Women's U21 Falls to Türkiye in Worlds Pool Play

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Aug. 16, 2023) – The U.S. Women’s U21 Team dropped to 1-1 at the 2023 FIVB U21 World Championship with a 3-1 (25-17, 22-25, 25-23, 25-14) loss to Türkiye in Aguascalientes, Mexico.

The U.S. will play Netherlands at 4 p.m. PDT on Saturday to conclude the first round of pool play.

The U.S. Women’s U21 finished the match with a 45-43 advantage in kills, but Türkiye dominated at the net (15 blocks to five) and at the service line (eight aces to three).

Middle blocker Lizzy Andrew led the U.S. with 12 points on 10 kills and two blocks, hitting at a .450 efficiency percentage with just one error in 20 total attacks. Fellow middle blocker Taylor Harvey totaled 11 points on eight kills, two blocks, and an ace.

Opposite Abigail Mullen contributed nine kills with outside hitters Emerson Sellman and Abby Vander Wal each adding eight points on seven kills and an ace. Sellman led the team with 20 successful receptions with Vander Wal totaling 18.

Libero Ava Fuldato recorded 15 digs and 16 successful receptions. Setter Campbell Flynn posted a pair of kills in the second set and added 11 digs.

“I think we put up a really good fight against a true U21 Türkiye team. They were a really strong team, but we battled throughout the match, and I think it definitely showed that we have the ability to compete against these high-level teams,” Fuldato commented.

Türkiye scored the first four points of the match and led throughout the set, equaling its biggest lead with the 25-17 final score.

Harvey and Vander Wal each hit at a .375 efficiency percentage and scored four points in the second set to help the U.S. even the match. After multiple ties, the U.S. took the lead for good at 20-19 on a kill by Flynn. A Vander Wal ace made it 24-21 and Harvey ended the set with a kill.

Türkiye led most of the third set, taking a four-point lead at 18-14 on an ace. The U.S. trailed 24-21 and fought off two set points before dropping the set. Similar to the first set, Türkiye led throughout the fourth set, scoring the first five points and taking an 11-3 lead.

There are 16 teams entered in the World Championship. The United States is looking for its first medal at the Women’s U21 World Championship.

U.S. Women’s U21 Roster for the 2023 FIVB World Championship

No. Name (Position, Height, Birth Year, Hometown, School, USAV Region)
1 Lizzy Andrew (MB, 6-5, 2005, Ridgefield, Wash., Ridgefield HS, Columbia Empire)
6 Campbell Flynn (S, 6-3, 2006, Rochester Hills, Mich., Mercy HS, Lakeshore)
8 Kaci Demaria (OH, 6-4, 2007, San Pedro, Calif., Palos Verdes HS, Southern California)
9 Ava Falduto (L, 5-7, 2006, Elmhurst, Ill., IC Catholic Prep, Great Lakes)
11 Kelly Kinney (OH, 6-2, 2007, West Palm Beach, Fla., The King’s Academy, Florida)
13C Emerson Sellman (OH, 6-4, 2005, Burtonsville, Md., The Academy of the Holy Cross, Chesapeake)
14 Skyler Pierce (OH, 6-2, 2005, Lenexa, Kan., Olathe Northwest HS, Heart of America)
15 Abigail Mullen (OPP, 6-3, 2006, Kansas City, Mo., Liberty HS, Heart of America)
17 Taylor Harvey (MB, 6-3, 2006, Bountiful, Utah, Bountiful HS, Intermountain)
18 Izzy Starck (S, 6-1, 2006, Melbourne, Fla., Viera HS, Rocky Mountain)
19 Abby Vander Wal (OH, 6-3, 2006, Elmhurst, Ill., Timothy Christian HS, Great Lakes)
20 Alec Rothe (MB, 6-3, 2006, Dublin, Ohio, Dublin Scioto HS, Ohio Valley)

Head Coach: Tom Hogan
Assistant Coach: Stacy Sykora
Second Assistant: Lauren Plum
Team Manager: Courtney Smith
Performance Analyst: Evan Metzger
Athletic Trainer: Cherryl-Marie Bueno

U.S. Schedule for the 2023 FIVB Women’s U21 World Championship
Matches will be livestreamed on the Volleyball World YouTube channel
All times PDT
Aug. 17 USA def. Cuba, 3-0 (25-23, 25-14, 25-21)
Aug. 18 Türkiye def. USA, 3-1 (25-17, 22-25, 25-23, 25-14)
Aug. 19 at 4 p.m. USA vs Netherlands
Aug. 21-24 Second round of pool play
Aug. 25 Semifinals and classification playoffs
Aug. 26 Finals