STANFORD, Calif. - Fifth-year senior Kyle Dagostino and Stanford alum James Shaw helped the U.S. secure a seventh-place finish in the Pan American Cup, defeating Chile (26-24, 25-18, 27-29, 25-22) in Cordoba, Veracruz, Mexico.
The United States finished the tournament with a 3-2 record. Failing to finish in the top 5, the U.S. did not qualify for the 2019 Pan American Games, but it may have another opportunity.
Shaw, playing his third straight match at opposite, led all scorers with 21 points on a match-high 18 kills. He also tallied 10 digs for a double-double, and had two aces and a block.
"The guys played their best match of the tournament today," U.S. head coach David Hunt said. "We served tough, we hit in (bounds) and we battled as Chile made us sideout a lot. Jonah Seif did a great job running the offense."
The U.S. led Chile in kills (59-54), while Chile held the edge in blocks (12-11) and aces (4-3). The U.S. scored on 30 of Chile's errors, while committing 23. Seif helped the U.S. hit .378 while holding Chile to a .248.
***
The U.S. Junior National Team wrapped up the NORCECA U21 Continental Championship on Saturday after falling to Canada in the third-place match, 25-22, 25-23, 25-27, 25-17, in Havana, Cuba.
Stanford sophomore Jaylen Jasper led all scorers with 22 points. The Annapolis, Maryland native had a match-best 17 kills and a match-high four aces as well as a block. Stanford sophomores JP Reilly and Kyler Presho also started for the U.S. at outside hitter and middle blocker, respectively.
The U.S. dominated in attacks (53-40) and led in aces (8-7), but were hurt by 45 scoring errors. Canada held an 8-2 lead in blocks and only committed 26 scoring errors.
"I thought we played the edge with errors too much," U.S. head coach Jonah Carson said. "At this level, opponents will make you pay for those kinds of errors.
"Canada's ability to hit a consistent serve in the right zones put us off balance."
Jasper was named the tournament's Best Server, totaling 21 aces in the five matches - six more than any other player. His best serving match of the tournament came against Canada in group play when he put down 11 aces. In addition to his serving, Jasper also finished the tournament with the third-most points of any player and the bi-annual NORCECA event.
The U.S. finished the tournament with a 3-2 record. Host Cuba beat the Dominican Republic in the final and qualified for the 2019 FIVB U21 World Championship.