GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, June 24, 2026. – Defending champions United States maintained their perfect record at the Men’s U21 Pan American Cup with a 3-1 (22-25, 25-12, 25-15, 25-19) victory over Venezuela in their second Pool A match at the Teodoro Palacios Flores Gymnasium in Guatemala City.
With the win, the Americans improved to 2-0 and will face Mexico in the final day of pool play, while Venezuela will take on the Dominican Republic. The pool winner advances directly to Saturday’s semifinals, while the second- and third-place teams will compete in Friday’s quarterfinals.
The United States controlled the match by holding advantages of 49-35 in attacks, 10-6 in blocks and a decisive 9-0 margin in service aces. Venezuela committed one fewer unforced error than the Americans (29-30).
United States captain Kyler Wade led all scorers with 19 points. Outside hitters Mateo Fuerbringer and Aleksey Mikhailenko each added 12 points. Venezuela was led by Yoisbel Josué Galeno with 16 points and Ángel Matute with 15.
Venezuela opened strongly, claiming the first set behind the offensive efforts of Ángel Matute and Yoisbel Josué Galeno. After a 10-10 tie, the South Americans capitalized on U.S. errors and consecutive blocks by Harold Lárez and Galeno on Grant Lamoureux to build a 14-10 lead. Venezuela never trailed in the set and reached set point on a kill by Matute against the block of Jordan Trevell. A kill by Grayson Bradford and a Matute error briefly extended the set before a Bradford service error sealed the 25-22 victory for Venezuela.
The United States responded immediately in the second set, racing to an 8-3 lead behind a block from Cameron Kosty, attacks from Mateo Fuerbringer and Venezuelan errors. Kyler Wade paced the offense with consecutive points and a solid block on Matute to extend the lead to 20-11. With Wade serving, the Americans increased the pressure before closing the set 25-12 to level the match at one set apiece.
The third set followed a similar pattern as the United States quickly built an 11-6 advantage with more efficient attacking and blocking. Venezuela attempted to rally late behind Galeno’s powerful swings, but the Americans stayed in control and closed the set 25-15 with Wade and Mikhailenko leading the offense.
Venezuela again started fast in the fourth set, taking a 5-2 lead with Galeno leading the attack. However, consecutive errors and a block from Mikhailenko on Galeno allowed the United States to draw level. The defending champions moved ahead 10-7 with a kill by Jackson Cryst and another block from Kosty. Although Venezuela tied the score again at 10 and remained within striking distance thanks to Galeno and Matute, the Americans maintained control down the stretch. A kill by Mikhailenko through the Venezuelan block sealed the victory and secured the United States’ second consecutive win.
Outside hitter Mateo Fuerbringer commented on the team’s slow start: “We made too many errors, missed too many serves, and we weren’t ready enough in the first set. After that, we came back stronger and with more confidence. I knew we were going to win.”
On preparing for Thursday’s showdown against Mexico, he said: “We’ll watch video tonight, make the necessary adjustments, and be ready for tomorrow.”
After the match, Venezuela’s leading scorer Yoisbel Josué Galeno said: “We came out playing at a very high level, doing what we know how to do and putting a lot of pressure on them. Tomorrow we need to make better adjustments on the court for our final pool match. We’re ready and we’ll fight to advance to the next round”.
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