USA rallies past Cub to enter final showdown of 2012 NORCECA Olympic Qualifiers – Volleyball news
Taking full advantage of the home supporters, the US team cruised past to 3-1 victory in the semi-final match against Cuba on Friday.
The Walter Pyramid in Long Beach California provided the backdrop for the significant match. The hosts launched authority over visiting Caribbean team and claimed victory at the loss of only one set. The final set scores were 3-1 (21-25, 25-18, 25-17, 25-16).
The US team did not have the best start in the match but proved its supremacy on the net with an overall great performance.
Top scorer’s spot was captured by Matt Anderson of USA with a total of 24 points. He proved his endeavours on attack and defence, and serve as well. He added 17 points on 24 attempts, while added 3 blocks and 4 serve aces. Clay Stanley followed his with
13 points. The pairing of Russell Holmes and David Lee bagged 11 points, apiece.
On the other hand, Cuba’s Wilfredo Leon registered team-high 15 points. His teammates Fernando Hernandez and Rolando Cepeda chipped in 14 points each.
Caribbean players showed their power in the opening set and down USA with a margin of four points (25-21). It took them 26 minutes to secure the opening set of the match.
However, the hosts started the hard-hitting in following set and managed to break the rhythm of Cuban players. US team controlled the operations in the second set and covered the deficit. Cuba put up good effort but dropped second set, which brought the
game to an even point.
Victory in the second set was a jumpstart for USA. They maintained their dominance in the next two sets and eventually claimed victory.
USA Coach Alan Knipe praised the great effort of Cuban team. He acknowledged that Cuba has always proved to be a tough competitor. Speaking of the match, he said, “We didn’t start off the way we wanted to, but some of that credit goes to Cuba. I want to
give a lot of credit to our passers tonight because Leon and Hernandez can put a lot of pressure on you. I was extremely proud of that effort as the match went on but more importantly of the group because they stayed together and kept focus.”
He further added, “I am looking forward to the staff getting together to discuss Canada and getting our team the rest they need.”
In the next run, USA is scheduled to take on Canada in the final match of the tournament. Canada clawed its way to the final showdown by defeating Puerto Rico earlier in the day. Now Canada and USA will clash for the Olympic tickets on Saturday night. The
winner of the crucial match will earn the right to represent NORCECA at the upcoming 2012 London Olympic Games.
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