Men's U21 Succumbs to Belgium at World Championship

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (July 8, 2023) – The U.S., Men’s U21 National Team lost its second match in a row at the 2023 U21 World Championship on Saturday in Manama, Bahrain, falling to Belgium, 3-1 (25-23, 16-25, 25-22, 25-20).

The U.S. concludes the first round of pool play against Czechia at 10 a.m. PT on Sunday.

Opposite Shane Wetzel led the U.S. with 15 points, sharing team-bests with 13 kills and two blocks. He hit at a .409 efficiency percentage on 22 total attacks and added seven digs. Outside hitter Zach Rama finished with 14 points on 13 kills and a service ace. Rama and libero Ryan Merk led the defense with eight digs apiece.

Outside hitter Alex Rottman contributed eight points with middle blockers Marc Smith and Owen Rose each scoring six points. Smith shared the team lead with two blocks.

The U.S. trailed most of the first set before tying it at 22, only to drop back-to-back points and splitting the final two points. They roared back in the second set, taking a nine-point lead (17-8) that ended up being the difference in the set.

Trailing again for the most of the third set, the U.S. evened the set on four different occasions, lastly at 19-19. Belgium scored the next three points to eventually take a 2-1 match lead. Belgium scored the first five points of the fourth set, but the U.S. rallied to take a 14-13 lead. The match was even at 17 when Belgium scored the next three points, going on to secure the set and match.

Ferre Rogers of Belgium, the leading scorer in the 2021 Men’s U21 World Championship in Tehran, led all scorers with 19 kills and 22 points.

U.S. Men’s U21 Roster for the 2023 FIVB World Championship
No. Name (Position, Height, Birth year, Hometown, College, USAV Region)
1 Ryan Merk (L, 6-0, 2003, Chicago, Ill., Penn State, Great Lakes)
5 Dillon Klein (OH, 6-4, 2003, Pacific Palisades, Calif., Univ. of Southern California, Southern California)
6 Island Doty (S, 6-5, 2003, Colorado Springs, Colo., Long Beach State, Rocky Mountain)
12 Andrew Rowan (S, 6-7, 2003, Trabuco Canyon, Calif., UCLA, Southern California)
13 Shane Wetzel (Opp, 6-7, 2004, Wekiwa Springs, Fla., Ohio State, Florida)
16 Nyherowo Omene (MB, 6-8, 2003, South Holland, Ill., Princeton, Great Lakes)
17 Trent Moser (OH, 6-8, 2003, Gilbert, Ariz., BYU, Arizona)
20 Zach Rama (OH, 6-8, 2004, Phoenix, Ariz., UCLA, Arizona)
22 Owen Rose (MB, 6-8, 2003, Long Island, N.Y., Penn State, Garden Empire)
21 Wesley Smith (MB, 6-11, 2004, Encinitas, Calif., Univ. of Southern California, Southern California)
23 Alex Rottman (OH, 6-7, 2004, Santa Barbara, Calif., Stanford, Southern California)
25 Theo Snoey (OH, 6-8, 2004, Berkeley, Calif., Stanford, Northern California)

Head Coach: Andy Read (Long Beach State)
Assistant Coach: Chris Seiffert (Concordia-Irvine)
Assistant Coach: Rory Prager (Univ. of Southern California)
Performance Analyst: Alex Hurlburt
Team Doctor: Dr. Chris Cornell
Team Lead: Donovan Martinez (USAV NTDP)

U.S. Men’s U21 Schedule for the 2023 FIVB World Championship
Live stream on VolleyballWorld.tv
(All times PT)
July 7 Argentina def. USA, 3-0 (25-22, 25-19, 25-23)
July 8 Belgium def. USA, 3-1 (25-23, 16-25, 25-22, 25-20)
July 9 at 10 a.m. USA vs Czechia
July 11-13 Second round of pool play
July 15 Semifinals and consolation playoffs
July 16 Finals and consolation matches