USA keeps possession of the throne in Pan Am Cup

LIMA, Peru, June 16, 2013 – Defending champions United States swept past Dominican Republic 25-12, 25-20, 25-18 to capture the gold medal of the Movistar Women’s Volleyball Pan American Cup at Eduardo Dibos Coliseum of Lima on Sunday night.

It was a powerful performance by the Americans who relied on their strong serves and a consistent blocking. The winners held a 13-3 difference in the blocks and led in attacks 36-28.

Nicole Fawcett was the leading scorer of USA with 15 points, including 6 blocks and 3 aces. Lauren Gibbemeyer added 11 points, with 3 blocks and Kristin Hildebrand and Megan Hodge had 9 and 8 respectively. Dominicans Annerys Vargas, Prisilla Rivera and Yonkaira Peña each had 8 points in the losing cause.

USA became only the second country to successfully defend its throne in the history of the intercontinental event, joining Cuba who won consecutive titles in 2004 and 2005. The gold medal was their third tying with Brazil in second place behind Cuba’s four.

The Dominicans had to settle for their sixth silver medal to go with two gold and three bronze medals.

Quotes:

Kristin Hildebrand, USA Captain: “We are so glad because the team played well united. This championship was very well deserved. Dominican Republic was a very tough rival and I think that today it was a very spectacular game”.

Karch Kirally, USA Coach: “Our American athletes worked very hard in preparation for this tournament. Their hard work helped them a lot and I am very happy for them. Everything we do is in preparation for the long term. My whole staff has been doing a tremendous job”.

Marcos Kwiek, Dominican Republic Coach: “It is not that we played bad. They started playing very well and pressured us from the beginning. We didn’t know how to get out of some situation, after that we improved our attitude and played at a good level but not as we could really do”.