U.S. Men Drop Four-Setter to Bulgaria at 2026 VNL Week Three

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (July 18, 2026) – The U.S. Men’s National Team dropped an intense match to Bulgaria, 3-1 (27-25, 22-25, 26-24, 25-18) in its penultimate match in Volleyball Nations League (VNL) preliminary play on Saturday night at NOW Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. Although the U.S. leads the all-time VNL series (4-3), Bulgaria won its second VNL match in a row and third overall, including the quarterfinals of last year’s world championship, between the teams.

The U.S. (8-3), ranked fourth in the world and already with a spot in the finals, will conclude VNL preliminary round play against world No. 1 Poland (9-2), who is in second place heading into the final match, at 6 p.m. PT on Sunday.

Get your tickets for the Poland match

The U.S. served for 10 aces and finished with just two fewer kills (51-49), but was out-blocked for the first time in 11 VNL matches, 14-5.

Opposite Jake Hanes led the U.S. with 19 points on 14 kills, a block and match-best four aces. Outside hitter Matt Anderson shared team-high honors with 14 kills and added a block and two aces for 17 points. T.J. DeFalco rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 points on nine kills and an ace.

Libero Erik Shoji led all players with 10 digs and seven successful receptions with setter Micah Christenson contributing eight digs. Middle blocker Merrick McHenry finished with seven points on five kills and two blocks, while fellow middle Jeff Jendryk produced six kills. Christenson also recorded a block and two aces.

“We’re already qualified for the finals, so we’re going to have to go through some tough matches and figure out how we can dig our way out of a couple holes,” Christenson said. “I’d rather it happen now then in some quarterfinal match or semifinal. I think this is going to prove really useful for us. Obviously, it doesn’t feel good, but there’s a positive side as well.”

Bulgaria led 6-4 in the first set when the U.S. scored four points in a row. Hanes scored after making a great up earlier in the rally to even the score 6-6 and a great Shoji dig led to DeFalco scoring against the triple block for an 8-6 advantage that promoted a Bulgaria timeout. The U.S. scored the first point out of the timeout as Anderson served for four points. Bulgaria scored three points in a row, tying the set 12-12 on an ace. The U.S. regained a two-point lead, 16-14, on a Hanes kill and ace. Hanes scored when Christenson set him while facing the net after Anderson played the serve that hit the net. Christenson followed with an ace for a 19-16 lead.

A strong pass from DeFalco led to another Haynes kill and a 21-19 U.S. lead. Bulgaria dropped a serve between all six U.S. players to tie the set at 21. Jendryk scored to put the U.S. back again and Bulgaria called its second timeout just as Hanes was preparing to serve. Bulgaria scored the first two points after the timeout to move ahead for the first time since 6-5. Anderson passed a strong serve and scored against the triple block, but Bulgaria earned set point on the following play. A service error tied the set at 24. Micah Ma’a came in to serve for the first time and immediately delivered with an ace. Bulgaria saved set point and won a joust for another set point, which it won with a walk-off ace. Hanes scored six points on five kills and an ace.

A block helped Bulgaria to a 4-1 lead to begin the second set. Jendryk rattled an attack off the block after a Hanes serve caused an overpass to tie the score 5-5. Another excellent serve put Bulgaria out of system and led to a Christenson block, and Anderson followed with a block for a 7-5 U.S. advantage. An Anderson ace gave the U.S. a 10-7 lead, and he scored on a give-and-go to make the score 11-8. A McHenry kill and Jendryk kill off a one-handed set from Christenson put the U.S. up 15-12 as the teams continued to exchange points. Bulgaria used a pair of blocks in a 6-2 run for an 18-17 lead.

Hanes scored on a big swing after an unsuccessful block touch challenge by the U.S., but Bulgaria used a tip to regain the lead. Anderson scored off a triple block on a set from DeFalco for a 20-19 U.S. advantage that prompted the second Bulgaria timeout. Bulgaria scored the next two points, the second on the ace, to retake the lead, 21-20, and force a U.S. timeout. A service error and hitting error put the U.S. back ahead. Two Jendryk points, one on a swing and another on a trip, with a Hanes ace in between earned the set win for the U.S. Anderson led the way with five points on three kills, one block and an ace.

An ace put Bulgaria ahead 6-3 in the third set. Back-to-back blocks pushed the margin to four points, 9-5. A McHenry block closed the gap to two points, 12-10. A Hanes block cut the lead to one, 13-12. After yielding the next point, the U.S. took the lead by scoring three points in a row. From well beyond the end line, Shoji set Anderson, who scored against the triple block and then scored again after a great McHenry dig. A hitting error made it 15-14 U.S. before Bulgaria regained the lead 16-15. A Hanes ace put the U.S. back ahead, 17-16. A Christenson set off the net fed Anderson for a kill and an 18-17 lead.

A Christenson ace gave the U.S. its first two-point lead of the set, 21-19, which prompted Bulgaria to take its second timeout. Bulgaria used an ace and a kill on an overpass to take a 22-21 lead and then used great defense to take a two-point advantage. A service error and McHenry block evened the set at 23-23. Bulgaria earned a set point but served out on the next point before scoring the final two points, taking a 2-1 set lead on a block. Anderson, DeFalco and Hanes each scored five points.

A strong DeFalco serve led to an Anderson kill that tied the fourth set 6-6 after Bulgaria took an early lead again. Bulgaria scored the next two points, but the U.S. tied the set again 10-10 on a Hanes kill. Bulgaria ran off the next three points, the third on a block, to take the lead for good. Aleksander Nikolov scored his 30th point of the match for a 22-15 Bulgaria lead and his 32nd point ended the match and strengthened Bulgaria’s bid to reach the finals.

Tomorrow’s match-up with Poland will be a near sellout with a fantastic atmosphere.

“I think over my years with Team USA, we’ve always responded really well, so I’m excited for the challenge that is Poland tomorrow,” Christenson said. “They’re the No. 1 ranked team in the world for a reason. They’re very good with a lot of very good teammates; a very deep roster. We’re going to have to be ready for a lot of world-class roster. I’m excited to have the opportunity to respond.”

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

No., Name (Pos., Height, Hometown, College, USAV Region)
1 Matt Anderson (OH, 6-10, West Seneca, N.Y., Penn State, Western Empire)
3 Mason Briggs (L, 6-0, Long Beach, Calif., Long Beach State, Southern California Southern Nevada)
4 Jeff Jendryk (MB, 6-10, Wheaton, Ill., Loyola Chicago, Great Lakes)
6 Cooper Robinson (OH, 6-7, Pacific Palisades, Calif., UCLA, Southern California Southern Nevada)
8 T.J. DeFalco (OH, 6-5, Huntington Beach, Calif., Long Beach State, Southern California Southern Nevada)
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 USA def. China, 3-0 (25-19, 25-13, 25-20)
July 16 def. Brazil, 3-0 (25-23, 25-19, 25-18)
July 18 Bulgaria def. USA, 3-1 (27-25, 22-25, 26-24, 25-18)
July 19 vs. Poland at 6 p.m.