USA beats Finland on opening day of 2008 FIVB World League

(BEIJING, June 14) -- The U.S. Men's National Volleyball Team topped Finland 25-18, 25-19, 23-25, 25-20 in the opening match in pool C of the 2008 FIVB World League in Espoo, Finland, on Friday, June 13.

The young Finnish team was the underdog entering the match against the Americans, who are ranked No. 3 in the world, and they didn't help their cause in the first and second set, making mistakes that gave easy points to the Americans.

In the third set the Finish team found its form, much to the delight of the more than 3,300 spectators in attendance. Led by wing spikers Urpo Sivula and Antti Siltala hitting superbly, they took the set 25-23 to extend the match.

Finland continued its strong play in the first part of the fourth set, trailing by just two points at 14-16, but a handful of mistakes allowed the Americans to take the set 25-20 and clinch the match.

"[The] USA showed us why they are third in the world ranking," said Finnish head coach Mauro Berruto. "In the first and second set we made huge mistakes by many key players. Of course the rest of the match was better for us. Our goal is to play as close to our potential as we can. Today we were not near enough our potential."

American coach Hugh McCutcheon said that he considers the FIVB World League to be part of his team's preparation for the Olympic Games. "For us this was the beginning of our Olympic Games development," he said. "Obviously Finland was not at its best in the first and the second set. In the third set they started to play much better. This was a nice battle and I think it was good volleyball."