Five weeks is a long time to leave the rundown quiet. I know. The last time we talked, the Volleyball Nations League rosters were still on paper and the AVP was promising Belmar on CBS. Since then, Erik Sullivan's U.S. women have played eight VNL matches on two continents, Karch Kiraly's men have climbed out of a two-set hole in Ottawa, and the AVP League has put pro beach volleyball back on legacy network television, a sold-out mountain town, an indoor Florida arena, and the Las Vegas Strip.
This catch-up covers May 26 through June 27, 2026: everything that happened after Rosters Set, Whistles Waiting. If you need the MLV awards, the LOVB Miami expansion, or the Huntington Beach Heritage Open, that post still holds. What follows is the competitive season the calendar was pointing at when we left off.
The headline is simple. The U.S. women finished VNL Week Two at 7-1 and provisional first place. They swept Italy in Pasig City, the team that beat them for Olympic gold in Paris. That is the story that defines the gap. Everything else, the Canada loss in Quebec, Cole Hartke's 33-point night, Maddie Anderson and Alaina Chacon on CBS, Palm Beach locking the first playoff spot in Vegas, fits around it.
Olympic Watch: U.S. Women (VNL Weeks One and Two)
Quebec: Sullivan Finds the Rotation
The U.S. Women opened VNL Week One in Quebec City on June 3 with a clean sweep of Ukraine and a gym full of schoolchildren making noise. That part felt like the start everyone expected.
Then Canada happened.
On June 4, the host nation beat the U.S. 3-0 (25-22, 25-22, 30-28) in a third set that went extra points four times before Canada closed it. USA Volleyball noted it was Canada's first VNL win over the Americans in four tries. Jordan Thompson and Simone Lee-Wank fought through extended rallies. Canada just kept answering.
I watched that score line land from Houston and thought about how different a home crowd sounds when the underdog finally gets the break. Quebec gave Sullivan's group an early reality check. The response over the next three days is what made the week matter.
The U.S. came back with a five-set win over France on June 5 (25-21, 23-25, 27-25, 23-25, 15-11), then closed with a dominant sweep of Germany on June 7 (25-22, 25-15, 25-12). Lee-Wank led the Germany match with 16 points. Asjia O'Neal had four blocks. Saige Ka'aha'aina-Torres ran the offense at .414 efficiency.
One roster note worth tracking: Jordyn Poulter was not on the Quebec roster. Sullivan went with Ka'aha'aina-Torres as primary setter alongside Micha Hancock and Rachel Fairbanks. Poulter's name was the one I flagged in May as the setter conversation to watch. Week One answered a different question first: who else can run this offense when the Olympic veteran stays home?
Quebec finished 3-1. Sullivan told reporters after Germany he wanted the group walking away knowing they can play with anybody if they stay aggressive long enough.
Pasig City: Poulter Returns, Italy Gets Answered
Week Two brought a roster shuffle and a captain's armband. Poulter, Chiaka Ogbogu, and Dana Rettke joined the Philippines group for Pasig City, replacing Anna Hall, Sami Francis, and Rachel Fairbanks from Quebec. Poulter made her 2026 VNL debut and wore the captain's band by the time the week closed.
The U.S. went 4-0 in the Philippines:
June 17: USA def. Dominican Republic 3-0 (25-20, 25-19, 25-12). Jordan Thompson had 15 points.
June 18: USA def. Czechia 3-0 (25-17, 25-12, 25-16).
June 20: USA def. Italy 3-0 (27-25, 25-20, 25-16). Stephanie Samedy led with 12 points. Madi Kubik-Banks added 11. O'Neal and McCage had nine each.
June 21: USA def. Serbia 3-1 (25-22, 18-25, 25-16, 25-19). Poulter finished with 22 excellent sets. Logan Eggleston had 17 points.
The Italy match is the one you will remember. Nearly two years after Italy swept the U.S. for Olympic gold in Paris, the Americans beat the two-time defending VNL champions in straight sets on Philippine soil. Volleyball World confirmed the win moved the U.S. to 7-1 overall, 20 points, and provisional first in the VNL standings, with a three-spot jump to fourth in the FIVB world ranking.
I've photographed most of this roster on LOVB and MLV floors this spring. Watching them beat Italy without needing a full-strength Thompson night (she was held to six points in that match) is the depth story Sullivan has been selling since camp opened. It looks real on the scoreboard now.
Olympic Watch: U.S. Men (VNL Week One, Ottawa)
The U.S. Men opened their VNL campaign in Ottawa the week of June 10 with Matt Anderson anchoring the floor and Jake Hanes emerging as the offensive headline.
