U.S. Men's Sitting Starts 2026 Worlds with Key Win over Ukraine

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (July 10, 2026) – The U.S. Men’s Sitting National Team began play at the 2026 World ParaVolley World Championship in Hangzhou, China, with a critical 3-2 (25-23, 25-21, 15-25, 20-25, 15-12) victory over Ukraine.

The U.S. will return to the court later tonight at 9 p.m. PT to face world No. 1 Egypt (1-0).

The match was very even statistically with the U.S. holding a slight edge in aces (10-9) with Ukraine leading in kills (49-47) and blocks (19-15).

“We love Ukraine. I say it every time we play them. They make us better and are such a great team to play systematically for us. We are super fortunate that we have gotten to play them a lot recently. It was really good to see our guys battle back and we knew that was what it was going to be like the whole time,” said U.S. head coach Greg Walker.

Outside hitter Zach Upp led all players with 19 points on 13 kills, a team-best four blocks and a pair of aces. Outside hitter Eric Duda finished with 16 points on 10 kills, including three in the decisive fifth set, three blocks and three aces. Middle blocker Roderick Green shared team-high honors with Upp with 13 kills and added two blocks for 15 points.

James Stuck, who served for four points in the fifth set, totaled nine points on five kills, three blocks and an ace. Outside Ben Aman also finished with nine points on four kills, three aces and two blocks. Robbie Onusko added four points on two kills, a block and an ace.

Neither team was able to take a two-point lead in the opening set until the U.S. used a 3-0 spurt to move ahead 14-12. Ukraine called timeout and responded with three consecutive points of its own to retake the lead. The U.S. then went on a 5-0 run to move ahead 19-15. Ukraine closed the gap to two points, 22-20, before the U.S. earned three set points at 24-21. Ukraine saved the first two set points before the U.S. finished the set. The U.S. produced 15 kills in the set.

Ukraine jumped out to a 9-4 lead in the second set and still led by four points, 17-13, when the U.S. used a 9-3 run to take a 22-20 advantage. Ukraine scored the next point, but the U.S. successfully challenged the next play to take a 23-21 lead and scored the final two points to take a 2-0 match lead. The U.S. made half as many errors as Ukraine (10-5) in the set.

The U.S. trailed by just a point, 7-6, in the third set when Ukraine when on a 12-2 run to take a 19-8 lead. The U.S. made 11 errors in the set as Ukraine pulled within one set in the match. Ukraine kept the momentum going in the fourth set, scoring seven of the first eight points. Trailing 14-7, the U.S. scored four of the next five points to pull within four, 15-11. The U.S. got as close as three points, 17-14, before Ukraine scored the next two points and prompted the U.S. to take a timeout. The U.S. again closed the gap to three points, 21-18, with Ukraine unsuccessfully challenging a Duda kill. Ukraine won four of the final six points to send the match to a deciding fifth set.

The U.S. started the final set on a 5-1 run. Stuck served for four points with Green and Aman each recording blocks. A Duda kill made it 6-2, but Ukraine ran off five points in a row to take a 7-6 lead. Upp tied it on the next point before Ukraine took an 8-7 lead at the side switch. Upp scored again and the U.S. retook the lead after a great dig by Dadgostar led to a Stuck kill. Ukraine scored the following two points for a 10-9 lead, but the U.S. used a 4-0 run to pull within two points of winning the match. Upp served an ace for a 12-10 lead and another good serve led to a Regan kill on an overpass for the 13-10 advantage. Duda scored off the block to set up match point at 14-11 and two points later, a net violation against Ukraine ended the match.

U.S. Men’s Sitting Team Roster for World Championship

No. Name (Position, Height, Hometown)
1 Travis Ricks (L, 5-7, San Diego, Calif.)
2 Dan Regan (OH, 6-0, St. Louis, Mo.)
3 Nick Dadgostar (L, 6-0, Sidney, Neb.)
4 Ben Aman (OH, 6-5, Edmond, Okla.)
5 Eric Duda (S/OH, 6-5, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
6 Alex Wilson (OPP/OH, 6-6, Saugerties, N.Y.)
8 James Stuck (S/OH, 6-5, New Kensington, Pa.)
10 Robbie Onusko (OH, 6-0, Daytona Beach, Fla.)
11 Roderick Green (MB, 6-3, West Monroe, La.)
17 Zach Upp (OH, 6-5, Bartlett, Ill.)
18 Jason Roberts (OH, 6-3, Moncks Corner, S.C.)
19 Danny Alvarez Rivadeneira (L/DS, 5-8, West Jordan, Utah, Intermountain)
49 Sam Surowiec (OH, 6-2, Everett, Wash.)

Head Coach: Greg Walker
Assistant Coach: Ladislav Lelkes
Assistant Coach: Julie Allen
Performance Analyst: Sydnie Mabry
Sport Psychologist: Taylor Gabler
Athletic Trainer: Whitney Padgett
Team Leader: Connor Martin
Consultant: Dave Dantes

Schedule

All times Pacific
July 10: USA def. Ukraine, 3-2 (25-23, 25-21, 15-25, 20-25, 15-12)
July 10: USA vs. Egypt, 9 p.m.
July 11: USA vs. Rwanda, 8 p.m.
July 13: Round of 16
July 14: Quarterfinals and classification matches
July 15: Semifinals and knockout rounds
July 16: Bronze medal match and placement matches
July 17: Gold medal match