USA beats Canada to keep perfect record

EDMONTON, CANADA: Sept. 22, 2023: Team USA beat Canada today at the NORCECA Pan American Cup Men’s Final Six, held September 19 to 24 at the Flair Airlines Hangar (Expo Centre), in Edmonton, Alberta.

Canada came out strong, winning the first set, but then struggled against its North America rivals 1-3 (25-22, 14-25, 20-25, 17-25).

The US led in attack 46-37, blocks 18-7, and service aces 4-2. Patrick Gasman scored 17 points to lead all scorers with 17 points. Canada’s captain Isaac Heslinga led the home team with 10 points.

Errors were 30-29, in favor of Canada.

Patrick Gasman, USA Captain: “We have to understand that we’ve played this team a lot and they’ve always kicked us in the mouth. It took us a minute to just settle down and play within our system, and the system worked great in set 2, 3 and 4.”

Dan Lewis, head coach of Canada. “We just made too many errors, you cannot be unorganized against a disciplined team. If you don’t adapt during the game, then the other team exploits your weaknesses. … It’s a long tournament – we have to rest and get ready for the match tomorrow.”