The week arc:
June 10: USA def. Türkiye 3-1 (25-20, 20-25, 25-20, 25-23). Hanes had 21 points.
June 13: USA def. Germany 3-0 (25-22, 25-15, 25-20). Hanes had 19 points including five blocks.
June 13: USA def. Canada 3-2 (20-25, 33-35, 26-24, 25-21, 15-11). Cole Hartke scored 33 points (24 kills, 6 blocks, 3 aces) in a reverse sweep after Canada won the first two sets in front of 5,702 fans at TD Place. Volleyball Canada recapped the second set at 33-35, the kind of frame that breaks a neutral's calculator.
June 14: Italy def. USA 3-2 (25-18, 15-25, 25-19, 18-25, 15-10). Hanes had 25 points including five aces. Anderson added 16.
Ottawa finished 3-1. Hartke's Canada night is the single performance I'd put on a highlight reel from the gap. Down two sets on Canadian soil, the 20-year-old opposite carried the comeback that Volleyball World framed as the turnaround that started even inside that marathon second set.
The Italy loss on the final day kept the week from perfection, but Kiraly's group showed the composure profile you want heading into a long VNL summer.
Beach: AVP League From Belmar to Vegas
The domestic indoor leagues went quiet after May. The beach calendar did not.
Belmar and the CBS Number
The 2026 AVP League opened May 30-31 in Belmar, New Jersey, and the broadcast story mattered as much as the volleyball. Larry Hamel reported that CBS averaged 560,000 viewers for its Sunday telecast of LA Launch vs. New York Nitro women, comparing favorably to the 2025 Central Park number and beating the 2025 League Championships audience.
On the sand, Maddie Anderson and Alaina Chacon went 3-1 in their League debut after winning through the Manhattan Beach qualifier. Their three-set win over Geena Urango and Megan Rice on The CW was the weekend's breakout story. San Diego Smash and LA Launch both finished 3-1.
Aspen, Miami, and the Crabb Brothers
Week Two landed in Aspen June 6-7 at Koch Park. Aspen Times coverage noted a sold-out crowd and six Olympians on the court. Miami Mayhem and Palm Beach Passion both finished 3-1. Taylor Crabb and Andy Benesh beat Trevor Crabb and Phil Dalhausser 15-10, 15-12 in the Florida rivalry's first men's meeting of the year.
Miami followed June 12-13 indoors at Sephora Arena. AVP's recap noted Trevor and Dalhausser beat Taylor and Benesh 15-12, 15-12, evening the brothers' League head-to-head at 3-2 across 2024-2026. The Florida City rivalry split the two weekends 2-2 in direct matchups.
Vegas and the First Playoff Spot
Week Four brought the League to the Strip for the first time in nearly two decades. Resorts World hosted June 19-20 with 300 tons of sand trucked into the backlot and night sessions starting at 5 p.m. to beat the heat.
Palm Beach Passion swept all four Vegas matches across men's and women's play, moved to the top of the AVP Cup standings, and locked in the first playoff spot of 2026. New York Nitro's season tightened on both sides of the net. The playoff picture, which was abstract in Belmar, started to harden in the desert.
What's Ahead
VNL Women, Week Three: Osaka, Japan, July 7-11. The U.S. draws Thailand, Poland, Türkiye, and Brazil. Sullivan will rotate again. Poulter's captaincy and the Italy result give this group momentum, but Osaka is a different travel leg and a different pool.
VNL Men: Chicago area hosting is on the schedule next per the competitive calendar. Hartke's Canada night made him the name to track, but Anderson's steadiness and the Italy five-setter reminder still frame the week-to-week puzzle.
AVP League: Long Beach, July 11-12, on the Alamitos Beach site that will host LA 2028 Olympic beach volleyball. Central Park follows July 18-19.
Chautauqua: Week One of the 2026 season opens today, June 27, under the theme "Icons and Instigators: Women Who Change History." Kerri Walsh Jennings and Tara VanDerveer speak July 1 at the Amphitheater. If you read my Chautauqua Moment history post last week, you already know why that date matters for volleyball culture. The sport keeps building proof that the moment is real.
I'll be back when the next week of results lands. The gap is closed. The competitive summer is fully underway.
For deeper weekly volleyball reporting, two outlets I read every week: Larry Hamel's All Volleyball! on Substack and 900 Square Feet for ongoing volleyball news and updates. Both belong in your bookmarks.
Matt Powell is a professional sports content creator based in Houston who specializes in volleyball photography. See his volleyball portfolio or get in touch about coverage for your program or athlete.
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