Grand Canyon University Athletics
Photo by: Zach Campbell
Gianni, Team USA win gold at Pan Am Final Six
9/25/2023 12:02:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
GCU senior becomes 1st Lopes player to win medal with USA Volleyball
Grand Canyon senior Camden Gianni took home the gold medal with Team USA at the NORCECA Pan American Cup Final Six in Edmonton, Alberta.
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Gianni had a stellar showing in his third stint in the red, white and blue and became the first Lopes player to earn a medal with a Team USA squad.
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"I just think we played a really complete tournament," U.S. head coach Andy Read said. "Our goal was to be better every day of the tournament. The standard was let's be the best we can be and always get better and the guys met that standard. And so I'm super proud of our guys for just continuing to say we are going to play as hard as we can against every opponent and just get better every day. That was our goal."
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Gianni started the tournament off with a bang, leading the U.S. with 18 points in a 3-0 win over the Dominican Republic. It was the start of a great tournament for Gianni as the opposite ended with 53 kills, good for second on the team, and 30 digs with six blocks.
Gianni also was strong from the service line, finishing with eight aces. None were bigger than his ace that sealed the gold-medal win for the U.S. against Canada in the championship match on Sunday.
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It is the first gold medal for the U.S. in the Pan Am Final Six after finishing third in the previous two seasons.
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Gianni became the first Lope to land on a USA Volleyball senior roster in 2021, when he competed at the NORCECA Continental Championship and helped Team USA to a fifth-place finish. The Carlsbad, California, native also competed on the NORCECA roster in August at the Pan American Cup in Guadalajara, Mexico, where the U.S. finished fifth.
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Gianni had a stellar showing in his third stint in the red, white and blue and became the first Lopes player to earn a medal with a Team USA squad.
Â
"I just think we played a really complete tournament," U.S. head coach Andy Read said. "Our goal was to be better every day of the tournament. The standard was let's be the best we can be and always get better and the guys met that standard. And so I'm super proud of our guys for just continuing to say we are going to play as hard as we can against every opponent and just get better every day. That was our goal."
Â
Gianni started the tournament off with a bang, leading the U.S. with 18 points in a 3-0 win over the Dominican Republic. It was the start of a great tournament for Gianni as the opposite ended with 53 kills, good for second on the team, and 30 digs with six blocks.
Gianni also was strong from the service line, finishing with eight aces. None were bigger than his ace that sealed the gold-medal win for the U.S. against Canada in the championship match on Sunday.
Â
It is the first gold medal for the U.S. in the Pan Am Final Six after finishing third in the previous two seasons.
Â
Gianni became the first Lope to land on a USA Volleyball senior roster in 2021, when he competed at the NORCECA Continental Championship and helped Team USA to a fifth-place finish. The Carlsbad, California, native also competed on the NORCECA roster in August at the Pan American Cup in Guadalajara, Mexico, where the U.S. finished fifth.
Players Mentioned
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