Ever since winning the silver medal in the 2024 Paris Olympics, all eyes have been on the Team USA and the women’s volleyball team, especially because ever since Volleyball World, CBS Sports, and the Big Ten Network formed a three-way partnership following the Olympics win, there has been national and international coverage of Team USA’s women’s volleyball team consistently, bringing a lot more viewership to the sport but maybe, potentially, putting too much pressure on the players, and too soon.
The news is in: Team USA lost to Czechia for the first time ever in the Volleyball Nations League, which took place on Friday night in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Though Team USA had a strong start, winning the first two sets with commendable plays by Molly McCage and Logan Eggleston, Czechia came back strong in the third set, and then the fourth and the fifth.
The reactions to the defeat have been mixed but strong, owing to the fact that Czechia defeated Team USA for the first time ever and by such a wide margin. To give the whole thing some perspective, Molly McCage, who led Team USA in all five blocks, had a total of 11 points, while Monica Brancuska, who led the Czech team, had a total of 23 points, almost double that of her U.S. counterpart. Further, Czechia led in kills and aces, with 82-66 and 7-2, respectively.
USA hasn’t started 0-3 to a VNL/WGP since 1998.
They haven’t lost to Czechia since they were Czechoslovakia in 1960.
This is just simply unacceptable. You do not abandon a winning culture just because you are qualified for the Olympics.
— Avid (@AvidVolley) June 7, 2025
Now, fans clearly have a lot of feelings, especially considering the Olympic silver medal spurred so much more investment into the team and the broadcasting of the sport, so understandably, the volleyball watchers are sharing their theories as to what went wrong!
Fans react to Team USA losing to Czechia in the first week of the Volleyball Nations League
Some fans seemed to think the blame lay with the staff; surely they, the ones who manage the funding, could have put more thought into the team’s training and configuration. “This is completely on the staff for not putting players in a position to be successful.” This fan wrote, adding, “John Speraw hired a buddy of his with no head coaching experience. Winning is important. You don’t get to throw it out just because you’re the host team of LA.” In January of this year, it was announced that Erik Sullivan would succeed Kach Kiraly as the head coach of the women’s team, and so far, no good.
Other fans were unimpressed with the way the roster was put together for this tournament. “Why didn’t we take Leah Edmonds and Sydney Holley?” A disgruntled fan wrote, “Those two in place of the Texas contingent would have made a difference. Too many Texas players on this roster that shouldn’t be there based on how US pro league or foreign league form suggested.” Leah Edmond, an SEC rookie of the year and consistent performer, as well as Sydney Hilley, a five-time AVCA All-American at Wisconsin University, were notably not on the team, but this may have been for good reason, expanded on by another, more level-headed fan.
“Why is everyone freaking out when almost every member of the Olympic team is not on the current VNL squad?” This fan wrote, “How else is he going to see who can hang at this level?” It’s true, the VNL is not really the same as the Olympics, with multiple rounds being hosted in multiple different countries for the next few weeks, including one in the U.S., so there is less pressure and more room to try things out, which may be what Erik Sullivan is doing.
Another fan added some balance to the equation, noting the fact that the Czech team might just have been that good: “The czech team played amazing though” They wrote, adding, “…and this was definitely our best game…but if even that isnt enough to beat a vnl debutant…i’m seriously dejected. They let magda control the fith set without making proper adjustments.”It’s true, Magdalena Jehlářová took full control of set number five, finally bagging the match for her team.
And finally, there was a fan who had their eye on the future: It makes me worried for their match tomorrow with South Korea.” This fan wrote, “I know the United States is favored on paper, but Team USA has not been playing anywhere close to the level they should be. If my fears become reality tomorrow, we may not even see the team make the finals.” Hopefully, this loss to Czechia served as a reality check for team USA but if not, well, at least South Korea has something to celebrate!
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