COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Sept. 19, 2021) – The U.S. Girls U18 National Team will begin its defense of its 2019 FIVB World Championship title on Tuesday in Durango, Mexico.
Twenty teams will compete in Durango on Sept. 20-29. They will be split into four five-team pools to open the tournament. The U.S. will share the Pool C with Romania, Nigeria, Thailand and Puerto Rico.
“Some of these teams, Team USA included, did not get the chance to compete last year due to COVID,” U.S. Head Coach Jamie Morrison said. “Each team will be a new puzzle that needs to be solved. Some teams here have been training together for months and some for years. For that reason, the U.S. is always a bit of an underdog at this competition.”
Twelve players, selected after a tryout in July and August, will compete for the U.S. in Mexico. The team reconvened in Anaheim on Sept. 16 to train twice a day until leaving for Mexico.
“There is no doubt this group of 12 amazing young women will give everything they have, battle any team at this tournament and make everyone in the United States proud,” Morrison said. “In July, we spent six days instilling the values of our senior Women’s National Team and teaching them to play like the women that won a gold medal in Tokyo.”
The U.S. Girls U18 Team captured gold at the 2019 FIVB Girls U18 World Championship by defeating reigning champion Italy 3-2 (25-17, 19-25, 25-18, 22-25, 15-10) in the final in Ismailia, Egypt. It was the first U.S. gold medal at an age group world championship for either gender.
2021 U.S. Girls U18 National Team
Name (Pos., Height, Hometown, Region, Club)
1 Laney Choboy (L, 5-3, Raleigh, N.C., Carolina, NC Volleyball Academy)
4 Chloe Chicoine (OH/L, 5-10, Lafayette, Ind., Hoosier, Circle City)
6 Bergen Reilly (S, 6-1, Sioux Falls, S.D., North Country, Kairos Elite Volleyball)
7 Mckenna Wucherer (OH, 6-1, Brookfield , Wis., Badger, Milwaukee Sting)
10 Caroline Jurevicius (OPP, 6-2, Gates Mills, Ohio, Ohio Valley, Academy Volleyball Cleveland)
13 Harper Murray (OH, 6-2, Ann Arbor, Mich., Lakeshore, Legacy Volleyball Club)
14 Alexis Stucky (S, 6-2, Laramie, Wyo., Rocky Mountain, Northern Colorado Juniors)
16 Devin Kahahawai (OH, 6-3, Kailua, Hawaii, Aloha, Spike and Serve)
18 Eloise Brandewie (MB, 6-3, Columbus, Ohio, Ohio Valley, Mintonette)
19 Julia Blyashov (OH, 6-3, San Diego, Calif., Southern California, Wave Volleyball Club)
21 Rebekah Allick (MB, 6-4, Waverly, Neb., Great Plains, VC Nebraska)
24 Maggie Mendelson (MB, 6-5, North Ogden, Utah, Intermountain, Hive Volleyball)
Head Coach: Jamie Morrison
Assistant Coach: Michelle Chatman-Smith
Assistant Coach: Alisha Glass Childress
Technical Coordinator: Mike Gee
Team Leader: Meredith Lee
Athletic Trainer: Wyatt Blue
U.S. Schedule for the FIVB U18 World Championship
(All times PT)
Live streams available at https://www.youtube.com/c/volleyballworld/videos?view=2&sort=dd&live_view=502&shelf_id=0
Sept. 21 at 9 a.m. Thailand v USA
Sept. 22 at noon Romania v USA
Sept. 23 at noon USA v Puerto Rico
Sept. 24 at 9 a.m. USA v Nigeria
Sept. 25 Rest Day
Sept. 26-29 TBD