Reports From USA Volleyball & Bill Kauffman
The U.S. Women’s National Volleyball Team landed back in the United States on June 14 with silver medals around their necks from the recently completed Montreux Volley Masters event, but some will get very little rest before the next calendar event that starts June 18. Among that group are two Long Beach volleyballers, Cynthia Barboza and Cheryl Weaver.
Team USA will play in the IX Women’s Pan American Cup set for June 18-26 in Tijuana, Mexico, and nearby Rosarita. The 12-team event is a qualifier into the 2011 FIVB World Grand Prix. The top three teams from NORCECA and the top South American team earn spots into next year’s World Grand Prix.
Hugh McCutcheon (Christchurch, New Zealand) has named the U.S. Women’s National Team 19-player preliminary roster (O-2) for the 2010 Pan American Cup. The outside/opposite hitters on the preliminary roster include Olympians Nancy Metcalf (Hull, Iowa) and Ogonna Nnamani (Bloomington, Ill.), as well as Wilson grad Cynthia Barboza, Nicole Fawcett (Zanesfield, Ohio), Megan Hodge (Durham, N.C.), Destinee Hooker (San Antonio, Texas), Heather Hughes (Fallbrook, Calif.), Jordan Larson (Hooper, Neb.) and Kristin Richards (Orem, Utah). Setters on the preliminary Pan American Cup roster are Alisha Glass (Leland, Mich.), Bryn Kehoe (North Bend, Ohio) and Courtney Thompson (Kent, Wash.).
Middle blockers on the Pan American Cup preliminary roster are three-time Olympian Heather Bown, Foluke Akinradewo (Plantation, Fla.), Christa Harmotto (Aliquippa, Pa.), Lauren Paolini (Ann Arbor, Mich.) and Cheryl Weaver (Long Beach State). The two liberos on the preliminary roster are three-time Olympian Stacy Sykora (Burleson, Texas) and Tamari Miyashiro (Kaneohe, Hawaii).
Barboza, Fawcett, Harmotto, Hodge, Miyashiro, Nnamani, Richards and Thompson all competed at the Montreux Volley Masters that finished on June 13 and could be suiting up in Mexico depending on McCutcheon’s final 12-player roster submitted to the Pan American Cup control committee on June 17. The U.S. swept potential Pan American Cup opponent Cuba in the Montreux semifinals on June 12 to reach the gold-medal match against China.
“I thought winning the silver medal at Montreux was a good, positive start to our summer,” McCutcheon said. “Our goal for the tournament was to evaluate our players in a competitive environment, along with seeing how other countries are competing. On a lot of levels, I think we accomplished a lot these things. For the most part, we were able to manage key moments of matches and that showed in the results. The team has evolved since last year and is becoming a stronger unit. We want to build upon the positives that came out of Montreux to continue to get better.”
Team USA opens Pan American Cup Pool B on June 18 against Peru at 3 p.m. PT, followed by Puerto Rico on June 19 at 3 p.m. The Americans continue pool play against Colombia on June 20 at 6 p.m. PT and Costa Rica on June 21 at 6 p.m. PT. The U.S. concludes pool play against tournament host Mexico on June 22 at 7 p.m. PT. The June 20 and June 21 matches will be played in the second venue located in nearby Rosarita, while the others will be played in Tijuana.
“We played our first two opponents in our pool last year, so we do know some things about them and will have a plan of attack,” McCutcheon said in reference to the short preparation time for the Pan American Cup following the Montreux Volley Masters. “However, at this stage of the season, our primary focus will be on our side of the net and improving as players and as a team.”
In the opposite group, Pool A consists of Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Cuba, Dominican Republic and Venezuela.
After a day of rest on June 23, classification matches begin on June 24. Quarterfinal matches will feature pool crossovers of second- and third-place teams, while the pool winners advance directly to the June 25 semifinals. Medal round matches take place on the final day of the event on June 26.
Last year the U.S. placed fourth at the 2009 Pan American Cup hosted by USA Volleyball in Miami. Team USA, using a youthful roster in the first major competition after its silver-medal performance at the 2008 Olympic Games, won its pool with an undefeated record before falling to defending Olympic Games champion Brazil in four sets in the semifinals. The Americans dropped a four-set match to Puerto Rico in the bronze-medal match. By being the third-highest finishing NORCECA team, the U.S. qualified for the 2010 FIVB World Grand Prix. Brazil defeated Dominican Republic in the gold-medal match.
The U.S. medaled in the first three Women’s Pan American Cups, starting with a bronze in the inaugural event in 2002, the gold in 2003 and the silver in 2004. Since then, Team USA has not reached the podium in the five most recent events. Cuba has won the event four times, while the defending champion Brazil has captured the gold medal twice. Dominican Republic won the event in 2008.
