margin to four points, 11-7. Upp recorded his 10th kill for an 16-12 U.S. lead. An Aman block raised the margin to five points, 18-13, at which point Canada called a timeout. Aman followed with a kill and another block for a 20-13 advantage. Aman ended the set with an ace.
The U.S. scored the first three points of the third set before Canada secured five of the next six points for its first lead of the set. An Upp kill completed a 4-0 run that put the U.S. back up by three points. Two Upp aces, the second after a successful video challenge, extended the margin to five points, 11-6. Green produced three consecutive kills to put the U.S. ahead 15-8.
Canada scored seven consecutive points to take a 20-19 lead. After the U.S. used its second timeout, Duda tied the score and Upp served two more aces for a 22-20 U.S. lead. Fabricio ended a long rally with a kill for a 23-20 advantage, confirmed by video replay. Upp’s eighth ace set up match point. Canada survived one match point before a Duda kill sealed the U.S. victory.
USA vs. Club Athletico Paulistano
Upp shared match-high honors with 18 points and four service aces, while leading all players with 13 kills. Green scored 14 points on 12 kills and two blocks, and Duda added 13 points on 10 kills, two blocks and an ace.
Fabricio led the team with three blocks and added four kills. Jason Roberts also finished with seven points on four kills, two aces and a block. Aman totaled five points on two kills, two blocks and an ace, and Regan shared match-high honors with four aces.
“Ball control was key. Our second contacts were not very good. It took us a long time to generate good contacts to be able to swing at. We did that in the first set but weren’t able to keep momentum. We became reactive instead of thinking ahead,” said head coach Greg Walker. “Brazil reduced its errors off the service line so they just started serving like free balls over the net because we were passing off our attack line.”
A Fabricio block began the match and helped the U.S. take an early 4-1 lead. Paulistano quickly tied the score before the U.S. went on a 4-0 run for an 8-4 lead capped by a Green kill. Two consecutive correct video challenges gave the U.S. a 10-7 advantage. The lead grew to five points, 13-8, before Paulistano ran off four points in a row and lead to a timeout. The U.S. responded with a 5-0 run as Upp’s fourth kill of the set made it 18-12. Kills by Green and Upp staked the U.S. to a seven-point lead, 23-16, en route to taking the first set.
Paulistano opened the second set by scoring the first six points, prompting a U.S. timeout. Upp scored three consecutive points on a block and back-to-back aces to cut the deficit to two points, 8-6. Kills by Duda and Upp evened the set at 12 apiece before Paulistano regained the lead for good.
Brazil took a 4-1 lead in the third set. Green’s ninth kill evened the score at 5-5 before Paulistano went on a 7-2 run and forced the U.S. to use its second timeout. The lead reached double digits, 23-13. The U.S. fought off six set points before Paulistano took the set and a 2-1 lead in the match.
For the third set in a row, Paulistano took the early lead, scoring the first three points and moving ahead 8-3 in the fourth set. The U.S. trailed by at least four points, and as many as seven, until an Upp kill started a three-point run that cut the lead to three points, 18-15. Paulistano called timevout and proceeded to raise the lead back to six points.
U.S. Men’s Sitting Team Roster
No Name (Position, Height, Hometown, Region)
1 Travis Ricks (L, 5-7, San Diego, Calif., Southern California)
2 Dan Regan (OH, 6-0, St. Louis, Mo., Gateway)
3 Nick Dadgostar (L, 6-0, Sidney, Neb., Great Plains)
4 Ben Aman (OH, 6-5, Edmond, Okla., Oklahoma)
5 Eric Duda (S/OH, 6-5, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Florida)
6 Alex Wilson (OPP/OH, 6-6, Saugerties, N.Y.,)
8 James Stuck (S/OH, 6-5, New Kensington, Pa., Keystone)
10 Robbie Onusko (OH, 6-0, Daytona Beach, Fla., Florida)
11 Roderick Green (MB, 6-3, West Monroe, La., Bayou)
17 Zach Upp (OH, 6-5, Bartlett, Ill., Great Lakes)
19 Danny Alvarez Rivadeneira (L/DS, 5-8, West Jordan, Utah, Intermountain)
20 Jason Roberts (OH/RS, 6-3, Perry, Ga., Southern)
24 Fabricio da Silva Pinto (OH, 6-1, Santos, São Paulo, Brazil and Dublin, Calif.)
Head Coach: Greg Walker
Assistant Coach: Ladislav Lelkes
Assistant Coach: Julie Allen
Sport Psychologist: Taylor Gabler
Performance Analyst: Sydnie Mabry
Therapist: Whitney Padgett
Team Manager: Connor Martin
Consultants: Jeff Smith, Dave Dantes
Schedule
All times Eastern
Friday, May 22
USA def. Germany, 3-1 (25-16, 27-25, 21-25, 25-23)
Saturday, May 23
Club Athletico Paulistano def. USA, 3-1 (19-25, 25-20, 25-20, 25-19)
USA def. Canada, 3-0 (25-20, 25-14, 25-21)
Sunday, May 24
Gold Medal Match at 2 p.m.: USA vs. Club Athletico Paulistano