United States Falls to Bulgaria, Will Play for 9th–16th Places

July 30, 2025. – The United States lost its Round of 16 match at the U19 Boys’ World Championship being held in Uzbekistan and will now play for positions 9–16. Cuba and Puerto Rico earned victories and will compete for places 17–20, while Canada lost and will fight for 21–24.

United States 2 – Bulgaria 3

The United States battled in a thrilling Round of 16 match against Bulgaria. Bulgaria took an early 2–0 lead, the U.S. tied the match, but Bulgaria prevailed in the tiebreak. The final score was 3–2 (25–22, 25–23, 20–25, 14–25, 16–14).

The U.S. led in attacks (61–55) and service aces (2–0), while the Europeans dominated at the net with more blocks (20–16). Grant Lamoureux stood out for the U.S. with 28 points, followed by Corbin Batista with 17. Myles Jordan and Luc Soerensen each contributed 11 points.

With the loss, the United States will compete for 9th–16th places, facing Argentina on August 1. Match time is to be confirmed.

Puerto Rico 3 – Egypt 0

Puerto Rico earned its first victory of the World Championship with a convincing 3–0 (25–23, 25–22, 25–15) win over Egypt. Puerto Rico controlled the match and was superior in attacks (37–36) and blocks (11–4), while service aces were tied at three apiece.

Antonio Álvarez led the Puerto Rican offense with 18 points, while captain Jean Paul González added 14.

With the victory, Puerto Rico advances to compete for positions 17–20 and will face Colombia on August 1. Match time is pending.

Cuba 3 – Algeria 0

Cuba swept Algeria 3–0 (25–19, 25–23, 25–12) and will also fight for positions 17–20, meeting Türkiye on August 1.

Cuba outperformed Algeria in attacks (50–26) and service aces (3–0). Algeria had the edge in blocking (7–6). Three Cuban players scored in double digits: Alessandro González with 17 points, while Lázaro Marrero and Yosdani Medina tallied 12 each.

Canada 1 – Colombia 3

Canada remains winless. As in most of their matches, the Canadians took the first set but could not hold the lead, falling to Colombia 1–3 (25–17, 23–25, 24–26, 22–25).

Canada led in attacks (58–46) and service aces (6–3), while Colombia outblocked them (13–9). Tyson Dezutter once again shined for Canada with 22 points, joined by Ethan Baraniuk with 19 and Grayson McDonald with 13.

With the loss, Canada drops to the 21–24 bracket and will face Egypt on August 1. Match time is to be confirmed.