Busboom Kelly Coaches US Collegiate National Team Past Italy, England
July 12, 2018 | Women's Volleyball
USA wins final two matches in pool play.
 Under the direction of University of Louisville head Coach Dani Busboom Kelly, the USA Volleyball Collegiate National Team-Europe concludes pool play with a pair of wins on Thursday.Â
MATCH 1
PULA, Croatia – The USA Volleyball Collegiate National Team-Europe rebounded from its first three-set loss at the European Global Challenge by taking two of three sets over BFTM-Falconara from Italy Wednesday afternoon. The U.S. won the first two sets 25-21, 25-21 before losing the third set 20-25.
"We had a fast turnaround but the players did a really good job of being fresh and ready to compete," assistant coach Brandon Higa said following this morning's loss. "A lot of the adjustments we wanted them to make and things we talked about this morning, we saw this afternoon. Being more aggressive out of system was a big one and our blockers being smarter in terms of understanding their hitters and what the setter could set. Making smarter moves helped us a lot.
The CNT put away 46 team kills behind a team-high eight from Utah's Berkeley Oblad. Louisville's Amanda Green and Wisconsin's Danielle Hart both added seven kills.
Both teams had five blocks in the match while Falconara scored on eight service aces, including six in the third set.
The U.S. also changed its lineup for this match, using only one setter, Oregon's August Raskie, for most of play.
"We wanted to let the setters get into a rhythm so August played the entire match just to see what would happen if we used only one setter," explained Higa. "I think August did a very good job. She made very smart choices, she kept it simple and executed really well.
"The set that we lost, Italy served well and they did a great job attacking our block, tooling and scoring off the block." Â
The U.S. wraps up pool play on Thursday at 5 a.m. ET when it takes on Northumbria from England. Semifinals will be held on Thursday at 11 a.m. CT. All U.S. matches will be streamed live on the Global Challenge website. (http://bringitusa.com/gc2018/)
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Set Breakdown
Set 1 – Trailing 9-6, Green tallied a kill and a block to knot the score at nine. The U.S. broke a 16-16 tie off a kill by Oblad. A service ace by Stanford's Audriana Fitzmorris gave the CNT a two-point lead, one is would not relinquish.
Set 2 – The CNT trailed by as many as five points (19-14) but behind the serve of Iowa State's Jessica Schaben, the U.S. scored eight straight points. The team led 23-21 before two kills by Hart won the set.
Set 3 – Despite jumping out to a 3-0 lead, the U.S. struggled late. The Italians broke a 13-13 tie, with a 3-0 run. The CNT could get no closer than one point the rest of the set. Â
MATCH 2
PULA, Croatia – Outblocking Northumbria 11-4, the USA Volleyball Collegiate National Team-Europe finished pool play in the European Global Challenge with 25-18, 22-25, 26-24 match against the English team Thursday morning. The U.S. finished pool play with a 10-5 set record and will advance to the semifinals this evening to play Northumbria again. Â
"Fatigue is starting to set in and this is a long trip," said head coach Dani Busboom Kelly, "but that's why these players came here - to learn how to play overseas and to learn how to grind through a long trip maybe when you're uncomfortable. They did a great job of battling through that match and ending on a real strong note."
After the CNT easily winning the first set, Northumbria challenged in the second set, taking an early 7-2 lead. The U.S. battled back to tie the set at 9-9 and neither team led by more than two points after that. The English team broke a 22-22 tie with two kills and a block to win the set.
The U.S. trailed for much of the third set, including at 22-19 before two team blocks keyed a 3-0 run to knot the score at 22. Stanford's Audriana Fitzmorris keyed a late run the CNT putting away two kills, including the set winner.
Fitzmorris put away a team-high eight kills while Washington State's Taylor Mims added seven kills.
Fitzmorris also scored on three service aces, all coming consecutively in the third set.
Colorado State's Kirstie Hillyer led the U.S. with three block points while Kentucky's Leah Edmond and Wisconsin's Danielle Hart both added two blocks.
"They played more of an American style of volleyball, stuff we're used to," explained Hillyer. "Going into it, we didn't really know what to expect but once we were in the match it was easier to line up on them, easier to get into a rhythm so I think that definitely helped."
The U.S. takes on Northumbria from England in tonight's semifinals at 11 a.m. ET in the best-of-five match. The Croatian U23 Select Team faces off against the Mountain West Conference All-Star team in the other semifinal. The winners will advance to Friday's finals at noon ET while the losers will play in the third-place match at 8 a.m. ET.
"We get to play the same team at 6 p.m. in the semifinals and that's good because they challenged us so we'll see if we can make adjustments," Busboom Kelly said.
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All U.S. matches will be streamed live on the Global Challenge website. (http://bringitusa.com/gc2018/)
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Set Breakdown
Set 1 – Trailing 10-8, kills from Washington State's Taylor Mims and Edmonds tied the score at 10. The U.S. fell behind 12-10 before a 5-0 run gave the CNT at 15-12 lead. The U.S. never trailed the rest of the set though Northumbria held off two set points. Â
Set 2 – Falling behind 7-2, a 7-2 run by the CNT tied the score at 9-9. Service aces by Hillyer and Mims keyed the run. The set was tied nine more times before Northumbria scored three straight – two kills and a block – to win the set. Â
Set 3 – The final stanza featured 10 ties, including at 22-22 when two blocks gave the U.S. some needed momentum. Northumbria served for set point at 24-23 before a kill from Fitzmorris tied the score again. A Northumbria hitting error and another Fitzmorris kill put the match away.
