U.S. Men's Sitting Finishes Pool Play at 2026 Worlds with Sweep of Rwanda

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (July 13, 2026) – The U.S. Men’s Sitting National Team finished pool play with a 3-0 (25-13, 25-17, 25-20) victory over Rwanda at the 2026 World ParaVolley World Championship in Hangzhou, China on Monday. The U.S. (2-1) advances to the round of 16.

The U.S. Men will play familiar foe Canada tonight at 8 p.m. PT, with Paralympic qualificaiton on the line.

The U.S. led in all statistical categories, including a 29-16 advantage in kills, 7-3 in service aces and with five of the match’s six blocks.

“After Egypt, we had to get into a rhythm, and I thought we were great off the service line today. We were super accurate in our serving targets and we had multiple guys making some big runs. We were able to hit flat, catch a lot of hands because from here on out, all the teams we will see are going to have really big blocks and we need be really good at the top of the block. I thought the guys played with so much urgency regrouping after yesterday,” said U.S. head coach Greg Walker.

Outside hitter Zach Upp led all players with 10 kills, three aces and 14 points, adding a block. He hit .643 for the match with just one error in 14 total attacks. James Stuck (four kills, one block, one ace) and Roderick Green (three kills, two aces, one block) each scored six points.

Eric Duda registered five kills, while Robbie Onusko added four points on three kills and an ace. Ben Aman and Jason Roberts each contributed two kills and a block.

The U.S. jumped out to big leads, 8-1 in the first set and 14-3 in the second set in taking a two-set advantage. Rwanda held its biggest lead of the match, 13-9 in the third set before a 12-2 run put the U.S. ahead 21-15.

U.S. Men’s Sitting Team Roster for World Championship

No. Name (Position, Height, Hometown)
1 Travis Ricks (L, 5-7, San Diego, Calif.)
2 Dan Regan (OH, 6-0, St. Louis, Mo.)
3 Nick Dadgostar (L, 6-0, Sidney, Neb.)
4 Ben Aman (OH, 6-5, Edmond, Okla.)
5 Eric Duda (S/OH, 6-5, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
6 Alex Wilson (OPP/OH, 6-6, Saugerties, N.Y.)
8 James Stuck (S/OH, 6-5, New Kensington, Pa.)
10 Robbie Onusko (OH, 6-0, Daytona Beach, Fla.)
11 Roderick Green (MB, 6-3, West Monroe, La.)
17 Zach Upp (OH, 6-5, Bartlett, Ill.)
18 Jason Roberts (OH, 6-3, Moncks Corner, S.C.)
19 Danny Alvarez Rivadeneira (L/DS, 5-8, West Jordan, Utah, Intermountain)
49 Sam Surowiec (OH, 6-2, Everett, Wash.)

Head Coach: Greg Walker
Assistant Coach: Ladislav Lelkes
Assistant Coach: Julie Allen
Performance Analyst: Sydnie Mabry
Sport Psychologist: Taylor Gabler
Athletic Trainer: Whitney Padgett
Team Leader: Connor Martin
Consultant: Dave Dantes

Schedule

All times Pacific
July 10: USA def. Ukraine, 3-2 (25-23, 25-21, 15-25, 20-25, 15-12)
July 11: Egypt def. USA, 3-1 (24-26, 25-15, 25-18, 25-8)
July 12: USA def. Rwanda, 3-0 (25-13, 25-17, 25-20)
July 13: Round of 16: USA vs. Canada, 8 p.m.
July 14: Quarterfinals and classification matches
July 15: Semifinals and knockout rounds
July 16: Bronze medal match and placement matches
July 17: Gold medal match