U.S. can’t overcome France 5th-game rally, drops World League Finals opener

The United States just could not find a way to close out France in its FIVB World League Final Round opener.

France overcame three-point deficit and had a 7-1 run in the decisive fifth game to beat the United States 27-25, 20-25, 26-24, 17-25, 15-12 on Tuesday in Curitiba, Brazil. Continue reading “U.S. can’t overcome France 5th-game rally, drops World League Finals opener”

Hawai’i libero stellar for U.S. in World Championship finale loss to Japan

Libero Gage Worsley closed out the FIVB U21 World Championship with another double-digit dig performance — it just wasn’t enough to get the United States a win.

The Hawai’i incoming freshman had a team-high 13 digs as the United States lost to Japan 23-25, 25-23, 25-15, 25-20 in the 13th-place finals on the last day of the tournament Sunday in the Czech Republic. Continue reading “Hawai’i libero stellar for U.S. in World Championship finale loss to Japan”

U21 World Championship finals to follow today

Check out all FIVB U21 World Championship finals to follow on Sunday and how to follow the matches live. In addition, to view the updated World Championship standings and tournament brackets, click here.

13th-PLACE FINALS

United States (2-5) vs. Japan (4-3)
Match vitals:
12:30 p.m. (5:30 a.m. CST) in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
Follow live: Live stats, Online video
World Rankings: United States (No. 9); Japan (No. 14)
NCAA players on U.S. roster: Kyle Ensing (Long Beach State); Jordan Ewert (Stanford); Patrick Gasman (Hawai’i); George Huhmann (Princeton); Micah Ma’a (UCLA); Austin Matautia (Hawai’i); Dylan Missry (UCLA); Brett Rosenmeier (Hawai’i); Scott Stadick (UC Irvine); Matt Szews (Ball State); Josh Tuaniga (Long Beach State); Gage Worsley (Hawai’i)
NCAA players on Japan roster: None
World Championship appearances: United States (9); Japan (13)
Best World Championship finish: United States (fourth place in 2011); Japan (silver medal in 1989)
What to know: Two of the top offensive players at the FIVB U21 World Championship will go up against each other on the tournament’s final day as the United States plays Japan in the 13th-place finals. Long Beach State All-American opposite Kyle Ensing leads the United States and is in the tournament’s top 15 with 81 kills. Ensing had back-to-back matches with 20 kills during the second round and entered the semifinal round ninth at the World Championship with a 49.07 percent offensive efficiency. He also contributed two kills in limited playing time as the United States swept Morocco in the 13th-place semifinals on Saturday. Japan outside attacker Kento Miyaura is third in the tournament with 109 kills — one of five players to have more than 100 kills. In addition, Miyaura finished with a match-high 20 kills as Japan rallied from a two-game deficit to defeat the Czech Republic in five games in the other 13th-place semifinal match on Saturday. Japan is one of three teams at the World Championship to have multiple players in the top 10 for offensive efficiency. Miyaura is fourth among all players with a 53.17 percent offensive efficiency, while Yudai Arai is 10th at a 48.59 percent offensive efficiency. Besides the offensive performances from these two teams, Hawai’i libero Gage Worsely leads the United States and is sixth at the tournament with a 2.71 digs per game average. The United States also had a tournament-high 13 blocks in its semifinal sweep against Morocco. This was the second consecutive match that the United States had 13 blocks and the third match this tournament it finished with double-digit blocks. Both UC Irvine Freshman All-American middle attacker Scott Stadick and Princeton Freshman All-American middle attacker George Huhmann are in the top 20 of the World Championship averaging at least 0.50 blocks per game. The United States enters this finale having won two of its last three matches after opening the tournament with four consecutive three-game losses.

CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH

Poland (7-0) vs. Cuba (5-2)
Match vitals:
6:30 p.m. (11:30 a.m. CST) in Brno, Czech Republic
Follow live: Live stats, Online video
World Rankings:Poland (No. 7); Cuba (No. 13)
NCAA players on Poland roster: None
NCAA players on Cuba roster: None
World Championship appearances: Poland (9); Cuba (12)
Best World Championship finish: Poland (gold medal in 1997 and 2003); Cuba (silver medal in 1987 and 2009)

3rd-PLACE FINALS

Russia (6-1) vs. Brazil (5-2)
Match vitals:
4 p.m. (9 a.m. CST) in Brno, Czech Republic
Follow live: Live stats, Online video
World Rankings: Russia (No. 1); Brazil (No. 4)
NCAA players on Russia roster: None
NCAA players on Brazil roster: None
World Championship appearances: Russia (19); Brazil (19)
Best World Championship finish: Russia (gold medal in 1977, 1981, 1985, 1989, 1995, 1999, 2005, 2011, 2013 and 2015); Brazil (gold medal in 1993, 2001, 2007 and 2009)

5th-PLACE FINALS

Iran (5-2) vs. China (3-4)
Match vitals:
1:30 p.m. (6:30 a.m. CST) in Brno, Czech Republic
Follow live: Live stats
World Rankings: Iran (No. 11); China (No. 3)
NCAA players on Iran roster: None
NCAA players on China roster: None
World Championship appearances: Iran (11); China (15)
Best World Championship finish: Iran (bronze medal in 2007); China (silver medal in 1977)

7th-PLACE FINALS

Canada (3-4) vs. Argentina (2-5)
Match vitals:
11 a.m. (4 a.m. CST) in Brno, Czech Republic
Follow live: Live stats
World Rankings: Canada (No. 8); Argentina (No. 2)
NCAA players on Canada roster: Daenan Gyimah (UCLA)
NCAA players on Argentina roster: None
World Championship appearances: Canada (10); Argentina (14)
Best World Championship finish: Canada (fifth place in 1999); Argentina (silver medal in 2013 and 2015)

9th-PLACE FINALS

Turkey (4-3) vs. Italy (5-2)
Match vitals:
5:30 p.m. (10:30 a.m. CST) in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
Follow live: Live stats
World Rankings: Turkey (No. 6); Italy (No. 5)
NCAA players on Turkey roster: None
NCAA players on Italy roster: None
World Championship appearances: Turkey (3); Italy (13)
Best World Championship finish: Turkey (sixth place in 2013 and 2015); Italy (silver medal in 1985, 1991 and 1993)

11th-PLACE FINALS

Egypt (2-5) vs. Ukraine (2-5)
Match vitals:
3 p.m. (8 a.m. CST) in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
Follow live: Live stats
World Rankings: Egypt (No. 11); Ukraine (No. 15)
NCAA players on Egypt roster: None
NCAA players on Ukraine roster: None
World Championship appearances: Egypt (11); Ukraine (3);
Best World Championship finish: Egypt (ninth place in 2003); Ukraine (ninth place in 1999)

15th-PLACE FINALS

Morocco (0-7) vs. Czech Republic (1-6)
Match vitals:
10 a.m. (3 a.m. CST) in Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
Follow live: Live stats
World Rankings: Morocco (No. 15); Czech Republic (No. 35)
NCAA players on Morocco roster: None
NCAA players on Czech Republic roster: None
World Championship appearances: Morocco (5); Czech Republic (1)
Best World Championship finish: Morocco (ninth place in 2005); Czech Republic (First appearance)

Video: Early 2018 season preview for new men’s volleyball conference Big West

With the turn of the calendar to July, men’s volleyball today officially became a sponsored sport in the Big West.

The Big West announced last year that it would add men’s volleyball beginning in the 2018 season. The six-team conference for its inaugural season will include CSUN, Long Beach State, Hawa’i, UC Irvine, UC San Diego and UC Santa Barbara. Continue reading “Video: Early 2018 season preview for new men’s volleyball conference Big West”

Big block for U.S. makes quick work of Morocco at World Championship

The front-row defensive stepped-up for the United States in its FIVB U21 World Championship semifinal match.

Nine U.S. players contributed at least one block and the team had a tournament-best 13 blocks as the United States swept Morocco 25-18, 25-23, 25-21 in the 13th-place semifinals on Saturday in the Czech Republic. Continue reading “Big block for U.S. makes quick work of Morocco at World Championship”