U.S. men set to host world championship qualifier

IRVINE, Calif...Happy to be home after a long 2009 World League campaign that ended in a sixth-place finish, Team USA will not have to travel far to compete at the 2010 Men's World Championship Qualification Tournament for NORCECA Pool F on Aug. 15-17.

The Bren Events Center in Irvine, California is just a few miles down the road from the team's training center in Anaheim, Calif.

Ranked second in the world and first among NORCECA teams, the United States will take on Dominican Republic (No. 4 in NORCECA), Guatemala (No. 8 in NORCECA) and Panama (No. 15 in NORCECA) in a tournament where the winner will qualify for the FIVB World Championships from Sept. 24 to Oct. 10, 2010 in Italy.

The second-place team will advance to a four-team playoff in Guadalajara, Mexico, where it will get one more chance to qualify. There is also a chance for the third-place team to advance to the playoff as the best third-place team from all three third-round tournaments will also compete in Mexico.

Team USA last played the Dominican Republic at the 2008 NORCECA Men's Olympic Continental Qualifier in Puerto Rico. Earlier this year, the U.S. Men's A2 team defeated the Dominican Republican twice at the Pan American Cup. The Dominican Republic went on to finish third, defeating Puerto Rico in the bronze-medal match.

Panama finished sixth at the 2009 Pan American Cup, defeating Guatemala in the final match.

The tournament will open on Aug. 15 with the Dominican Republic playing Panama at 5 p.m. Pacific Time and the United States playing Guatemala at 7:30 p.m. On Aug. 16, Guatemala will play Dominican Republic at 5 p.m. and Team USA will face Panama at 7:30 p.m. Finally, on Monday, Guatemala will play Panama at 5 p.m. and the United States will play Dominican Republic at 7:30 p.m