U.S. Men's National Team Falls to Mexico in 2025 Pan Am Cup Quarterfinals

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (August 29, 2025) – The U.S. Men’s National Team fell to host Mexico, 3-1 (25-21, 18-25, 25-20, 25-23) in the quarterfinal round of the 2025 NORCECA Pan American Cup on Friday in León, Guanajuato.

The U.S. (2-2) will continue play in the tournament tomorrow, Saturday, Aug. 30 against Puerto Rico (2-2) at 3:00 p.m. PT.

The U.S. finished with a 49-46 advantage in kills but trailed in blocks (9-6) and aces (5-2), while committing two more errors (28-26).

Outside hitter Nolan Flexen led the U.S. with 16 points on 14 kills with a block and an ace. Outside Ryan Barnett was the only other U.S. player to reach double digits with 10 points on eight kills and two blocks. Libero Troy Gooch led all players with eight successful receptions and paced the U.S with 14 digs.

Opposite Parker Van Buren totaled nine points on eight kills and a block. Middle blockers Isaiah Preuitt (six kills and an ace) and Daniel Wetter (seven kills) each scored seven points. Opposite Kyle Hobus produced six kills and middle Cam Thorne posted a pair of blocks.

After the teams split the first six points, two Barnett kills and two Mexico errors gave the U.S. a 7-3 lead. Mexico, which first tied the set at 11, used a kill and a U.S. error to take its first two-point lead, 15-13. The U.S. pulled within a point, 19-18, on a Flexen kill, before Mexico recorded consecutive kills for a three-point advantage. The U.S. was not able to get closer than two points after that. Barnett and Flexen each recorded four kills.

Two Preuitt kills helped stake the U.S. to a 5-1 lead in the second set. A Preuitt ace pushed the margin to six points, 8-2. The lead was still six, 12-6, on a Van Buren kill before two errors allowed Mexico to pull within four. A block cut the advantage to three points, 13-10.  Leading 14-11, the U.S. ran off three points in a row, including kills by Van Buren and Wetter. After calling timeout, Mexico responded with three consecutive points of its own to shave the lead back to three.

A Hobus kill stopped the Mexico run to give the U.S. an 18-14 lead and Wetter followed with a kill. Flexen scored two points to put the put the U.S. up 22-17. After yielding one point, the U.S. scored the final three points, clinching the set on a Barnett block. Preuitt led all scorers with five points on four kills and an ace with Flexen delivering four more kills.

An ace gave Mexico a 10-8 lead in the third set that started with a combined six service errors. Another ace made it 12-10 and an error gave Mexico its first three-point lead of the set, 15-12. A kill and ace by Flexen cut the lead to one, 16-15. A Mexico block extended the lead back to three, 19-16. The U.S. cut the deficit to one on two occasions but was not able to even the set as Mexico took a 2-1 lead in the match. Flexen scored five points on four kills and an ace.

Mexico took the first three-point lead of the fourth set, 10-7, but the U.S. ran off the next four points to take the lead, highlighted by kills from Barnett and Van Buren. Leading by just one, 15-14, Mexico scored three points in a row to take a four-point lead and control of the set. The U.S. went on its own 3-0 run to pull within a point, 21-20 on a block and kill by Flexen. The U.S. trailed by one two more times but was unable to tie the set. Hobus delivered five kills in the set.

U.S. Men’s Roster for 2025 Pan Am Cup

No. Name (Pos., Ht., Hometown, College, USAV Region)
1 Matthew Gentry (MB, 6-7, Hudson, Ohio, Lincoln Memorial, Ohio Valley)
2 Kaleb Jenness (OH, 6-6, Mount Pleasant, S.C., Ball State, Palmetto)
3 Troy Gooch (L, 6-0, Buffalo, N.Y., UCLA, Western Empire)
4 Ryan Barnett (OH, 6-5, Vero Beach, Fla., Pepperdine, Florida)
10 Isaiah Preuitt (MB, 6-8, Portland, Ore., Long Beach State, Columbia Empire)
13 Andrew Deardorff (OH, 6-5, Itasca, Ill., Saint Francis, Great Lakes)
14 Parker Van Buren (OPP, 6-9, Cross Plains, Wis., Loyola Chicago, Badger)
15 Kyle Hobus (OPP, 6-7, San Pedro, Calif., CSUN, Southern California Southern Nevada)
16 Jacob Reilly (L, 6-2. Cypress, Texas, Pepperdine, Lone Star)
17 Andrew Rowan (S, 6-7, Trabuco Canyon, Calif., UCLA, Southern California Southern Nevada)
18 Michael Wright (S, 6-4, Richmond, Va., Ohio State, Old Dominion)
20 Cameron Thorne (MB, 6-4, Hollywood, Calif., UCLA, Florida Region)
23 Nolan Flexen (OH, 6-9, Rio Rancho, N.M., UC Irvine, Southern)
30 Daniel Wetter (MB, 6-5, Camarillo, Calif., CSUN, Southern California Southern Nevada)

Coaches for Pan Am Cup
Head Coach: Andy Read
Assistant Coach: Luke Reynolds
Assistant Coach: Lawrence Wrather
Physiotherapist: Beth Drayer
Performance Analyst: Muhammad Mbaye
Team Leader: John Xie

Schedule
Tuesday, Aug. 26: Venezuela def. USA, 3-0 (25-21, 28-26, 31-29)
Wednesday, Aug. 27: USA def. Antigua, 3-0 (25-12, 25-11, 25-17)
Thursday, Aug. 28: USA def. Cuba, 3-1 (25-20, 23-25, 26-24, 25-17)
Friday, Aug. 29: Mexico def. USA, 3-1 (25-21, 18-25, 25-20, 25-23)
Saturday, Aug. 30: Consolation semifinal: USA vs. Puerto Rico
Sunday, Aug. 31: Medal matches and classifications