Cruz Leads Way, but USA Wins Battle of Former Gators
Wednesday, July 1, 2009 | Volleyball
Aury Cruz, former three-time Southeastern Conference Player of the Year for Florida, scored a match-high 21 points for the Puerto Rican National Team, but the United States, featuring former Gator All-American Jane Collymore on its roster, took home a 3-1 victory (25-15, 25-20, 24-26, 25-23) to capture its pool on Tuesday at the University of Miami's BankUnited Center.
Cruz finished the match with 20 kills and a service ace for a match-high 21 points. She continues to lead the entire Pan Am Cup in scoring with 70 points so far over the five-day event.
U.S. (5-0), as the winner of Pool A, earns an automatic berth into the semifinal round on July 3. In addition, the Americans earned a berth in to the 2010 FIVB World Grand Prix with the victory and semifinal berth (top three NORCECA teams in Pan American Cup earn berths). With the loss, Puerto Rico finishes second in Pool A with a 4-1 record and will play in the quarterfinal round vs. Pool B's third-place team on July 2.
Kristin Richards and Jordan Larson contributed matching 18 points for the U.S. in the victory, while Nancy Metcalf added 17 points. Danielle Scott-Arruda chipped in 10 points for Team USA.
Puerto Rico was led by Cruz's 21 points, while Sarai Alvarez added 15 points. Florida International standout Yarimar Rosa charted 10 points off the bench.
Team USA out-blocked Puerto Rico 13-4 and held a 5-1 ace advantage. Both teams committed an uncharacteristic number of errors - 28 for Puerto Rico and 27 for USA.
"Puerto Rico is a very good team and is well-coached," U.S. Head Coach Hugh McCutcheon said. "On our side of the net, we played within our system and that may have been the difference as we were able to win a few more points."
"Congratulations to USA for its well-organized play," Puerto Rico Head Coach Carlos Cardona said. "The game was very emotional and exciting."
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