U.S. Women’s National Team Preliminary Roster for 2010 Pan American Cup
# – Name (Pos, Ht, Hometown, College)
1 – Ogonna Nnamani (OH, 6-1, Bloomington, Ill., Stanford)
2 – Alisha Glass (S, 6-0, Leland, Mich., Penn State)
3 – Christa Harmotto (MB, 6-2, Aliquippa, Pa., Penn State)
4 – Bryn Kehoe (S, 5-10, North Bend, Ohio, Stanford)
5 – Stacy Sykora (L, 5-10, Burleson, Texas, Texas A&M)
6 – Tamari Miyashiro (L, 5-7, Kaneohe, Hawaii, Washington)
7 – Heather Bown (MB, 6-3, Yorba Linda, Calif., Hawaii)
8 – Cynthia Barboza (OH, 6-0, Long Beach, Calif., Stanford)
9 – Lauren Paolini (MB, 6-4, Ann Arbor, Mich., Texas)
10 – Kristin Richards (OH, 6-1, Orem, Utah, Stanford)
11 – Jordan Larson (OH, 6-2, Hooper, Neb., Nebraska)
12 – Nancy Metcalf (OPP, 6-1, Hull, Iowa, Nebraska)
13 – Heather Hughes (OPP, 6-2, Fallbrook, Calif., Loyola Marymount)
14 – Nicole Fawcett (OPP, 6-4, Zanesfield, Ohio, Penn State)
15 – Courtney Thompson (S, 5-8, Kent, Wash., Washington)
16 – Foluke Akinradewo (MB, 6-3, Plantation, Fla., Stanford)
17 – Destinee Hooker (OPP, 6-4, San Antonio, Texas, Texas)
18 – Megan Hodge (OH, 6-3, Durham, N.C., Penn State)
19 – Cheryl Weaver (MB, 6-2, Washington, D.C., Long Beach State)
Head Coach: Hugh McCutcheon (Christchurch, New Zealand)
Assistant Coach: Karch Kiraly (San Clemente, Calif.)
Assistant Coach: Paula Weishoff (Irvine, Calif.)
Athletic Trainer/Medical Support: Jill Wosmek (Silver Lake, Minn.)
Technical Coordinator: Jamie Morrison
Team Leader: Mary Wise
International Referee: Julie Voeck
IX Women’s Pan American Cup
June 18-26, 2010 * Tijuana and Rosarita, Mexico
(All Times Listed as Pacific Time)
Pool A
June 18: Canada vs. Cuba, 1 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 18: Argentina vs. Venezuela, 4 p.m. (at Rosarito)
June 18: Dominican Republic vs. Brazil, 5 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 19: Brazil vs. Argentina, 1 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 19: Cuba vs. Dominican Republic, 5 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 19: Venezuela vs. Canada, 6 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 20: Cuba vs. Argentina, 1 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 20: Brazil vs. Venezuela, 4 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 20: Dominican Republic vs. Canada, 5 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 21: Brazil vs. Canada, 3 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 21: Venezuela vs. Cuba, 4 p.m. (at Rosarito)
June 21: Argentina vs. Dominican Republic, 5 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 22: Canada vs. Argentina, 3 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 22: Dominican Republic vs. Venezuela, 4 p.m. (at Rosarito)
June 22: Brazil vs. Cuba, 5 p.m. (at Tijuana)
Pool B
June 18: USA vs. Peru, 3 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 18: Puerto Rico vs. Costa Rica, 6 p.m. (at Rosarito)
June 18: Mexico vs. Colombia, 7 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 19: USA vs. Puerto Rico, 3 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 19: Costa Rica vs. Colombia, 4 p.m. (at Rosarito)
June 19: Peru vs. Mexico, 7 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 20: Puerto Rico vs. Peru, 3 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 20: USA vs. Colombia, 6 p.m. (at Rosarito)
June 20: Costa Rica vs. Mexico, 7 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 21: Colombia vs. Peru, 1 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 21: USA vs. Costa Rica, 6 p.m. (at Rosarito)
June 21: Mexico vs. Puerto Rico, 7 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 22: Costa Rica vs. Peru, 1 p.m. (at Tijuana)
June 22: Puerto Rico vs. Colombia, 6 p.m. (at Rosarito)
June 22: USA vs. Mexico, 7 p.m. (at Tijuana)
All Classification Matches at Tijuana
Classification 5-10
June 24: 4A vs. 5B, 3 p.m.
Quarterfinals
June 24: 2B vs. 3A, 5 p.m.
June 24: 2A vs. 3B, 7 p.m.
Classification 5-8
June 25: Winner Match 32 or 33 vs. Loser Match 35 or 34, 3 p.m.
Semifinals
June 25: 1B vs. Winner Match 34 or 35, 5 p.m.
June 25: 1A vs. Winner Match 34 or 35, 7 p.m.
Classification 7/8
June 26: Loser Match 37 vs. Loser Match 36, 1 p.m.
Classification 5/6
June 26: Winner Match 37 vs. Winner Match 38, 3 p.m.
Medal Matches
June 26: Bronze-Medal Match (Semifinal Losers), 5 p.m.
June 26: Gold-Medal Match (Semifinal Winners), 7 p.m.