The 2025 FIVB Beach Volleyball U21 World Championships reached a historic milestone on October 19 in Puebla, Mexico, as the United States achieved an extraordinary feat by placing both of its women's pairs in the semifinal round. Americans Zoey Henson and Sarah Wood face Hungary's Chiara Honti-Majoros and Stefania Kun in one semifinal, while compatriots Sally Perez and Avery Jackson take on Brazil's Marcela Barbosa and Maria Clara in the other, guaranteeing at least one American team will compete for gold.

Henson and Wood have been nothing short of dominant throughout the tournament, riding a five-match winning streak into the semifinals. The American duo showcased their prowess in the quarterfinals with a commanding 2-0 victory over Canada's Ruby Sorra and Ofure Odigie, winning 21-16, 21-15. Their path to the semifinals also included an impressive straight-sets triumph over Germany's Mareet Maidhof and Sophia Neuss, prevailing 21-16, 26-24 in a closely contested second set that demonstrated their mental fortitude under pressure.

Their semifinal opponents, Hungary's Honti-Majoros and Kun, have proven equally formidable despite entering the tournament as qualifiers. The Hungarian pair has won six consecutive matches and demonstrated remarkable resilience in their quarterfinal clash against Austria's Lia Berger and Lilli Hohenauer, securing a 2-0 victory with set scores of 24-22 and 21-17. Earlier in the tournament, they survived a three-set thriller against Spain's Sofia Izuzquiza and Adriana Serrano, emerging victorious 15-21, 22-20, 18-16.

The second semifinal presents an intriguing all-qualifier matchup between American qualifiers Perez and Jackson and Brazilian qualifiers Barbosa and Maria Clara. The Brazilian duo navigated a challenging path to the semifinals, including a hard-fought all-Brazilian quarterfinal against Carolina Sallaberry and Julhia Perandre, winning 21-19, 8-21, 15-11. They also defeated Czechia's Katerina and Anna Pavelkova 2-0 and France's Saofe Duval and Romane Sobezalz by identical 2-0 scorelines, demonstrating consistent performance throughout the knockout rounds.

The tournament structure guarantees that the United States will have at least one representative in the gold medal match, marking a significant achievement for American beach volleyball development at the U21 level. With both semifinal matchups scheduled for October 19, the stage is set for an exciting conclusion to the championships in Puebla. The winner of each semifinal will advance to contest for the world championship title, while the losing pairs will compete for the bronze medal, potentially setting up an all-American final that would represent a crowning moment for USA Beach Volleyball's youth program.