Canada’s Better, but Not the Best : Despite Stiffer Test, U.S. Men’s Volleyball Team Sweeps

The rematch wasn’t quite as much of a mismatch.

The result was the same, but the Canadian men’s national volleyball team was more successful Thursday night in San Diego than it was Wednesday in Malibu.

On Thursday, Canada scored 25 points in losing three straight games to the United States in an exhibition match played in front of about 2,900 fans at Peterson Gym on the San Diego State campus.

The final score: 15-6, 15-10, 15-9.

On Wednesday, the Canadian team scored 14 points in losing, 15-2, 15-7, 15-5.

“This was a much better match,” said U.S. Coach Marv Dunphy. “Canada played much better. They received serve better and could therefore set up their offense.”

But Canada’s offense is still not much of a match for the powerful U.S. front line.

“Technically, we’re a better team,” setter Jeff Stork said. “We control the net better. We block them more than they can block us.”

These are teams headed in opposite directions. The powerful U.S. team swept the Triple Crown of international volleyball--the 1984 Olympics, the World Cup in ’85 and the World Championships in ’86.

The Canadian team, which finished fourth in the Olympics, lost many of its players to the professional ranks in Europe. It has yet to earn one of the 12 berths for men’s teams in the 1988 Olympics. Dunphy said the main thing Canada is lacking is experience.

For the U.S. team, these two matches against Canada were a tuneup for the Pan American Games in Indianapolis next week.

“We play Brazil (Wednesday), and I think we’re ready,” Dunphy said. “We’ve been beating up on each other for a month and a half now. It’s nice to have someone on the other side of the net.”

On Thursday, that someone was Canada.

Game 1: It took just 20 minutes. The U.S. team took a 7-0 lead. Once the match began, the U.S. team, led by Craig Buck, Steve Timmons (team-high 14 kills) and Bob Ctvrtlik (13 kills), continued their pregame spiking exhibition. Canada closed to within 10-5, but that was the closest it came.

Game 2: It took 29 minutes. The Canadian team, using guile against the power of the U.S. team, trailed only 10-9. But the U.S. team won five of the last six points, including the game-winner on a kill by Ricci Luyties, who had entered the game as a substitute just seconds before.

Game 3: This game took 23 minutes. The Canadian team, which never led in the first two games, took a 3-0 lead. The U.S. team quickly gained a 7-4 advantage. Then it was 10-8. And 14-8. The match ended on a service winner by Eric Sato.

Stork didn’t think his team played particularly well Thursday, but said: “If we can play ugly and win, that’s fine.”

Volleyball Notes U.S. captain Karch Kiraly missed the match with a broken left hand suffered in a practice two weeks ago. Coach Marv Dunphy said Kiraly might be ready for the semifinals or finals of the Pan Am Games. . . . Thursday’s match was the only one in San Diego this year for the U.S. team, which has been based in San Diego since 1981 and practices regularly at the Federal Building in Balboa Park. . . . The U.S. and Canadian teams will have a scrimmage that is open to the public at 7:30 tonight at the Jewish Community Center near University Towne Center.