COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Aug. 23, 2010) - The U.S. Girls' Youth Olympic Volleyball Team advanced to the Youth Olympic Games semifinal round by defeating Egypt (0-2) 25-18, 25-19, 25-23 on Monday afternoon to win Pool B of the Youth Olympic Games being played in Singapore through Aug. 26.

The U.S. (2-0) advances to the crossover semifinals as the top seed in Pool B and will play Japan (1-1) on Aug. 24 at 6 p.m. local time (3 a.m. Pacific Time). Peru (2-0), winner of Pool A, will face Pool B second-place Belgium (1-1) on Aug. 24 at 10 a.m. local time (7 p.m. Pacific Time on Aug. 23) in the other semifinal. The bronze-medal match is slated for Aug. 25 at 3:30 p.m. local time, while the gold-medal match will take place Aug. 26 at 9 a.m. To follow the U.S. squad at the Youth Olympic Games, visit usavolleyball.org/events/4749.

Earlier today, Peru defeated Japan 25-22, 25-19, 25-18 in Pool A to gain the group's top seed into the semifinals. The U.S. earned its first victory of the Youth Olympic Games on Aug. 22 as it defeated Belgium 25-22, 15-25, 25-20, 18-25, 15-11.

The U.S. served four aces in the opening set and built a 10-point lead at 23-13 before holding on for a 25-18 victory. Leading 19-17 in the second set, the Americans put together a key 4-0 scoring run en route to a 25-19 set win. Team USA overcame a 21-18 deficit in the third set by scoring seven of the final nine points including blocks on the final two points to win 25-23.

Liz McMahon (Liberty Township, Ohio) paced the U.S. scoring with 12 points on seven kills, three blocks and two aces. Taylor Simpson (Colorado Springs, Colo.) charted nine kills, a block and an ace for 11 points. Samantha Cash (San Diego, Calif.) contributed seven points, while Micha Hancock (Edmond, Okla.) matched the seven points. Katie Mitchell charted five points, while Lauren Teknipp (McDonough, Ga.) provided four points. Crystal Graff (Madison, Wis.) rounded out the scoring with two points.

For the complete press release, visit usavolleyball.org/news/article/38132.