Gilk Named to USA U21 Team, Taylor Named Alternate

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – USA Volleyball has chosen the 14 elite athletes from the U.S. Women’s U21 National Team who will compete on the 2026 NORCECA Women’s U21 Pan American Cup, July 7-12, on the Covelli Center in Columbus, Ohio.

Gophers reverse Carly Gilk (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) was chosen to the workforce whereas center blocker Jordan Taylor (Houston, Texas) was named an alternate.

The 14 athletes had been chosen from a bunch of 20 who simply completed a coaching block in Columbus. The roster contains quite a few athletes who’ve been a part of earlier USA Volleyball age-group nationwide groups: Ayden Ames, Henley Anderson, Suli Davis, Campbell Flynn, Carly Gilk, Genevieve Harris, Taylor Harvey, Lily Hayes, Manaia Ogbechie, Abby Vander Wal, Devyn Wiest and Keoni Williams.

“The amazing talent in this group of athletes made roster decisions incredibly difficult,” mentioned head coach Tama Miyashiro. “Everyone brings unique strengths to the court, and seeing how they’ve worked hard together over the past week has been fun to watch. We’re excited about this team and are ready to make the U.S. proud at the Pan American Cup.”

The U.S. is in a pool with Canada, Mexico and Venezuela, and their first match is Tuesday, July 7, at 6 p.m. CST towards Venezuela.

2026 USWNT for the Pan American Cup

Name, Position, Height, Hometown, Current School, USAV Region

2 Ayden Ames, MB, 6-4, Prosper, Texas, Creighton University, North Texas

5 Lily Hayes, L, 5-9, Tampa, Fla., University of Florida, Florida

6 Suli Davis, OH, 6-2, Euless, Texas, SMU, North Texas

7 Manaia Ogbechie, MB, 6-3, Santa Rosa Valley, Calif., University of Nebraska, Southern California Southern Nevada

9 Keoni Williams, MB, 6-4, Fort Worth, Texas, University of Nebraska, Lone Star

10 Taylor Harvey, MB, 6-3, Salt Lake City, Utah, University of Texas, Lone Star

11 Campbell Flynn, S, 6-3, Rochester Hills, Mich., University of Nebraska, Lakeshore

12 Genevieve Harris, S, 5-11, Raleigh, N.C., University of Texas, Carolina

13 Rachel Van Gorp, L, 5-9, Olathe, Kan., Iowa State University, Heart of America

15 Payton Petersen, OH, 6-0, Dike, Iowa, University of Louisville, Iowa

16C Abby Vander Wal, OH, 6-3, Elmhurst, Ill., University of Texas, Great Lakes

17 Carly Gilk, OPP, 6-2, Minneapolis, Minn., University of Minnesota, North Country

19 Henley Anderson, OPP/OH, 6-3, Dripping Springs, Texas, University of Texas, Lone Star

20 Devyn Wiest, OH, 6-3, Peoria, Ariz., University of Utah, Arizona

Alternates

1 Reese Messer, S, 5-11, Olathe, Kan., University of Kansas, Gateway

3 Jordan Taylor, MB, 6-5, Houston, Texas, University of Minnesota, Lone Star

4 Kalyssa Blackshear, OPP, 6-5, Lomita, Calif., University of Louisville, Southern California Southern Nevada

8 Ayanna Watson, OH, 6-2, Las Vegas, Nev., University of Pittsburgh, Southern California Southern Nevada

14 Abbey Emch, MB, 6-4, New Waterford, Ohio, University of Pittsburgh, Ohio Valley

18 Spencer Etzler, L, 5-7, Coldwater, Ohio, Stanford University, Ohio Valley

Coaches

Head Coach: Tama Miyashiro (LOVB)

Assistant Coach: Alfee Reft (LOVB)

Assistant Coach: Alisha Childress (MLV)

Performance Analyst: Will McDonald (LOVB)

ATC: Misao Tanioka (LOVB)

Team Lead: Kyle Thompson (NTDP)

Schedule (All instances CST) and streamed dwell on USA Volleyball YouTube

July 7: USA vs. Venezuela, 6 p.m.

July 8: USA vs. Mexico, 6 p.m.

July 9: USA vs. Canada, 6 p.m.

July 10: Quarterfinals

July 11: Semifinals and classification matches

July 12: Medal and classification matches