Home-Court Disadvantage Doesn’t Deter U.S. Team : Volleyball: Bren Center fans back Chinese national team, but Americans win match in four games.

Kim and Bev Oden, feeling a bit like strangers in their hometown, had to remind themselves at times Wednesday night that they really were playing volleyball in Irvine.

The Odens and the rest of the U.S. national volleyball team were greeted at the UC Irvine Bren Center by a boisterous crowd of 3,111, but most seemed to be cheering for their opponents--the Chinese national team.

Three China flags waved in the stands and chants of “China! China!” accompanied Chinese rallies.

But the Americans proved tough enough on their home turf, defeating the Chinese, 15-12, 11-15, 15-10, 17-15, in the third stop of a five-city tour.

“This was nothing,” Elaina Oden said of the crowd. “We’ve had crowds bigger than this in the first two matches (at Fairfax, Va., and West Point, N.Y.) cheering against us.”

Kim Oden had 21 kills and seven blocks, and Elaina Oden added 18 kills and eight blocks for the U.S., which had trouble protecting leads in the three games it won.

The Americans built a 14-8 lead in the fourth game, but the Chinese fought off 15 match points to tie it, 15-15. The U.S. took a 16-15 lead with an ace by Elaina Oden, and Tara Cross-Battle’s kill finally ended the two-hour 22-minute match.

“We’ve come to expect comebacks like that out of China,” said Caren Kemner, who had 29 kills and was named the match’s MVP. “They’re one of the best defensive teams in the world and they showed it. That’s what kept them in the match.”

Tammy Liley, a former Ocean View High standout, had 13 kills, and Cross-Battle came off the bench to add 10 kills for the U.S., which qualified for the Olympics at the World Cup last fall.

The Americans struggled at times Wednesday night with China’s passing and blocking, which kept the match from turning into a blowout.

The United States took control early, breaking a 4-4 tie in the first game with an 8-3 run. Elaina Oden had three consecutive blocks in the stretch.

The Americans pushed the lead to 14-9, but China fought off three game points to cut it to 14-12. The game ended on a mishandled set by China’s Su Huijuan.

The Americans blew a 10-4 lead in the second game as China blocking and passing slowed down the U.S. attack. The Chinese keyed its blocking on Kemner, who had 10 kills in the first game but only four in the second game.

The Chinese, led by two kills by reserve Sun Yue and four by Wu Dan, outscored the Americans, 11-1, to win the game.

U.S. Coach Terry Liskevych pulled starting setter Lori Endicott after the Americans built the lead and replaced her with Yoko Zetterlund. But Endicott returned when the lead dwindled to one.

The United States protected a big lead in the third game, using a 9-0 run go ahead, 10-3, and hanging on for a 15-10 victory.

China came back again in the fourth game. The U.S. broke an 8-8 tie by scoring six consecutive points, but was unable to finish off China until Elaina Oden’s ace and Cross-Battle’s kill scored the final two points.