U.S. Men Down Serbia in Four Sets to Close Second Week of 2026 VNL

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (June 28, 2026) – The U.S. Men’s National Team completed the second week of 2026 Volleyball Nations League (VNL) play with a 3-1 (25-12, 25-23, 24-26, 25-17) victory over Serbia on Sunday in Orleans, France. Just as it did in the first week of VNL, the U.S. won three of four matches in the second week.

The U.S. (6-2), which stands in second place behind undefeated Japan, will host the third week of 2026 VNL in Chicago (Hoffman Estates, Illinois) and will open against China on July 15 at 6 p.m. PT.

“Incredibly challenging conditions here this week. It is a beautiful venue, but it doesn’t have air conditioning. The temperatures were regularly above 90 degrees inside. The guys did an incredible job working through that. The players, who we call game changers, who were not on the court at the time were great about bringing towels and ice for those on the court,” remarked U.S. head coach Karch Kiraly. “We are only a couple points away from being undefeated, so lots of good things happening and love how the guys are battling. We are pretty happy coming away with six wins, two losses.”

The U.S finished with an 11-8 advantage in blocks and made 22 fewer errors (38-16). Serbia held slight leads in kills (49-46) and service aces (5-4).

“Things came far too easily against Serbia in the first set. They made a lot of mistakes and handed us a lot of gifts. We talked before the second set that they would come back at us harder. They did and we didn’t respond very well, but our guys kept fighting and we came back to squeak that second one out very late,” Kiraly said. “We fell down again and couldn’t come back in the third, but in general, it was a great team effort. We got help from so many people in the second and third. TJ (DeFalco) came in as a serving substitute, Micah Ma’a and Cole Hartke came in on the double sub and gave us a lift, and Ethan Champlin came in (after Jordan Ewert tweaked something in his leg), so it was a total team effort. The guys have a lot to be proud of. We will be happy to get home and regroup. We will be happy to host in the U.S.A. with lots of juice and enthusiasm from the fans for all teams.”

Outside hitter Matt Anderson paced the U.S. with 14 points on 12 kills, two blocks and an ace. Opposite Jake Hanes (six kills, two blocks, two aces) scored 10 points in the opening set. Opposite Cole Hartke came in the match later and also scored 10 points with eight kills and two blocks.

Middle blockers Taylor Averill and Merrick McHenry combined for 16 points. Averill scored eight on seven kills and a block with McHenry totaling eight on six kills and two blocks. Setter Micah Christenson ran the much more effective U.S. offense while adding five points on two kills, two blocks and an ace. Outside hitter Jordan Ewert produced four kills. Christenson and Anderson shared the team lead with seven digs and Anderson added five. Anderson and Ewert led the way with seven successful receptions each.

Keyed by a pair of points from Hanes, and one each from McHenry and Ewert, the U.S. ran out to a 6-1 lead in the opening set. Hanes scored against a triple block off a set from Shoji for an 8-3 advantage at the first hydration break. Hanes came out of the break with a pair of aces in nearly the identical spot for a 10-3 lead, forcing Serbia to use its final timeout early in the set. An Averill block increased the margin to eight points, 13-5. Consecutive Serbia errors gave the U.S. a double-digit lead, 16-6, at the second hydration break. Hanes scored back-to-back points, the second when he put down an overpass, to make it 18-7. A Hanes kill and block made it 23-10. Hanes finished the set with 10 points on six kills, two block and two aces, just two points fewer than Serbia scored in the set.

The U.S. began the second set with an Anderson block and Christenson ace. An Ewert kill and Anderson tip put the U.S. ahead 7-5. An ace gave Serbia its first lead of the match, 9-8. Another ace on a miscommunication on the reception put Serbia and a great defensive effort on the following play put Serbia up 15-12, and a kill on the next extended the lead to four points at the second cooling break. Serbia continued its impressive stretch to go up six points, 18-12, before Hartke came in and provided a block as part of a 3-0 U.S. run. A good up by Ewert led to an Anderson swing that went high off the block and cut the deficit to two points, 20-18. An Anderson kill and ace put the U.S. ahead 23-22. A hitting error gave the U.S. set point and two points later, Anderson ended the set with a kill up the pipe for a 2-0 U.S. lead in the match. Anderson finished the set with eight points on six kills, a block and an ace.

An ace gave Serbia an 8-3 lead at the opening hydration break in the third set. A block made it 10-4. An illegal attack when the libero set the ball inside the three-meter line pulled the U.S. within two points, 15-13. Christenson and Averill teamed up on a block to even the score at 16. Errors put the U.S. in front 18-17, but Serbia regained the lead 20-19 on a kill off the block. A Serbia block raised the lead to two points, 22-20. Hartke scored off an Anderson set to even the score at 22. Serbia served just out when leading 24-23 but scored the final two points to take the set.

