Defending Champion USA Opens U21

Pan American Cup with Dominant Victory

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala, June 23, 2026. – The United States opened the defense of its title with a commanding 3-0 (25-13, 25-9, 25-21) victory over the Dominican Republic in the opening day of the Men’s U21 Pan American Cup.

With the win, the United States improved to 1-0 and will face Mexico (1-0) on the second day of competition. The Dominican Republic (0-1), meanwhile, will look to bounce back against Venezuela (0-1).

The United States quickly took control of the opening set, building a comfortable 15-9 advantage by capitalizing on Dominican errors. Aleksey Mikhailenko and Kyler Wade led the American offense while limiting the impact of Dominican scoring leader Malik Britton. A powerful back-row attack by Mikhailenko earned set point for the Americans.

In the second set, the United States raced to a 6-0 lead behind the serving of Cameron Kosty. Strong service pressure and dominance in every aspect of the game allowed the Americans to control the set comfortably. An attack by Grayson Bradford sealed the 25-9 win and a two-set advantage.

The Dominican Republic showed improvement in the third set. Franklyn Reyes kept his team in contention with an effective offensive performance, supported by the powerful attacks of Malik Britton. The Caribbean squad rallied to tie the score at 12-12 thanks to consecutive blocks by Rubel Montilla, Reyes, and Marvin Rodríguez. However, the United States responded decisively as a kill and a block by Jackson Cryst, combined with a strong serving run from Grant Lamoureux, extended the lead to 19-15. From there, the defending champions managed the advantage and secured the victory.

The United States dominated the match statistics, particularly from the service line, finishing with an 11-0 advantage in aces. The Americans also led in attacks (32-25) and blocks (9-5). In addition, they scored 23 points from Dominican errors while committing only 13 of their own.

Jackson Cryst led the United States offense with 10 points. For the Dominican Republic, Malik Zahir Britton was the match’s top scorer with 12 points.

The U.S. team captain Kyler Wade: “It was good to throw the first punch and see all the guys come out and play. It’s a good start to the tournament. Everybody stepped up and contributed, so it was great to see everyone play a role. The guys off the bench helped us close out the third set. We came here with one goal, and that’s to win the gold medal, so we’re working toward that”.

Malik Zahir Britton, Dominican Republic’s leading scorer: “Our attack was more consistent and effective in the third set. Our attitude improved considerably, and that allowed us to finish the match with a closer score”.