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MATCH 1
PULA, Croatia – The USA Volleyball Collegiate National Team-Europe rebounded from its first three-set loss at the European Global Challenge by taking two of three sets over BFTM-Falconara from Italy Wednesday afternoon. The U.S. won the first two sets 25-21, 25-21 before losing the third set 20-25.
"We had a fast turnaround but the players did a really good job of being fresh and ready to compete," assistant coach Brandon Higa said following this morning's loss. "A lot of the adjustments we wanted them to make and things we talked about this morning, we saw this afternoon. Being more aggressive out of system was a big one and our blockers being smarter in terms of understanding their hitters and what the setter could set. Making smarter moves helped us a lot.
The CNT put away 46 team kills behind a team-high eight from Utah's Berkeley Oblad. Louisville's Amanda Green and Wisconsin's Danielle Hart both added seven kills.
Both teams had five blocks in the match while Falconara scored on eight service aces, including six in the third set.
The U.S. also changed its lineup for this match, using only one setter, Oregon's August Raskie, for most of play.
"We wanted to let the setters get into a rhythm so August played the entire match just to see what would happen if we used only one setter," explained Higa. "I think August did a very good job. She made very smart choices, she kept it simple and executed really well.
"The set that we lost, Italy served well and they did a great job attacking our block, tooling and scoring off the block." Â
The U.S. wraps up pool play on Thursday at 5 a.m. ET when it takes on Northumbria from England. Semifinals will be held on Thursday at 11 a.m. CT. All U.S. matches will be streamed live on the Global Challenge website. (http://bringitusa.com/gc2018/)
Â
Set Breakdown
Set 1 – Trailing 9-6, Green tallied a kill and a block to knot the score at nine. The U.S. broke a 16-16 tie off a kill by Oblad. A service ace by Stanford's Audriana Fitzmorris gave the CNT a two-point lead, one is would not relinquish.
Set 2 – The CNT trailed by as many as five points (19-14) but behind the serve of Iowa State's Jessica Schaben, the U.S. scored eight straight points. The team led 23-21 before two kills by Hart won the set.
Set 3 – Despite jumping out to a 3-0 lead, the U.S. struggled late. The Italians broke a 13-13 tie, with a 3-0 run. The CNT could get no closer than one point the rest of the set. Â
MATCH 2
PULA, Croatia – Outblocking Northumbria 11-4, the USA Volleyball Collegiate National Team-Europe finished pool play in the European Global Challenge with 25-18, 22-25, 26-24 match against the English team Thursday morning. The U.S. finished pool play with a 10-5 set record and will advance to the semifinals this evening to play Northumbria again. Â
"Fatigue is starting to set in and this is a long trip," said head coach Dani Busboom Kelly, "but that's why these players came here - to learn how to play overseas and to learn how to grind through a long trip maybe when you're uncomfortable. They did a great job of battling through that match and ending on a real strong note."
After the CNT easily winning the first set, Northumbria challenged in the second set, taking an early 7-2 lead. The U.S. battled back to tie the set at 9-9 and neither team led by more than two points after that. The English team broke a 22-22 tie with two kills and a block to win the set.
The U.S. trailed for much of the third set, including at 22-19 before two team blocks keyed a 3-0 run to knot the score at 22. Stanford's Audriana Fitzmorris keyed a late run the CNT putting away two kills, including the set winner.
Fitzmorris put away a team-high eight kills while Washington State's Taylor Mims added seven kills.
Fitzmorris also scored on three service aces, all coming consecutively in the third set.
Colorado State's Kirstie Hillyer led the U.S. with three block points while Kentucky's Leah Edmond and Wisconsin's Danielle Hart both added two blocks.
"They played more of an American style of volleyball, stuff we're used to," explained Hillyer. "Going into it, we didn't really know what to expect but once we were in the match it was easier to line up on them, easier to get into a rhythm so I think that definitely helped."
The U.S. takes on Northumbria from England in tonight's semifinals at 11 a.m. ET in the best-of-five match. The Croatian U23 Select Team faces off against the Mountain West Conference All-Star team in the other semifinal. The winners will advance to Friday's finals at noon ET while the losers will play in the third-place match at 8 a.m. ET.
"We get to play the same team at 6 p.m. in the semifinals and that's good because they challenged us so we'll see if we can make adjustments," Busboom Kelly said.
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All U.S. matches will be streamed live on the Global Challenge website. (http://bringitusa.com/gc2018/)
Â
Set Breakdown
Set 1 – Trailing 10-8, kills from Washington State's Taylor Mims and Edmonds tied the score at 10. The U.S. fell behind 12-10 before a 5-0 run gave the CNT at 15-12 lead. The U.S. never trailed the rest of the set though Northumbria held off two set points. Â
Set 2 – Falling behind 7-2, a 7-2 run by the CNT tied the score at 9-9. Service aces by Hillyer and Mims keyed the run. The set was tied nine more times before Northumbria scored three straight – two kills and a block – to win the set. Â
Set 3 – The final stanza featured 10 ties, including at 22-22 when two blocks gave the U.S. some needed momentum. Northumbria served for set point at 24-23 before a kill from Fitzmorris tied the score again. A Northumbria hitting error and another Fitzmorris kill put the match away.
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Players Mentioned
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