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The hope of the United States upsetting undefeated Russia in a de facto pool championship match was short lived.
Russia in 70 minutes swept the United States 25-12, 25-19, 25-12 on Sunday in Tunisia to win the Pool D championship and conclude the opening round at the FIVB U19 World Championship.
Despite the loss, the United States still finished its pool in second place to advance beyond the pool-play round. The team will play in the Round of 16 on Tuesday against Argentina, which finished Pool C in third place.
Long Beach State opposite Clarke Godbold finished with a match-high 10 kills on a 37.4 percent offensive efficiency. He also was the only U.S. player to have more than five kills against Russia.
Purdue Fort Wayne middle attacker Rico Wardlow added four kills on a 50 percentage offensive efficiency along with a team-high two aces.
Opposite Roman Murashko in the victory led all players with a tournament-high seven aces. Russia finished with 10 aces — eight more aces than the United States.
Murashko also had both a team-high nine kills and two blocks.
While the United States will play Argentina in the Round of 16, Russia will face Germany, which finished Pool D in fourth place.