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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (August 26, 2025) – The U.S. Men’s National Team defeated Morocco, 3-0 (25-11, 25-20, 25-23) to finish undefeated in pool play at the 2025 FIVB Men’s U21 World Championship on Tuesday in Jiangmen, China.
The U.S. (5-0) will play Bulgaria (2-3) in the Round of 16 at 8 p.m. PT tonight. The winner will advance to the quarterfinal round on Friday, Aug. 29.
“Seba had the most points, but I thought it was a good team effort,” U.S. head coach John Hawks said. “Riggs was super steady tonight.”
The U.S. finished with advantages in kills (36-32), blocks (5-1) and service errors (4-2) while committing 11 fewer errors (30-19).
Sani recorded four of the six blocks in the match and led all scorers with 12 points on six kills and two aces. Outside Riggs Guy finished with a match-high 11 kills.
Setter Trent Taliaferro ran the U.S. offense that made only five errors in the match and hit at a .544 efficiency percentage with 36 kills in 57 attacks. He scored three points with a kill, block and ace. Libero Kellen Larson led the team with six digs and four successful receptions.
Middle blocker Micah Goss contributed seven points on six kills and an ace, while opposite Kainoa Wade and middle blocker Jackson Cryst each delivered six kills.
A Sani ace gave the U.S. a quick 5-1 lead in the match and led 9-3 before Morocco scored its first offensive point of the match (after its first three points came on service errors). A Sani block extended the lead to double digits, 14-4. Cryst gave the U.S. a 13-point advantage with a kill for a 20-7 lead. Kills by Guy and Goss ended the set with the U.S. finishing the set with its biggest lead. Sani led the way with four points on two blocks with a kill and an ace. The U.S. hit .643 in the set with nine kills without an error in 14 attacks.
With the second set tied at five, four consecutive points capped by a Sani block gave the U.S. the lead for good. A block pulled Morocco within two points, 12-10, but the U.S. scored four of the next five points for a 16-11 lead when Larson made a pancake dig leading to a Guy kill. A Morocco ace cut the margin to three points, 19-16, but a Cryst kill and Taliaferro ace helped the U.S. take a six-point lead, 22-16.
A hitting error brought up set point at 24-17 before Morocco scored three consecutive points for the first time in the match. A service error ended the set. Sani scored four points on two kills and two blocks.
Back-to-back kills by Wade, the first off a set from Goss, put the U.S. ahead 15-11 in the third set, the first time either team led by three points in the set. Guy scored off a set from Sani for a 17-13 lead but Morocco went on a 7-1 tear to take a 20-18 lead. Another Wade kill and a hitting error evened the score at 20.
The U.S. regained the lead, 23-22, on a Guy kill, and a hitting error made it match point. After a service error, the U.S. ended the match as Guy scored again. Guy led the team with five kills in the final set, while Wade and Goss each added four. Sani also scored four points in the set with three kills and an ace.
Men’s U21 National Team World Championship Roster
Name (Pos., Height, Hometown, School/Club, USAV Region)
1 Kellen Larson (L, 5-9, Irvine, Calif., Long Beach State, Southern California/Southern Nevada)
3 Cole Hartke (OPP, 6-11, Barrington, Ill., Pepperdine, Great Lakes)
7 Trent Taliaferro (S, 6-5, San Clemente, Calif., UCLA, Southern California/Southern Nevada)
9 Tre Jordan (MB, 6-10, Mesa, Ariz., Univ. of Hawaii, Arizona)
12 Sterling Foley (OH, 6-6, Los Angeles, Calif., Univ. of Southern California, Southern California/Southern Nevada)
13 Sean Kelly (OH, 6-7, Manhattan Beach, Calif., UCLA, Southern California/Southern Nevada)
16 Tread Rosenthal (S, 6-10, Hermosa Beach, Calif., Univ. of Hawaii, Southern California/Southern Nevada)
17 Riggs Guy (OH, 6-3, Newport Beach, Calif., UC Santa Barbara, Southern California/Southern Nevada)
18 Kainoa Wade (OPP, 6-10, Kailua, Hawaii, Univ. of Hawaii, Aloha Region)
21 Jackson Cryst (MB, 6-10, Long Beach, Calif., Long Beach State, Southern California/Southern Nevada)
22 Sebastiano Sani (OH, 6-8, Aliso Viejo, Calif., Long Beach State, Chesapeake)
23 Micah Goss (MB, 6-6, Santa Barbara, Calif., UC Irvine, Southern California/Southern Nevada)
Coaches
Head Coach: John Hawks (UCLA)
Assistant Coach: Donan Cruz
Assistant Coach: Matthew Pollock (Pepperdine)
Performance Analyst: Alex Hurlburt (The Volleyball institute)
Athletic Trainer: Rachel Menze (Pepperdine)
Team Lead: Donovan Martinez (NTDP)
All times PT
Aug. 20: USA def. Thailand, 3-0 (25-20, 25-15, 25-19)
Aug. 21: USA def. Türkiye, 3-2 (21-25, 25-13, 25-22, 21-25, 15-7)
Aug. 22: USA def. Egypt, 3-2 (26-24, 31-33, 37-35, 23-25, 15-10)
Aug. 24: USA def. China, 3-1 (24-26, 25-21, 25-21, 25-18)
Aug. 25: USA def. Morocco, 3-0 (25-11, 25-20, 25-23)
Aug. 26: Round of 16: USA vs. Bulgaria, time TBA
Aug. 29: Quarterfinals
Aug. 30: Semifinals
Aug. 31: Medal matches
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