June 28, 2027.- The United States returned to its winning ways with a victory over Serbia, while Canada suffered its fifth five-set loss of the season and Cuba completed the second week of the 2026 Men’s Volleyball Nations League (VNL) without a win.
The VNL will now take a one-week break before resuming on July 7 with the final week of the Women’s competition. The Men’s tournament will return one week later for the last week of the Preliminary Phase.
United States Bounce Back with Victory over Serbia
One day after a heartbreaking five-set loss to Japan, the Americans responded with a 3-1 (25-12, 25-23, 24-26, 25-17) victory over Serbia.
The win keeps the United States in second place in the overall standings and gives the team momentum heading into the final week, which they will host in Chicago beginning on July 15 against China, Brazil, Bulgaria, and Poland.
In the team statistics, Serbia held the edge in attacks (49-46) and service aces (5-4), while the United States dominated blocking (11-8) and capitalized on 38 Serbian unforced errors to secure the victory.
Matthew Anderson led the American offense with 14 points, while opposites Jake Hanes and Cole Hartke each added 10 points. They were the only three U.S. players to reach double figures in scoring.
Canada Battles Brazil in Five Sets
After Brazil comfortably claimed the opening set, Canada significantly raised its level of play and fought for every point, forcing a fifth set. However, Brazil eventually prevailed 3-2 (25-17, 23-25, 28-26, 22-25, 17-15) in a match that lasted nearly three hours.
Canada had two opportunities to close out the third set after taking 25-24 and 26-25 leads, but Brazil rallied both times and ultimately claimed the set.
Sharone “Sho” Vernon-Evans led Canada with 19 points, including two aces. Skyler Varga added 18 points (15 kills, one block, and two aces), while Jackson Howe finished with 12 points.
In the team statistics, Canada led in service aces (5-1), while Brazil held advantages in attacks (61-57) and blocks (11-9). The match featured 79 unforced errors, with Canada committing 42 of them.
Canada endured a difficult week in Ljubljana, losing to host Slovenia and Bulgaria, as well as dropping five-set matches to Bulgaria and Brazil. Overall, Canada has now lost five matches in five sets this season, leaving the team in 15th place with a 1-7 record and making qualification for the Finals increasingly difficult.
Cuba Falls to Iran
Cuba dropped its eighth consecutive match of the season, closing the second week of the Men’s VNL with a 1-3 (22-25, 21-25, 25-20, 28-30) defeat to Iran.
Marlon Yant was the match’s top scorer with 23 points, while Israel Masso added 17 points. Robertlandy Simón and Miguel Ángel López each contributed 11 points in the losing effort.
In the team statistics, Cuba outperformed Iran in attacks (59-56) and blocks (8-5), but also committed more unforced errors (32-25).
Cuba will need to win as many matches as possible during the final week of Preliminary Phase action to avoid risking its place in the Men’s VNL for the 2027 season.
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