Girls U19 Team Beats U.S. Virgin Islands in First Pool Match

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (May 9, 2023) – The U.S. Girls U19 National Team began pool play with a resounding victory over U.S. Virgin Islands 3-0 (25-6, 25-18, 25-12) at the NORCECA Pan American Cup on Tuesday in Puerto Rico.

MATCH STATISTICS

The U.S. maintained steady control on the scoreboard throughout each set, never trailing in the match. U.S. Head Coach Keegan Cook took note of areas where he thought the team could improve, but was pleased with the overall result.

“Really strong opening set,” Cook said. “I would have liked to have seen us carry that through a little bit more. I am looking forward to seeing us improve in serve receive and on the service line, but nice to see a bunch of talented young athletes wear USA for the first time and I liked what I saw.”

Opposite Olivia Babcock scored eight points in the victory as one of the top scorers in the match. Two of her eight points came on service aces. Babcock set aside any pregame jitters once it was time to deliver.

“It was my first time wearing the USA jersey so I was nervous,” Babcock said. “It was a great opportunity to represent my country and it ended up being really fun and I think we played really well as a team. I think this is going to be a great tournament for us.”

Middle blocker Jaela Auguste and opposite/setter Logan Parks each also contributed seven points to the winning effort. Auguste earned three of those points on blocks, while Parks brought in five of her seven points on kills.

Libero Ava Falduto led the team with eight digs and outside hitter Teraya Sigler led the team with three service aces.

Outside hitter Julia Blyashov and setter Izzy Starck joined Auguste for the tie in team high blocks at two.

Overall, the U.S. had just under a 70 percent success rate on attack throughout the three sets and limited U.S. Virgin Islands to just a 15 percent success rate.

The U.S. Girls U19 Team will be back in action on Wednesday against Costa Rica with match time set for 11 a.m. PT.

No. Name (Position, Height, Birth Year, Hometown, School, Region)
1 Lizzy Andrew (MB, 6-5, 2005, Ridgefield, Wash., Ridgefield HS, Columbia Empire)
2 Jaela Auguste (MB, 6-2, 2006, Spring, Texas, Grand Oaks HS, Lonestar)
3 Olivia Babcock (OPP, 6-4, 2005, Los Angeles, Calif., Sierra Canyon HS, Southern California)
4 Blaire Bayless (OH, 6-2, 2005, Plano, Texas, Plano West Senior HS, North Texas)
5 Julia Blyashov (OH, 6-3, 2005, San Diego, Calif., Cathedral Catholic HS, Southern California)
8 Kaci Demaria (OH, 6-4, 2007, San Pedro, Calif., Palos Verdes HS, Southern California)
9 Ava Falduto (L, 5-7, 2006, Elmhurst, Ill., IC Catholic Prep, Great Lakes)
14 Calissa Minatee (MB, 6-0, 2005, Kansas City, Mo., University of Minnesota, Heart of America)
15 Logan Parks (OPP/S, 5-11, 2006, Overland Park, Kan., Blue Valley North HS, Heart of America)
17 Teraya Sigler (OH, 6-2, 2006, Horizon HS, Scottsdale, Ariz., Arizona)
18 Izzy Starck (S, 6-1, 2006, Colorado Springs, Colo., Rampart HS, Rocky Mountain)
19 Abby Vander Wal (OH, 6-3, 2006, Elmhurst, Ill., Timothy Christian HS, Great Lakes)

Head Coach: Keegan Cook
Assistant Coach: Krista Hendrickson
Assistant Coach: Cursty Le Roux
Performance Analyst: Virginia Pham
Athletic Trainer: Cherryl Bueno
Team Lead: Courtney Smith

Alternates
Suli Davis (OH, 6-2, 2007, Euless, Texas, Colleyville Heritage HS, North Texas)
Brooklyn DeLeye (OH, 6-2, 2005, Auburn, Kan., Washburn Rural HS, Heart of America)
Taylor Harvey (MB, 6-3, 2006, Bountiful, Utah, Bountiful HS, Intermountain)
Kelly Kinney (OH, 6-2, 2007, West Palm Beach, Fla., The King’s Academy, Florida)
Ryan McAleer (L, 5-5, 2005, Leawood, Kan., Blue Valley HS, Heart of America)
Reese Messer (S, 5-11, 2006, Olathe, Kan., Saint James Academy, Heart of America)
Alec Rothe (MB, 6-3, 2006, Dublin, Ohio, Dublin Scioto HS, Ohio Valley)
Taylor Yu (S, 6-0, 2006, Temple City, Calif., Temple City HS, Southern California)

U.S. Schedule

Wednesday, May 10
11 a.m.: USA vs. Costa Rica

Thursday, May 11
1 p.m.: USA vs. Mexico