US volleyball team sweeps Poland
Aaron Russell and the rest of the American squad will face Italy Friday for a spot in the gold-medal match
RIO DE JANEIRO — John Speraw ran along the sideline about as close as he could to actually being in the action, cheering Aaron Russell to make a save while crashing into the barrier some 20 feet behind the end line.
“I was willing him to get that ball,” the U.S. coach said. “I'm into it. It's the Olympic Games.”
Russell didn't quite get there. Moments later, Micah Christenson pulled off a nearly identical play and kept the point going.
It has taken that kind of hustle — not to mention several heart-to-hearts — for the semifinals-bound U.S. men's volleyball team to put itself in position for an Olympic medal.
“It gives me goosebumps talking about it and thinking about it because those are the plays that we're all making for each other,” said Christenson, one of eight U.S. first-time Olympians. “We're sacrificing everything we have for each other and we can really see that, it's really evident in our play. And I don't think that's ever going to stop. Those are kind of defining moments in our tournament that really help us.”
The fifth-ranked Americans topped second-ranked Poland 25-23, 25-22 25-20 on Wednesday, building serious momentum at Maracanazinho arena after dropping their initial two matches to Canada and Italy before stunning Brazil and finishing off France.
The U.S. next plays Friday against Italy, which beat Olympic first-timer Iran in straight sets. That included a 31-29 first set that finally ended on Italy captain Emanuele Birarelli's block. The Italians beat the U.S. in four sets during pool play — and the Americans haven't lost since.
“We started this tournament horribly, not how we wanted to play,” U.S. outside hitter Taylor Sander said. “We really learned from those two matches. Now, we're playing every match like it's a gold-medal match.”
Sitting in his hotel room a week ago, Speraw had his doubts after the 0-2 start. Then, the jitters subsided, the volleyball got far better after those team chats, and everything clicked for his young group.