OSIJEK, Croatia — Crestview High School graduate and University of Pittsburgh freshman Abbey Emch got the start for Team USA in a 25-19. 25-18, 25-18 win over Peru in a Pool C match on Thursday at the U19 World Volleyball Championships.

Emch had five kills, three digs and an assist as Team USA moved to 2-0 in the tournament. Up next is Poland at 3:15 p.m. today. Poland (2-0) is second in the group based on point ratio. Emch had three kills in the first set and one each in the next two sets.

The U.S. finished with significant advantages in kills (44-25) and blocks (14-5). The U.S. hit .268 as a team for the match. Peru led 5-3 in aces.

Opposite Henley Anderson paced the U.S. with team-bests of 14 points, 10 kills and four blocks.

“In our first match against Spain we got the job done but didn’t play to our full potential. Against Peru we came out with a sharper focus and a sense of energy combined with high energy throughout the match,” Anderson said. “It really shows what we are capable of when we trust each other and compete at our level.”

Outside hitter Suli Davis totaled 10 points on nine kills and a block. Middle blocker Gabrielle Nichols scored eight points on four kills, three blocks and an ace.

Setter Genevieve Harris ran the effective offense while adding two blocks and an ace. Outside hitter Cari Spears recorded five kills and a pair of blocks for seven points.

Outside hitters Lameen Mambu (three kills and one block) and Devyn Wiest (three kills and an ace) each scored four points.

The U.S. jumped out to a 9-3 lead to begin the match and did not allow Peru to get closer than five points at any time in the set. The U.S. Girls U19 squad hit .577 as a team with 17 kills and only two errors in 26 attacks. Anderson scored six points on five kills and a block, and Spears scored five points on three kills and two of the team’s five blocks.

Peru led 6-5 in the second set before the U.S. scored nine of the next 12 points. Back-to-back blocks, the team’s eighth and ninth of the match, and an ace from Wiest gave the U.S. a 14-9 lead. A put away by Davis made it 18-12, and the lead reached eight after a Peru hitting error and another U.S. block.

Though the U.S. team was not able to continue its blistering offensive numbers from the opening set, it did continue to control the net with eight blocks in the second set. Nichols led the way with five points on two kills, two blocks and an ace, while Davis and Anderson each scored three points.

Kelly Kinney won a joust at the net to even the score at 13 in the third set. With the score tied at 14, consecutive kills by Wiest and Kinney gave the U.S. the lead for good at 16-14. Peru pulled back within a point, 18-17, but the U.S. finished the match on a 7-1 run that ended on an Anderson kill off hands. Middle blocker Jordan Taylor recorded a key block, the team’s 14th of the match, for a 22-18 lead.