Wetter Helps USA to Bronze Medal at Pan American Cup
9/13/2021 11:55:00 AM | Men's Volleyball
NORTHRIDGE, Calif. - CSUNÂ junior Daniel Wetter helped the U.S. National Team to a bronze medal at the recently completed Pan American Cup in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
The Americans defeated host Dominican Republic, 3-1 (25-23, 19-25, 25-23, 25-15) in the third-place match to earn the bronze medal, the first medal for the U.S. men at the tournament since 2014.
Wetter scored 12 points in the third-place match with 10 kills, one block and one ace.
"Today we played perhaps our strongest match against a determined Dominican Republic team," head coach Andy Read said. "Proud doesn't describe the feeling I have for the players and their efforts over the last three weeks."
USA won a close first set, and Dominican Republic countered by taking the second. The U.S. led for much of the third, but the hosts kept within striking distance, pulling within one at 24-23 before Cole Gillis ended it with a kill.
In the fourth, the U.S. never trailed. The Americans extended their lead after the first technical timeout, ending the match on a 17-8 scoring run to clinch bronze.
Mexico won gold, beating Canada 3-0 (25-17, 26-24, 25-20) in the championship match.
The United States now has eight medals from the Pan American Cup, more than any country except Argentina. This is the first time the MNT has won Pan Am Cup bronze.
During the tournament, Wetter had 11 points in the first match-up against the Dominican Republic (Sept. 5), a 3-2 loss and he also had five points against both Mexico (Sept. 3) and Suriname (Sept. 6).
"Once you see the quality of play at the international level, the college game slows down for you a little bit," said CSUN head coach Jeff Campbell. "The intensity and speed of that game is so much different and Dan is well-suited for it, especially in how much they play over the net. This will give him an incredible amount of confidence and experience heading into next season."
Schedule
September 3:Â USA def. Mexico, 3-0 (25-17, 29-27, 25-20)
September 4:Â USA def. Puerto Rico, 3-0 (25-17, 25-23, 26-24)
September 5:Â Dominican Republic def. USA, 3-2 (25-23, 25-18, 22-25, 17-25, 15-8)
September 6:Â USA def. Suriname, 3-0 (25-14, 25-11, 25-14)
September 7:Â USA def. Canada, 3-2 (21-25, 25-18, 31-29, 18-25, 15-13)
September 8: Semifinal – Mexico def. USA, 3-0 (25-22, 29-27, 25-20)
September 9: Bronze Medal Match – USA def. Dominican Republic, 3-1 (25-23, 19-25, 25-23, 25-15)
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