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COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. (July 12, 2025) – The U.S. Boys U19 National Team will play for the gold medal at the 2025 NORCECA U19 Pan American Cup after a convincing 3-0 (25-18, 25-18, 25-17) semifinal win over Canada on Saturday night in Cuernavaca, Mexico.
The U.S. (4-0) will face the winner of the other semifinal between Mexico and Venezuela tomorrow, Sunday, July 13, at 3 p.m. PT.
The U.S. led Canada in kills (37-28), blocks (6-5) and aces (4-1).
Opposite Corbin Batista posted match-highs of 13 kills and 14 points, adding a block.
“Canada is a great team. They came out swinging really tough and kept the pressure on us the whole match. We were just playing as a unit the whole time. Communication was up, our energy was up, defense was up. We had some crazy kills and were really tough from the service line. Everything was working on our end, so it was a great match,” Batista said.
Four other U.S. players scored seven or eight points to lead the balanced attack. Outside hitter Logan Hutnick (seven kills and one ace) and middle blocker Isiah Powell (five kills, one block, two aces) each scored eight points.
Middle blocker Dante Cayaban contributed seven points on five kills, one block and one ace. Outside Blake Fahlbusch led the team with two blocks and recorded five kills to also score seven points.
Libero Ben Bayer led all players with 10 digs and nine successful receptions. Hutnick finished with eight successful receptions and seven digs with Batista adding five digs. Setter Brett Novak scored three points on two kills and a block and totaled four digs.
The U.S. led 15-14 in the first set before ending the set on a 10-4 run. Batista produced two kills in the next four points to give the U.S. an 18-15 lead. A Powell ace made it 23-16 and Hutnick ended the set with his second kill. Batista finished the set with seven kills.
The second set was nearly a repeat of the first set. The U.S. led by just two points, 15-13, before finishing the set on a 10-5 run to win by the same 25-18 score. Hutnick led the U.S. with four points on three kills and an ace, while Powell added three points on two kills and a block.
The U.S. controlled the third set from the start. A Batista block gave the U.S. a five-point lead, 12-7. Canada was not able to get any closer than four points the remainder of the match. Fahlbusch finished the match with his fifth kill.
2025 Boys U19 National Team Pan American Cup Roster
Name (Pos., Ht., Hometown, School, USAV Region)
2 Ben Bayer (L, 6-1, Menomonee Falls, Wisc., Sussex Hamilton HS, Badger)
3 Thomas Phung (L, 5-10 Garland, Texas, Harvard University, Southern)
6 Thomas Demps IV (OH, 6-4, Raleigh, N.C., Broughton HS, Carolina)
9 Dante Cayaban (MB, 6-7, Saint Cloud, Fla., Saint Cloud HS, Florida)
13 Logan Hutnick (OH, 6-6, Huntington Beach, Calif., Huntington Beach HS, Southern California)
15 Blake Fahlbusch (OH, 6-8, Manhattan Beach, Calif., Loyola HS of Los Angeles, Southern California)
17 Peter Chriss (S, 6-6, Menlo Park, Calif., Menlo Atherton HS, Northern California)
18 Brett Novak (S, 6-6, Lancaster, Calif., Paraclete HS, Southern California)
22 Kale Cochran (OH, 6-7, Roseville, Calif., Whitney HS, Northern California)
23 Corbin Batista (OPP, 6-7, St. George, Utah, Alta HS, Intermountain)
24 Isiah Powell (MB, 6-7, Silver Spring, Md., Springbrook HS, Chesapeake)
25 Brodie Heshler (MB, 6-7, Harrisburg, Pa., Central Dauphin HS, Keystone)
Coaches
Head Coach: Jonah Carson (MVVC)
Assistant Coach: Sean Byron (Marist College)
Assistant Coach: Spencer Wickens (Stanford)
Performance Analyst: AJ Ruttenberg (UCLA)
Team Doctor: Dr. Chris Cornell (Coduhi Clinic)
Team Lead: Brandon Oswald (NTDP)
Schedule
All times PDT
July 8: USA def. Venezuela, 3-1 (20-25, 25-18, 25-16, 32-30)
July 9: USA def. Canada, 3-0 (25-20, 27-25, 25-17)
July 10: USA def. Puerto Rico, 3-0 (25-17, 25-14, 25-19)
July 11: Quarterfinals: Bye
July 12: Semifinals: USA def. Canada, 3-0 (25-18, 25-18, 25-17)
July 13: Gold Medal match: USA vs. Mexico/Venezuela, 3 p.m.