COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (June 14, 2019) – The U.S. Women’s Pan American Cup Training Team lost to Canada 25-23, 25-17, 29-27 (plus 25-21 in bonus fourth set) in the first of two exhibition matches with Canada played on Friday evening in Tustin, California.
The two teams meet again on Saturday evening at Murrieta Mesa High School in Murrieta, California. First serve is at 7 p.m. PT. General admission is $10, while youth 10-and-under, seniors 60-and-over and military with identification are admitted for $7. Tickets available at the door starting at 5:30 p.m. PT.
Roni Jones-Perry (West Jordan, Utah) led the Americans with 11 points, including eight kills on 16 attacks, two aces and a block. Danielle Cuttino (Indianapolis, Indiana) added 10 kills on 20 attacks. Both Jones-Perry and Cuttino played just the final two sets. Kadie Rolfzen (Papillion, Nebraska) added five kills and a block. Rachael Adams (Cincinnati, Ohio), Hannah Tapp (Stewartville, Minnesota) and Simone Lee (Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin) all totaled five points. All 14 Americans started at least one set in the match.
“A rough night for our team,” said Rob Browning, who is serving as head coach for the U.S. Pan American Cup Training Team. “We never established a rhythm against a very good Canada squad. We struggled in serve-receive and serving. We didn’t do a good job of bettering the ball. Those three issues combined make it really difficult to sustain the kind of execution to challenge a team like Canada.”
Nearly every Canadian on the roster has been competing for at least a couple years on its national team and in the pro leagues overseas, along with training for over a month together in 2019. Meanwhile, eight of the 14 Americans competing are either still in college or exhausted their eligibility within the last six months. Further, some Team USA members just arrived for training in Anaheim.
While the U.S. out-blocked Canada 11-6, the passing game was the major difference. Canada held a 12-3 margin in aces and had a 40 positive reception percent to the Americans’ 32 positive reception percent. Canada also converted 47 percent of its attacks into points with a .284 hitting efficiency (54-21-116). Team USA was held to a 38 kill percent and .214 hitting efficiency (39-17-103) as its passing broke down.
Browning did see positives on the night and look forward to building on that in the second match of the series.
“What I liked is that, in spite of our poor execution, the team’s effort and energy never wavered,” Browning said. “For most of our team this was their first match for the U.S. Senior Women’s National Team and I think that kept some of them from playing loose. We looked tense and keyed up and that will have a negative effect on performance. We will certainly learn from this and are looking forward to playing Canada again tomorrow night.”
Rolfzen led the passing efforts with a 53 positive reception percent on 17 errorless chances. Jones-Perry handled a team-high 21 passes, while Lee had 16 receptions.
The 14 players are competing for Pan American Cup roster spots along with a handful of other American players. The Pan American Cup will take place July 4-15 in Lima, Peru. Team USA has won the annual event the past two years.
Later this month the U.S. Women’s Pan American Cup Training Team will hold an intrasquad scrimmage on June 28 at Irvine Valley College’s Hart Gym. The match is scheduled for 7 p.m. PT after the U.S. Women’s Collegiate National Team intrasquad match at 5 p.m. Admission is $5 at the door, which open one hour prior to the event.
U.S. Women’s National Team Roster for Exhibitions versus Canada
Player (Pos, Height, College, Hometown)
4 – Justine Wong-Orantes (L, 5-6, Nebraska, Cypress, California)
5 – Rachael Adams (M, 6-2, Texas, Cincinnati, Ohio)
7 – Sam Seliger-Swenson (S, 5-11, Minnesota, Minnetonka, Minnesota)
10 – Simone Lee (OH, 6-1, Penn State, Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin)
19 – Hannah Tapp (M, 6-3, Minnesota, Stewartville, Minnesota)
26 – Kadie Rolfzen (OH, 6-3, Nebraska, Papillion, Nebraska)
29 – Kathyrn Plummer (OH, 6-6, Stanford, Aliso Viejo, California)
30 – Madison Lilley (S, 5-11, Kentucky, Overland Park, Kansas)
32 – Danielle Cuttino (OPP, 6-4, Purdue, Indianapolis, Indiana)
34 – Roni Jones-Perry (OH, 6-0, BYU, West Jordan, Utah)
37 – Sherridan Atkinson (OPP, 6-5, Purdue, Long Beach, California)
38 – Jenna Rosenthal (M, 6-6, Marquette, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin)
40 – Brionne Butler (M, 6-4, Texas, Kendleton, Texas)
41 – Gabby Curry (L, 5-8, Kentucky, Buford, Georgia)
Head Coach: Rob Browning
Assistant Coaches: Laurie Corbelli, Tayyiba Haneef-Park
Technical Coordinator: Justin Chang
Team Leader: John Xie