Sitting Teams Win Three of Four Matches on Day Two in the Netherlands

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (July 2, 2022) – The U.S. Men’s and Women’s Sitting Teams continued play Saturday at the Dutch Tournament in Assen, Netherlands.

Men’s Sitting National Team: 1-1

With a win over Great Britain (25-17, 25-10, 25-13), the Men’s Sitting Team, ranked 10th in the world, collected its first victory of the tournament.

“This tournament has been a great challenge for us as we prepare for the World Championship,” head coach Greg Walker said. “We’ve been grateful to [play against] No. 4 Brazil, No. 8 Germany and No. 9 Kazakhstan. The margins are so close. Brazil and Germany were both at the Tokyo Paralympics, and Kazakhstan beat Germany today in five.”

The team opened the day with a loss to Germany before defeating Great Britain. Eric Duda led with 15 points against Germany.

Walker added that there were similar contributions from Rod [Green] and Chris [Seilkop] that provided a spark, and that having a few attackers over .400 helped against Great Britain. Over the two matches, the U.S. outblocked their opponents, 32-20.

“We have to work more on reducing our attacking errors, but I’m pleased with our fight and our intent as we play,” he added.

Women’s Sitting National Team: 2-0

USA def. Brazil, 3-1 (25-9, 25-16, 19-25, 25-21) (PDF)
USA def. Italy, 3-0 (25-16, 25-17 and 25-21) (PDF)

The U.S. Women continued their winning streak with victories over Italy, 3-0 (25-16, 25-17, 25-21) and Brazil 3-1 (25-9, 25-16, 19-25, 25-21).

Against Italy, Monique Matthews led with 16 points on 13 kills, two aces and one block. Whitney Dosty scored 14 (eight kills, four blocks, two aces); Jillian Williams scored 11 (six kills, four blocks, one ace), and Tia Edwards scored 10 (five kills, four blocks, one ace). Lexi Shifflett scored four points and Nicky Nieves had five.

“It was a great day facing world-ranked No. 4 Brazil and No. 5 Italy, and we were able to pull out two wins,” head coach Bill Hamiter said. “Our net play was much improved over yesterday. Our serving and passing was still strong, which really helped our side out and point scoring.”

Sydney Satchell, who led the team against Italy with 13 receptions, is playing in her first tournament with the team in three years (her last roster was the 2019 Para Pan American Games).

“After not playing for three years and not making the Tokyo roster, it feels good to compete with my team again,” she said. “To any and all who read this, please know that it’s OK to keep going, keep trying and keep learning. Let my life be an example of what’s possible when you don’t give up.”

Against Brazil, Edwards used her serving prowess again to collect eight aces along with 14 kills and a block. Dosty led the team in scoring overall with 15 points on 13 kills and two blocks. Matthews scored 14 (nine kills, two blocks, three aces) and had 17 receptions, and Nieves scored 12 (10 kills, one block and one ace). Other scorers were Williams (7), Shifflett (5) and Schieck (1). Libero Bethany Zummo had 14 receptions.

Play in the Netherlands tournament concludes Sunday morning. All matches of the Dutch Tournament will be streamed live on YouTube.

Women’s Schedule (all times Pacific)

July 1
USA def. Netherlands, 3-0 (25-15, 25-15, 25-10) (PDF Stats)
USA def. Germany, 3-0 (25-21,25-18,25-11) (PDF Stats)

July 2
USA def. Brazil, 3-1 (25-9, 25-16, 19-25, 25-21)
USA def. Italy, 3-0 (25-16, 25-17, 25-21)

July 3
USA vs. Great Britain, 12 a.m.
USA vs. Canada, 4 a.m.

Men’s Schedule (all times Pacific)

July 1
Kazakhstan def. USA, 3-1 (23-25, 25-23, 25-21, 21-16)
Brazil def. USA, 3-1 (25-17, 20-25, 25-11, 25-17)

July 2
Germany def. USA
USA def. Great Britain, 3-0 (25-17, 25-10, 25-13)

July 3
USA vs. Netherlands, 2 a.m.
USA vs. TBA, 6 a.m.

Women’s Roster

2 Bethany Zummo (L, 5-3, Dublin, Calif.)
3 Lexi Shifflett (S/L, 5-4, Waseca, Minn.)
4 Maddy Ball (OH, 5-7, Delray Beach, Fla.)
7 Monique Matthews (MB/OH, 6-0, Ardmore, Okla.)
8 Whitney Dosty (OH/OPP, 6-3, Tucson, Ariz.)
9 Tia Edwards (OH/MB, 5-7, Skiatook, Okla.)
10 Sydney Satchell (L, 5-2, Oklahoma City, Okla.)
11 Jillian Williams (MB/OPP/OH, 5-10, Odem, Texas)
12 Emma Schieck (OH, 5-7, Statesville, N.C.)
13 Gia Cruz (S, 5-5, San Antonio Texas)
16 Nicky Nieves (MB/OH, 5-10, Kissimmee, Fla.)
18 Courtney Baker (OH, 5-9, Crofton, Ky.)

Head Coach: Bill Hamiter
Assistant Coach: Michelle Goodall
Athletic Trainer: Kat King
Performance Analyst: Jeffery Hicks
Team Leader: Bobby Moore

Men’s Roster

No Name (Position, Height, Hometown)
2 Dan Regan (OH, 6-0, Edmond, Okla.)
3 Nicholas Dadgostar (L, 6-0, Sydney, Neb.)
4 Ben Aman (OH, 6-5, Edmond, Okla.)
5 Eric Duda (S/OH, 6-5, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
8 James Stuck (S/OH, 6-5, New Kensington, Pa.)
10 Murtahda Hadi (MB, 6-0)
11 Roderick Green (MB, 6-3, West Monroe, La.)
12 Patrick Young (OH, 6-4, Albuquerque, N.M.)
15 Chris Seilkop (OH, 6-6, Deland, Fla.)
17 Zach Upp (OH, 6-5, Bartlett, Ill.)
18 J Dee Marinko (OH, 6-4, Norman, Okla.)
21 John Kremer (L, 5-9, Buford, Ga.)
49 Sam Surowiec (OH, 6-2, Everett, Wash.)

Head Coach: Greg Walker
Assistant Coach: Joe Skinner
Assistant Coach: Kyle Homeyer
Performance Analyst: David Dantes
Athletic Trainer: Brian Farr
Team Leader: Julie Allen