U.S. Women's Sitting Team Takes Down Italy at 2024 Super 6

Colorado Springs, Colo. (June 12, 2024) – The U.S. Women’s Sitting Team picked up its second straight win at the ParaVolley Super 6 with a 3-1 (25-14, 25-11, 23-25, 25-10) victory over No. 7 Italy on Wednesday.

The U.S. (2-0) will face No. 4 China (2-0) at 11 a.m. PT on Thursday, June 13. China has defeated Canada and Brazil this week.

MATCH STATISTICS (PDF)

The match against Italy allowed head coach Bill Hamiter to mix up lineups, with 2020 Paralympian Whitney Dosty, 2016/2020 Paralympian Lexi Shifflett-Patterson, and newcomers MaKenzie Franklin and Raelene Elam seeing playing time.

The U.S. Women were not threatened in the first two sets, jumping out to early leads in both for wins of 25-14 and 25-11. Team captain Monique Matthews powered the U.S. offense, and she led all scorers in the match with 23 points on 15 kills, five aces and three blocks.

Italy turned things around in set three, battling to a 25-23 victory. Matthews said the third-set loss was just part of the process.

“We had quite a bit of errors,” she said. “We’re just getting out the kinks and figuring our stuff out. This is to build to Paris, so we’re learning from each set.”

The team was back on track right away in set four, dominating the game in all aspects for a 25-10 win.

“It’s always good to get a win,” Matthews said. “We’re here focused on team dynamics and working on what we need to work on. Winning in the process makes it even better.”

Besides Matthews, nine other players scored for the U.S. Lora Webster notched 12 points on seven kills and a team-high five blocks. Heather Erickson scored eight (four kills, one block, three aces), and Elam scored her first international points (six kills and two blocks). Nicky Nieves scored seven on five kills and two aces, and setter Kaleo Kanahele Maclay had three kills and a block.

Dosty had three kills, Katie Bridge had two, Tia Edwards had a kill and an ace, and Franklin came in to set four to score a kill.

The U.S. led Italy in kills (47-27), blocks (12-8) and aces (11-5), and hit .377.

With China next up, the U.S. Women face the team they defeated for gold in the last two Paralympics. Matthews said the team is excited to play its rival.

“China is always a tough opponent, and we’re always happy to play them because they push us” she said. “They make us see our weaknesses so we know what to work on in the next tournament. We’re excited and we’re ready to go.”

No., Name, Pos., Ht., Hometown, USAV Region

1 Lora Webster (MB, 5-11, Point Lookout, N.Y., Garden Empire)
2 Bethany Zummo (L, 5-3, Dublin, Calif., Northern California)
3 Alexis Shifflett-Patterson (S/L, 5-4, Waseca, Minn., North Country)
5 Katie (Holloway) Bridge (OH, 6-3, Lake Stevens, Wash., Puget Sound)
6 Heather Erickson (OPP, 6-0, Fayetteville, N.C., Carolina)
7C Monique Matthews (MB/OH, 6-0, Ardmore, Okla., Oklahoma)
8 Whitney Dosty (OH/OPP, 6-3, Tucson, Ariz., Arizona)
9 Tia Edwards (OH/MB, 5-7, Skiatook, Okla., Oklahoma)
10 Sydney Satchell (L, 5-2, Windsor, Conn., New England)
12 Emma Schieck (OH, 5-7, Statesville, N.C., Carolina)
14 Kaleo Kanahele Maclay (S, 5-6, Honolulu, Hawaii, Oklahoma)
16 Nicky Nieves (MB/OH, 5-10, Kissimmee, Fla., Florida)
22 MaKenzie Franklin (OH, 6-0, Red Wing, Minn., North Country)
24 Raelene Elam (OH, 6-1, St. George, Utah, Northern California)

Head Coach: Bill Hamiter
Assistant Coaches: Leo Filho, Michelle Goodall
Athletic Trainer: Kat King
Performance Analyst: Jeffery Hicks
Team Psychologist: Adam O’Neil
Athletic Performance Coach: Bobby Moore
Team Manager: Patrick Lawrence

Schedule

All times Pacific

June 11
USA def. Brazil, 3-1 (25-18, 24-26, 25-21, 25-22)

June 12
USA def. Italy, 3-1 (25-14, 25-11, 23-25, 25-10)

June 13
USA vs. China, 11 a.m.

June 14
USA vs. France, 9 a.m.

June 15
USA vs. Canada, 11 a.m.

June 16
Placement matches