Canada's men's volleyball team to face U.S. for gold at NORCECA Continental Championship

Canada's men's volleyball team advanced to the final at the NORCECA Continental Championship on Saturday night, defeating Cuba 3-2 (18-25, 25-21, 25-17, 24-26, 15-13) in Charleston, West Va.

The Canadians booked their ticket to the semifinal after winning twice in straight sets in the group stage. They defeated Mexico and the Dominican Republic to begin their tournament before pushing past Cuba in the knockout stage. 

The Americans defeated the Dominican Republic earlier in the day in straight sets, and the host team will enter the championship match with a similar record to Canada, having only dropped a set to Cuba. The U.S. enters with three group stage wins over Suriname, Puerto Rico and Cuba, in addition to their semifinal victory. 

The Canadian team led Cuba in attacks with 66 and aces with nine, as Canada won a total of 107 points in its longest match of the tournament. 

After a shaky start, Canada settled into the game as it reached its midway point, with Aurora, Ont., native Stephen Maar leading the team with 28 points on 25 attacks, two blocks and an ace. Toronto's Arthur Szwarc finished with the second-highest tally of 22 points, including 18 attacks and three aces. 

Three of the top five scorers in the match came from the Cuban side, with Jesus Herrera scoring 18 points, followed by Marlon Yant with 16 and Miguel Lopez with 14. But mistakes significantly boosted Canada, with Cuba making 13 faults. 

Canada's national women's team captured the bronze medal at the NORCECA Women's Continental Championship last Sunday on home soil in Quebec City.

Live coverage of the gold-medal match will be available on the Volleyball Source YouTube channel.