PARIS – The USA men’s volleyball team, with three Penn State alumni in the starting lineup, had a thrilling match with Poland in the semifinal round of the 2024 Paris Olympics on Saturday, but came up just short in a 3-2 (25-23, 25-27, 14-25, 25-23, 15-13) loss against the world’s top-ranked team.
The top three point scorers for USA were all Penn State greats. Matt Anderson ’08 led the way with 23 kills and one ace, followed by Aaron Russell ’15 with 18 kills and two blocks and Max Holt ’09 with nine kills, a block and two aces.
Both USA set wins concluded with a point by a former Penn State player. Anderson and Russell went back-to-back with kills to get the 25-23 win in set two. Russell had a kill to clinch the 25-14 victory in set three.
Poland led 14-10 in the final set before USA staved off the first three attempts at match point, including twice with Anderson at the service line. Wilfredo Leon Venero delivered a kill to secure the win on Poland’s fourth chance.
It was the first loss of the 2024 Olympics for Team USA, which had previously posted wins over Argentina, Germany, Japan, and Brazil.
USA isn’t done yet as it returns to the court Friday to take on Italy in a battle for the bronze medal. The country’s last medal came in 2016 when it won bronze with a 3-2 victory over Russia. Anderson, Holt, and Russell were all on that team.