US Women’s National Team to Include Wildcats Lilley and Curry for Pan Am Cup
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Kentucky Volleyball players Madison Lilley and Gabby Curry were both named to the United States national team roster for the 2019 Pan American Cup. It will be the first time both players will be playing for the senior national team.
The Pan Am Cup will be held July 6-14 in Trujillo and Chiclayo, Peru.
Lilley and Curry are two of four players on the roster who have NCAA eligibility remaining, joining Texas’ Brionne Butler and Stanford’s Kathryn Plummer.
The U.S. is grouped Pool B with Colombia, Trinidad & Tobago, Mexico and Puerto Rico. The Americans open defense of their 2017 and 2018 Pan Am Cup titles on July 6 against Colombia at 4 p.m. ET, followed by Trinidad & Tobago on July 7 at 4 p.m. and Mexico on July 8 at 6 p.m. Team USA concludes pool play on July 10 against Puerto Rico at 6 p.m.
Pool A consists of Argentina, Canada, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Guatemala and Peru.
The playoffs begin on July 12 with quarterfinal matches having pool cross-over matches between second- and third-place teams. Semifinals are scheduled for July 13 and the tournament concludes on July 14 with the medal-round matches.
Lilley has twice been named an American Volleyball Coaches Association Second-Team All-American. She was named the AVCA All-Southeast District Player of the Year as a sophomore after earning Freshman of the Year honors by both the AVCA and the Southeastern Conference following her freshman season. She averaged 11.30 assists per set which topped the SEC and ranked 15th nationally a season ago, while also helping the Wildcats average a league-leading 14.44 kills per frame. That mark also rated ninth in the nation. She already ranks among the top 10 in program history for career assists and has produced 22 career double-doubles.
Curry was an AVCA All-America honorable mention selection following her sophomore season after starting all 31 matches for the Wildcats at libero. The 2018 SEC Libero of the Year registered a team-high 4.36 digs per set which ranked fourth in the league a season ago en route to also earning All-SEC accolades. She produced 26 double-figure matches in digs and had eight with 20 or more digs. She also logged 26 aces, which was the fourth most on the team. She’s appeared in every match during her two-year career as the Wildcats have won back-to-back league titles and advanced to the NCAA Regional Semifinals each season as well.
USA Pan Am Cup Roster
- Outside Hitters (4): Madi Kingdon Rishel (Phoenix, Arizona), Roni Jones-Perry (West Jordan, Utah), Kathryn Plummer (Aliso Viejo, California), Kadie Rolfzen (Papillion, Nebraska)
- Middles (4): Rachael Adams (Cincinnati, Ohio), Brionne Butler (Kendleton, Texas), Jenna Rosenthal (Fond du Lac, Wisconsin), Hannah Tapp (Stewartville, Minnesota)
- Opposites (2): Danielle Cuttino (Indianapolis, Indiana), Karsta Lowe (Rancho Santa Fe, California)
- Setters (2): Micha Hancock (Edmond, Oklahoma), Madison Lilley (Overland Park, Kansas)
- Liberos (2): Gabby Curry (Buford, Georgia), Justine Wong-Orantes (Cypress, California)
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