U.S. Women Win Again at 2024 Pan Am Cup

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Aug. 19, 2024) –The U.S. Women’s National Team moved to 2-0 with a convincing 3-0 (25-14, 25-20, 25-15) win over Puerto Rico (1-1) on Monday in Irapuato, Guanajuato, Mexico.

The U.S. Women play their third consecutive 7 p.m. PT match in the tournament on Tuesday (Aug. 20) against Cuba (1-1).

“It was a really good match for us. We played nice and clean and steady,” Head Coach Brad Rostratter said. “It was fun to see a new group of athletes step on the court. Again, our serving and passing was the difference in us being consistent.”

MATCH STATISTICS (PDF)

The U.S. offense dominated the match, finishing with a 47-21 advantage in kills. The U.S. also led in blocks (9-6) and service aces (6-3).

Opposite Kendall Kipp and outside hitter Roni Jones-Perry combined for 30 kills and 34 points to overwhelm the Puerto Rico defense. Kipp led all players with 18 points on 16 kills and two blocks, while Jones-Perry totaled 16 points on 14 kills and two blocks. Both players finished with seven digs.

“I think the team played really well. We are still getting used to playing together in competition, but I think we did a really good job of adjusting to what Puerto Rico was doing. They played a really good match,” Kipp said. “It was fun to get the nerves out and play some volleyball. It is fun to play with all these players on the same side of the net after playing against them in college.”

Middle blocker Amber Igiede scored nine points on five kills, two blocks, and two aces. She shared the team lead in blocks with Kipp and Jones-Perry and shared the team lead in aces with setter Jenna Gray and middle Serena Gray.

Outside hitter Claire Hoffman contributed seven points on six kills and a block, and Serena Gray finished with seven points on four kills and a block to go with her two aces. Jenna Gray led all players with 13 digs and added a kill and a block to her two aces. Backup setter Ella Powell also played as part of double substitutions.

Backup opposite Stephanie Samedy recorded a kill. Hoffman and libero Zoe Fleck each finished with 12 digs, while Hoffman paced the squad with 17 service receptions.

Back-to-back aces by Jenna Gray gave the U.S. a 16-7 lead in the opening set. The lead grew to 13 points, 21-8, and the set never got closer than nine points. Jones-Perry led the team with five kills with Kipp also scoring five points, coming on four kills and a block.

Scrambling defense that led to an Igiede put down from the middle and a Kipp kill gave the U.S. an early 8-4 lead in the second set, but Puerto Rico kept the set close throughout. A Kipp block gave the U.S. its biggest lead at 16-11, but Puerto Rico closed the gap to two, 17-15, on an ace that dribbled off the net.

With the lead still just two points, 18-16, a Kipp kill and Serena Gray block extended the lead to four points and Puerto Rico was never able to get closer in the set. Igiede (five kills, one block) and Jones-Perry (four kills, two blocks) paced the U.S. with six points apiece. Kipp recorded five points on four kills and a block for the second consecutive set.

Three Kipp kills in a four-point span put the U.S. ahead 10-7 in the third set. Puerto Rico pulled within two points, 13-11, midway through the set before a 5-0 run extended the lead to seven, keyed by a pair of kills from Kipp, and kills from Jones-Perry and Hoffman.

Kipp’s eighth kill of the match made it 22-13. A Serena Gray kill punctuated a second consecutive U.S. sweep to open the tournament. Jones-Perry registered five kills in the set and Hoffman added four points on three kills and one block.

U.S. Women’s Roster for the 2024 NORCECA Pan American Cup
4 Logan Eggleston (OH, 6-2, Brentwood, Tenn., Univ. of Texas, Southern)
5 Kendall Kipp (Opp, 6-6, Newport Beach, Calif., Stanford, Southern California)
6 Serena Gray (MB, 6-3, Temple City, Calif., Pitt, Southern California)
7 Claire Hoffman (OH, 6-2, Pleasant Hill, Ore., Univ. of Washington, Columbia Empire)
8 Amber Igiede (MB, 6-3, Baton Rouge, La., Univ. of Hawaii, Delta)
9 Tia Jimerson (MB, 6-3, Sugar Hill, Ga., Ohio University, Southern)
12 Breland Morrissette (MB, 6-1, Birmingham, Ala., Georgia Tech, Southern)
13 Ella Powell (S, 6-0, Fayetteville, Ark., Univ. of Washington, Delta)
14 Sarah Sponcil (L, 5-10, Phoenix, Ariz., UCLA, Arizona)
15 Jaali Winters (OH, 6-3, Ankeny, Iowa, Creighton, Iowa)
17 Zoe Fleck (L, 5-6, Grenada Hills, Calif., Univ. of Texas, Southern California)
19 Jenna Gray (S, 6-1, Shawnee, Kan., Stanford Univ., Heart of America)
31C Roni Jones-Perry (OH, 6-0, West Jordan, Utah, BYU, Intermountain)
34 Stephanie Samedy (Opp, 6-2, Clermont, Fla., Univ. of Minnesota, Florida)

Head Coach: Brad Rostratter
Assistant Coach: Jonathan Charette
2nd Assistant Coach: Tayyiba Haneef-Park
Team Manager: James Lundgren
Physiotherapist: Cherryl-Marie Bueno
Statistician: Peter Wong

U.S. Women’s Schedule for the Pan American Cup
(All times PT)
Matches will be livestreamed on Federación Mexicana de Voleibol Facebook page.

Aug. 18: USA def. Chile, 3-0 (25-13, 25-16, 25-18)
Aug. 19: USA def. Puerto Rico, 3-0 (25-14, 25-20, 25-15)
Aug. 20: USA vs. Cuba, 7 p.m.
Aug. 21: USA vs. Costa Rica, 1 p.m.
Aug. 22: USA vs. Argentina, 4 p.m.
Aug. 23: Quarterfinals and classification
Aug. 24: Semifinals and classification
Aug. 25: Medal matches