U.S. Women Sweep Costa Rica at 2026 Pan Am Cup
The U.S. Women's National Team returned to its winning ways Sunday at the 2026 NORCECA Pan American Cup in León, Guanajuato, Mexico, with a sweep of Costa Rica (25-9, 25-8, 25-16).
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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Sept. 15, 2026) – The U.S. Women’s National Team will play in the quarterfinals on Sept. 16 after sweeping Guatemala (25-9, 25-8, 25-14) today at the 2026 NORCECA Pan American Cup in León, Guanajuato, Mexico.
The U.S. (3-1) finished second in Group B and will play the third-place finisher of Group A (either Canada or Nicaragua) on Wednesday at 7 p.m. PT.
The U.S. led in kills (38-13), blocks (8-1) and aces (9-0). Twelve of the 14 players scored, led by Sami Francis with 10 (seven kills, two blocks and one ace).
Eva Hudson scored nine with two kills and two aces; and Temi Thomas-Ailara and Caitie Baird each notched six (Thomas-Ailara with five kills and an ace, and Baird with four kills and a block). Jess Mruzik and Claire Hoffman each scored five, and Natalie Foster, Rachel Fairbanks and Callie Scharzenbach scored three. Toyosi Onabanjo and Ella Powell had two, and Onye Ofoegbu had one kill. Both liberos, Lauren Briseño and Elena Oglivie, had five digs.
Guatemala did not threaten the U.S. during the match. Up by four at 10-6 in the first, the U.S. won 15 of the next 18 points for the first-set win. Hudson had five points (four kills and an ace) in the set.
Francis led the team in set two with six points as the U.S. reeled off nine straight to take an early 11-2 lead. The team continued to dominate throughout the set, extending the lead until Francis ended it with a kill.
The U.S. broke open the third set at 8-6 with a three-point run, but Guatemala stayed within four until 15-11. Then, the U.S. scored six straight for a 21-11 lead. The two teams traded points until 23-14 when a Guatemala service error and Francis kill ended the match. Thomas-Ailara had six points.
2026 Women’s Pan American Cup Roster
No., Name (Pos., Height, Hometown, College)
3 Toyosi Onabanjo (MB, 6-1, Houston, Texas, Kansas)
5 Lauren Briseño (L, 5-7, San Antonio, Texas, Baylor)
7 Ella Powell (S, 6-0, Fayetteville, Ark., Washington)
9 Jess Mruzik (OH, 6-1, Livonia, Mich., Michigan/Penn State)
11 Natalie Foster (MB, 6-4, Mattawan, Mich., Wichita State/SMU)
12 Temi Thomas-Ailara (OPP, 6-2, Glenwood, Ill., Northwestern/Wisconsin)
13 Onye Ofoegbu (MB, 6-3, Cerritos, Calif., UC Irvine/Oregon)
19 Elena Oglivie (L, 5-10, Honolulu, Hawaii, Stanford)
20 Rachel Fairbanks (S, 6-0, Tustin, Calif., Pitt)
21 Claire Hoffman (OH, 6-2, Pleasant Hill, Oreg., Washington)
25 Callie Scharzenbach (OH, 6-5, Kearney, Mo., Nebraska/Long Beach State)
30 Eva Hudson (OH, 6-1, Ft. Wayne, Ind., Purdue/Kentucky)
77 Sami Francis (OPP, 6-6, San Diego, Calif., Stanford)
99 Caitie Baird (OH, 6-3, Indianapolis, Ind., Stanford)
Schedule
All times PT
Sept. 11: USA def. Cuba, 3-0 (25-16, 25-15 , 25-20)
Sept. 12: Mexico def. USA, 3-1 (25-21, 25-21, 20-25, 25-20)
Sept. 13: USA def. Costa Rica, 3-0 (25-9, 25-8, 25-16)
Sept. 15: USA vs. Guatemala, 1 p.m.
Sept.16: Quarterfinals and Classification
Sept. 17: Semifinals
Sept. 18: Finals
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