homepage

 

 

U.S. Shows New Lineup in Win over Mexico

 

   

RENO, USA (Aug. 13, 2015) – The United States used a new lineup and got better results as it defeated Mexico, 30-28, 25-22, 27-25 in a Pan American Cup pool play match on Thursday at the Reno Events Center.

 

The U.S. (1-1) will wrap up pool play on Friday against Argentina (2-0). Mexico (0-2) will face Venezuela (1-1). The pool winner will advance straight to Sunday’s semifinals while the second- and third-place teams will compete Saturday in the quarterfinals.

 

U.S. head coach Jeff Nygaard used a different lineup on Thursday than he used in Wednesday’s loss to Venezuela, seeking to evaluate different players and rotations.

 

Opposite Ben Patch, who spent time as a child in nearby Sparks, Nev., stood out, leading all scorers with 19 points on a match-high 17 kills and two blocks. Outside hitter Jake Langlois added 16 points on 16 kills.

 

Outside hitter Jorge Barajas led an emotional Mexican team with 13 points on 13 kills.  Opposite Daniel Vargas added 10 points on 10 spikes.

 

The U.S. led in spikes (51-45), blocks (8-4) and aces (2-1). Mexico scored on 25 U.S. errors while committing 21. Under starting setter Jonah Seif, the U.S. had a .367 hitting efficiency while Mexico hit .295.

 

The U.S. led 18-12 in the first set, but Mexico used a 7-1 scoring run to tie the score at 19-19. The United States reached set point first at 24-23 on a spike by Patch, but Mexico countered. The U.S. held five more set points, but each time Mexico held them off. Finally, at 28-28, spikes from Jeff Jendryk and Jake Lanlois won the set for the U.S.

 

The U.S. was trailing 17-15 in the second set when it used a 5-0 run to take the 20-17 lead. Mexico never recovered.

 

The U.S. opened the third set with an ace from Seif, but then fell behind 11-7. Still trailing at 15-11, the United States used a 5-0 run, including a block by Andy Benesh and kill from Patch to lead 16-15 at the technical timeout. The U.S. reached match point at 24-23 on a spike by Patch, but Mexico’s Gonzalo Ruiz de la Cruz came back with an attack. The U.S. had a second match point at 25-24, which Mexico again fought off. The U.S took its third match point on a Jendryk attack and a Greg Petty spike gave it the victory.

 

Mexico coach Juan Roberto Vilches

“We played much better than yesterday even thought it was a loss it was a great match. I was very happy with the performance. But sometimes we committed errors at the times we didn’t have to.”

 

 

Mexico captain Daniel Vargas

“We played a good game. We were able to correct some of the errors we made yesterday but we’re still affected by spells of bad luck where we lose five points in a row. We felt much better about this game. We’re very motivated to continue playing.”

 

U.S. coach Jeff Nygaard

“We were a little more physical at the net and we controlled the ball a little bit better (than on Wednesday). I think we served some really good runs which was lacking last night. Tonight, we put together four or five points in a row on one serve which is great to see. We started identifying matchup situations.”

 

U.S. player Ben Patch

“Last night we didn’t have good knowledge or what the team would bring but with Mexico we had a pretty good idea of their weapons were and their athleticism. Our coaches did a great job of getting up prepared with a scouting report and made it easy for us to do our job.”