WEST SENECA, N.Y. — West Seneca native Matt Anderson and the U.S. men's volleyball team on Friday played their third and final Group C match during the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Winners of their first two matches, the Americans rolled past Japan 3-1 and completed a clean sweep in group play.
Team USA started strong, with Torey DeFalco recording four kills and one block as it won the first set 25-16. Taylor Averill added two kills, one block, and one ace.
The second set (25-18) brought more of the same for the Americans, but they stumbled in the third, falling 25-18.
Team USA promptly ended the match in the fourth set, securing the top seed from Group C in the quarterfinals, which start Monday.
The United States finished 3-0 in Group C, followed by Germany (2-1), Japan (1-2), and Argentina (0-3).
Anderson became the youngest member of Team USA men's volleyball in 2010, and he has competed in the Olympics in London, Rio de Janeiro, and Tokyo. He won an bronze medal back in Rio de Janeiro in 2016.
Team USA won two of its first three matches three years ago during the Summer Games in Tokyo before ultimately falling to fifth place in pool play. The team missed the quarterfinals for the first time in 21 years.
After graduating from West Seneca West in 2005, Anderson played in college at Penn State. He's now technically a Florida resident but trains in California. His wife and two young children live in Indianapolis, and he's spent most of his professional career playing in Russia and Turkey.