After yielding the first point of the fourth set, the U.S. scored the next three points on a McHenry kill, a Hartke block on a double block with McHenry, and a McHenry block. Two Serbia errors followed for a 5-1 lead. An Averill block made it 8-2 at the first cooling break. Averill scored for a 9-3 lead on a play in which Ewert went down and was replaced by Ethan Champlain. Serbia took a timeout down seven points, 11-4. Averill played a serve off the net and put a ball down on a give-and-go for a 12-5 lead. Serbia cut the lead to five before a Champlin roll shot and another McHenry block raised the lead back to seven. A Matthew Knigge kill and a Champlin attack that found the sideline put the U.S. in front 23-16. The match ended on a service error. Averill led the U.S. with four points on three kills and a block.

After returning from France, the U.S. men prepare for an anticipated homestand in Hoffman Estates, Illinois (July 15-19). Get your tickets.

U.S. Men’s Roster for 2026 VNL Week Two

No., Name (Pos., Height, Hometown, College, USAV Region)
1 Matt Anderson (OH, 6-10, West Seneca, N.Y., Penn State, Western Empire)
4 Jeff Jendryk (MB, 6-10, Wheaton, Ill., Loyola Chicago, Great Lakes)
8 T.J. DeFalco (OH, 6-5, Huntington Beach, Calif., Long Beach State, Southern California Southern Nevada)
9 Gabi Garcia (OPP, 6-7, San Juan, Puerto Rico, BYU)
10 Kyle Dagostino (L, 5-9, Tampa, Florida, Stanford Univ., Florida)
11 Micah Christenson (S, 6-5, Honolulu, Hawaii, USC, Aloha)
13 Taylor Averill (MB, 6-7, San Jose, Calif., Univ. of Hawai’i, Northern California)
14 Micah Ma’a (S, 6-3, Kaneohe, Hawaii, UCLA, Aloha)
17 Jake Hanes (OPP, 6-10, Orland Park, Ill., Ohio State Univ., Great Lakes)
18 Cole Hartke (OPP, 7-0, Barrington, Ill., Pepperdine, Great Lakes)
20 Ethan Champlin (OH, 6-3, Oceanside, Calif., UCLA, Southern California Southern Nevada)
22 Erik Shoji (L, 6-0, Honolulu, Hawaii, Stanford Univ., Aloha)
24 Merrick McHenry (MB, 6-7, Bedford, Texas, UCLA, North Texas)
26 Matthew Knigge (MB, 6-7, New Egypt, N.J., Vassar, Garden Empire)
29 Jordan Ewert (OH, 6-5, Antioch, Calif., Stanford, Northern California)

Head Coach:  Karch Kiraly
Assistant Coach: Luka Slabe
Assistant Coach: Javier Weber
Performance Analyst: Nate Ngo
Physiotherapist: Aaron Brock
Senior Strength and Conditioning Coach: Tim Pelot
Senior Sports Dietitian: Shawn Hueglin
Mental Performance Coach: Andrea Becker
Team Doctors:  Andrew Gregory, Mark Hutchinson, Christopher Lee, Michael Terry, Eugene Yim
Statisticians: Jimmy Kim, Frank Pham

U.S. Men’s Schedule for the 2026 Volleyball Nations League
Matches will be shown live and on-demand on VBTV.
(All times PDT)

Week 1: Ottawa, Canada
June 10 USA def. Türkiye, 3-1 (25-20, 20-25, 25-20, 25-23)
June 12 USA def. Germany, 3-0 (25-22, 25-15, 25-20)
June 13 def. Canada, 3-2 (20-25, 33-35, 26-24, 25-21, 15-11)
June 14 Italy def. USA, 3-2 (25-18, 15-25, 25-19, 25-18, 15-10)

Week 2: Orleans, France
June 24 USA def. Cuba, 3-0, (25-21, 25-21, 25-19)
June 25 USA def. Iran, 3-0 (25-23, 25-20, 31-29)
June 27 Japan def. USA, 3-2 (18-25, 25-21, 20-25, 25-22, 15-13)
June 28 def. Serbia, 3-1 (25-12, 25-23, 24-26, 25-17)

Week 3: Hoffman Estates, Illinois
July 15 vs. China at 6 p.m.
July 16 vs. Brazil at 6 p.m.
July 18 vs. Bulgaria at 6 p.m.
July 19 vs. Poland at 6 p.m.