Aug. 11, 2005

(Story taken from www.USAVolleyball.org)

VISAKHAPATNAM, India (Aug. 10, 2005) - Jayson Jablonsky and Jacob Schkud each scored a match-high 18 points to lead the USA Men's Junior National Volleyball Team to a 3-2 victory over Germany in the 2005 FIVB Men's U-21 World Championships at Swarnabharati Stadium Thursday morning. Setter Jonathan Winder with the tip

Jablonsky (Yorba Linda, Calif.) had 14 kills, two blocks and two service aces and Schkud (Santa Monica, Calif.) contributed 17 kills and one block in the 25-23, 21-25, 25-22, 25-27, 15-10 win for the Americans, who ended pool play in fourth place with a record of 2-3.

With the win, the Americans advance to the final consolation round and have an opportunity to compete for fifth place and gain their best-ever finish at a U-21 World Championship. Previously, the team's highest finish was seventh in 1977 and 1981.

Paul Lotman (Lakewood, Calif.) had 17 points on 15 kills, one block and one service ace. David Smith (Saugus, Calif.) registered 11 points and Theodore Brunner (Ridgefield, Conn.) added nine points for Team USA, which won its second-straight match.

"We considered this match very important to us," said USA team captain Schkud. "We played better defense and were good at blocking the tall German hitters."

Germany was led by Marcus Böhme with 16 points on 16 kills.

The final round will begin on Saturday after the teams have enjoyed a day of rest. Team USA will meet Korea on Aug. 13 in the consolation semifinal round.

The top four teams from each pool advance to the final rounds. The top two teams in each pool will play in the championship semifinals to ultimately determine the world champion. Teams ranked third and fourth in their respective pools will compete for places five-through-eight on the last two days of competition.

Brazil (5-0), Russia (5-0), Cuba (4-1), Netherlands (4-1), Korea (3-2), Iran (2-3), USA (2-3) and Serbia & Montenegro (1-4) all advance to this weekend's final round held in Visakhapatnam, India, August 13-14.

FIVB Men's U-21 World Volleyball Championships

Final Pool Standings

Pool A
1-Russia (5-0)
2-Cuba (4-1)
3-Korea (3-2)
4-Serbia & Montenegro (1-4)
5-India (1-4)
6-Morocco (1-4)

Pool B
1-Brazil (5-0)
2-Netherlands (4-1)
3-Iran (2-3)
4-USA (2-3)
5-Germany (2-3)
6-Tunisia (0-5)

Final Round Schedule

Saturday, Aug. 13

Championship Semifinals
A1 (Russia) vs. B2 (Netherlands)
B1 (Brazil) vs. A2 (Cuba)

Consolation Semifinals
A3 (Korea) vs. B4 (USA)
B3 (Iran) vs. A4 (Serbia & Montenegro)

Sunday, Aug. 14

Seventh-Place Match

Fifth-Place Match

Third-Place Match

Championship Match

USA Pool Play Schedule/Results

Saturday, Aug. 6
Netherlands def. USA, 3-0 (25-18, 25-23, 25-23)

Sunday, Aug. 7
Brazil def. USA, 3-0 (25-22, 25-22, 35-33)

Monday, Aug. 8
Iran def. USA, 3-1 (25-21, 25-21, 19-25, 25-23)

Wednesday, Aug. 10
USA def. Tunisia, 3-0 (25-17, 25-14, 27-25)

Thursday, Aug. 11
USA def. Germany (25-23, 21-25, 25-22, 25-27, 15-10)

USA Men's Junior National Volleyball Team Roster

Name, Position (Hometown)
Paul Beckwith, S (Pacific Palisades, Calif.)
Theodore Brunner, MB (Ridgefield, Conn.)
Jayson Jablonsky, OH (Yorba Linda, Calif.)
Tony Ker, L (Valencia, Calif.)
Paul Lotman, OH (Lakewood, Calif.)
Daniel Mathews, S (Milwaukee, Wis.)
Matthew McCarthy, MB (Wheaton, Ill.)
Jacob Schkud, OH/RS (Santa Monica, Calif.)
David Smith, MB (Saugus, Calif.)
Matthew Webber, RS (Brentwood, Calif.)
Jake Wiens, OH (Clovis, Calif.)
Jonathan Winder, S (Irvine, Calif.)

Head Coach: John Speraw
Assistant Coach: Fred Chao
Assistant Coach: Shane Davis
Team Manager: Tom Tait
Trainer: David Dyck