Hosts Brazil remain the only undefeated team in Pool 2 of the Volleyball Nations League as the Gabi-led Brazilians triumphed over the United States in four sets 3-1 (25-22, 25-16, 18-25, 25-19) on Friday in Brazil’s capital, Rio de Janeiro.
Usually, playing in front of your home crowd serves as the X factor when facing convincing adversaries, but in Brazil’s case, the X factor that helped them top the USA was not their crowd but their captain, Gabriela ‘Gabi’ Guimarães.
Gabi erupted for a match-high 24 points (21 kills, two aces, one block) in what seemed like the best performance in the 2024 iteration of the VFL thus far.
Brazil had already defeated Canada and Korea to start their campaign, and after their win against the defending Olympic champions, their Volleyball Nations League 2024 odds stock has skyrocketed to levels this SBOTOP writer didn’t know were possible.
“I had goosebumps with the fans tonight,” Brazil’s skipper, Gabi, exclaimed after the match. “It felt like a final on the court. We were committed to winning this match and played aggressively from start to finish, even when we struggled a little bit in the third set. This is our game, and that’s how we want to approach every match from now on. We want to win a big tournament this season, and the VNL is one of our goals.”
Italy upset Türkiye in Antalya
Italy might have just pulled off the biggest upset in the Volleyball Nations League 2024 season thus far, beating defending VNL champions Türkiye at their home in Antalya on Saturday with a 3-1 (25-27, 25-21, 25-21, 25-19) four-set victory.
Italy’s opposite Ekaterina Antropova served as the spearhead for her nation’s statement win in Antalya, as she dropped 23 points with five aces to boot. However, outside hitters Alice Degradi and Caterina Bosetti also had their marks on the match, adding 16 and 11 points, respectively, while their captain, Anna Danesi, remained as their anchor in the middle, tallying 10 points with five kill blocks.
Their upset win garnered them 10.65 points, propelling the Italians to number four in the world rankings and cementing their candidature for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
“For us, it was very important to take the points towards the Olympics, so this was our mental motivation,” Italy’s setter, Carlotta Cambi, stated. “We knew we were up against a strong team for a tough match, so we just went to the court to fight for every ball, and this is the result. It’s so fantastic!”
Despite their poor start in the campaign, Türkiye are still No. 1 in the FIVB Women’s Volleyball World Ranking. They are set to finish their home campaign with a match against World No. 15 France.
Japan thrash Germany in straight sets
Japan boast a 3-0 record in the VNL standings after their surgical 3-0 (25-21, 25-15, 25-22) win over the Germans.
Led by Sarina Koga and Mayu Ishikawa, Japan successfully garnered 5.47 ranking points to help them overcome a heated race for Olympic tickets through the FIVB World Ranking.
Japan looked like a well-oiled machine against the Germans. The Asian side started things off with an error-free first set that ultimately set the tone for the rest of the match.
Outside hitter and Japanese captain, Sarina Koga, led all players with 20 points, which included two aces and two kill blocks, while her running mate, Mayu Ishikawa, added 18 points to help Japan cruise to victory.
Despite their polarising performance, the Japanese outfit kept their feet on the ground and remained hungry. “We haven’t qualified yet, so we have to play our best game every single time,” said Japan’s outside hitter, Airi Miyabe. “I think winning in three sets was really important.”
China came from behind to stun the United States in four sets
China found themselves losing the first set against the United States. It was looking like the Olympic champions would make quick work of the Asian side, but outside HITTER Li Yingying wouldn’t go down without a fight.
Thanks to Li’s match-high 20 points, China proceeded to mount a comeback in hopes of getting closer to securing an Olympic spot. Not to mention middle blocker Wang Yuanyuan and opposite Gong Xiangyu provided significant help with 18 and 16 points, respectively. True enough, the United States win in the first set was their last, as China gathered momentum and won three sets in a row to complete their 3-1 (23-25, 25-23, 25-22, 25-19) comeback win and remain undefeated in the VNL.
China continue to tally strong Volleyball Nation League 2024 results as they blaze through the early stages of the season. “I thought we played a very good match today,” China’s captain, Yuan Xinyue, exclaimed after the match. “The Americans play with passion and are very competitive, but we showed great unity and enjoyed ourselves on the court. I hope we can do even better in the next match. Every point is important for us here, and we’ll try to do our best in each match.”
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