Argentina sneaks into the semi finals

GUADALAJARA, Mexico, October 27, 2011 – Argentina advanced to the semifinals of the Pan American Games men’s volleyball tournament by prevailing in a five-set duel against United States 25-17, 19-25, 25-18, 17-25, 15-11 on Thursday.

It was the fourth five-setter for Argentina in as many outings in the competition and the third for the American team. The winners held the edge in blocks 10-8 while the defeated side had a 7-2 advantage in service aces but made 38 unforced errors to 28 by the Mexicans.

Federico Pereyra and Mariano Giustiniano led Argentina with 20 and 17 points while Sebastian Sole added 10 including five blocks. United States’ Evan Patak had a match-high 21 points including five aces. Nicholas Vogel and Tony Ciarelli added 16 and 11 respectively.

Sebastian Sole (Captain of Argentina): “Both teams, Argentina and USA had good and bad moments, ups and downs during the match. USA had a good serve and was so complicated for us. The fifth set was very tight, but we had some balls that we could take control of.”

Evan Patak (Captain of USA): “It was a very well played match. Another one in five sets. We played, passed, blocked and served well, but we had simple errors every time we got in the edge. It is difficult to swallow, but tomorrow will be another match.”

Javier Weber (Coach of Argentina): “What I liked from my team is that they are very Young, but they knew how to solve very difficult situations. That makes me feel satisfied for the future. I admire USA Volleyball a lot. This was a match with a lot of ups and downs and we knew that our opponent would be difficult, and the offensive game was so complicated.”

John Speraw (Coach of USA): “I really enjoyed playing Argentina, is a team that plays with a lot of passion. Javier (Weber) is a good friend. There are two things I liked, we attacked in the middle of the court and served very well. I like to work with a fundamentals system with my teams, but I didn’t have enough time to teach them. Our goal was to play for a medal but this is a learning experience.”