U.S. Men Remain Unbeaten in Road to Paris Olympic Qualifier

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Oct. 6, 2023) – The U.S. Men’s National Team stayed undefeated after a 3-1 (25-18, 21-25, 25-20, 25-18) win against Slovenia at the FIVB Road to Paris Olympic Qualifier on Friday in Tokyo.

On Saturday, the U.S. Men (5-0) will play Serbia (3-2) at 12 a.m. PT.

OFFICIAL STATISTICS

The U.S. led Slovenia in kills (53-44) and blocks (10-3). The two teams were even on aces at three each. The U.S. scored 30 points off opponent errors while giving up 28.

The U.S. Men took the opening set, largely thanks to an early six-point serving run by opposite Matt Anderson, which included two aces.

After the U.S. dropped set two, middle blocker Jeff Jendryk and outside hitter Thomas Jaeschke started the third and provided a spark off the bench to help lead the U.S. Men the rest of the way to a 3-1 win over Slovenia.

“My goal whenever I am coming into the game is to bring a ton of energy,” said Jendryk.

The U.S. led Slovenia in kills (53-44) and blocks (10-3). The two teams were even on aces at three each. The U.S. scored 30 points off opponent errors while giving up 28.

Anderson led all scorers with 16 points on 14 kills and two aces. T.J. DeFalco followed with 13 points on 12 kills and one block.

Jendryk added 10 points on nine kills and one block. Middle Blocker David Smith also added 10 points on seven kills and three blocks.

Setter Micah Christenson got in on the action with one kill and three blocks and a .446 setting efficiency.

Libero Erik Shoji was credited with five digs and six successful receptions.

Setter Micah Ma’a came in to serve for middle Max Holt in the middle of the second set. Outside hitter Garrett Muagututia also came in to serve for Smith in both the second and third sets.

U.S. Men’s Roster for 2023 Road to Paris Olympic Qualifier

No. Player (Position, Height, Hometown, College, USAV Region)
1 Matt Anderson (Opp, 6-10, West Seneca, N.Y., Penn State, Western Empire)
2 Aaron Russell (OH, 6-9, Ellicott City, Md., Penn State, Chesapeake)
4 Jeff Jendryk (MB, 6-10, Wheaton, Ill., Loyola Univ. Chicago, Great Lakes)
5 Kyle Ensing (OPP, 6-7, Valencia, Calif., Long Beach State Univ., Southern California)
8 T.J. DeFalco (OH, 6-5, Huntington Beach, Calif., Long Beach State Univ., Southern California)
10 Kyle Dagostino (L, 5-9, Tampa, Florida, Stanford Univ., Florida)
11 Micah Christenson (S, 6-5, Honolulu, Hawaii, Univ. of Southern California, Hawaii)
12 Max Holt (MB, 6-10, Cincinnati, Ohio, Penn State, Ohio Valley)
14 Micah Ma’a (S, 6-3, Kaneohe, Hawaii, UCLA, Aloha)
17 Thomas Jaeschke (OH, 6-6, Wheaton, Ill., Loyola Univ. Chicago, Great Lakes)
18 Garrett Muagututia (OH, 6-5, Oceanside, Calif., UCLA, Southern California)
19 Taylor Averill (MB, 6-7, San Jose, Calif., Univ. of Hawaii, Northern California)
20 David Smith (MB, 6-7, Saugus, Calif., Univ. of California Irvine, Southern California)
22 Erik Shoji (L, 6-0, Honolulu, Hawaii, Stanford Univ., Hawaii)

Head Coach: John Speraw
Assistant Coaches: Matthew Fuerbringer and Javier Weber
Performance Analyst and Technical Coordinator: Nate Ngo
Athletic Trainer: Aaron Brock
Team Leader: Nate Ngo
Strength and Conditioning Coach: Tim Pelot
Mental Performance Coach: Andrea Becker
Second Assistant: Morteza Shiari
Second Assistant: Michael Wall
Team Doctor: Lori Boyajian-O’Neill

U.S. Men’s Schedule and Results for the 2023 VNL
All matches will be broadcast on volleyballworld.tv

All times PT
Sept. 30 USA def Egypt, 3-0 (25-20, 25-16, 25-19)
Oct. 1 USA def Finland, 3-0 (25-17, 25-14, 25-17)
Oct. 3 USA def. Türkiye, 3-1 (25-17, 26-28, 32-30, 25-20)
Oct. 4 USA def. Tunisia, 3-0 (25-11, 25-12, 25-14)
Oct. 6 USA def. Slovenia, 3-1 (25-18, 21-25, 25-20, 25-18)
Oct. 7 at 12 a.m. USA vs Serbia (world No. 9)
Oct. 8 at 3:25 a.m. USA vs Japan (world No. 5)