Hosts Peru win continental derby and advance to the quarterfinals

Hosts Peru starred in the most exciting match of the Round of 16 of the FIVB Volleyball Girls’ U17 World Championship on Tuesday in Lima and needed all five sets to overcome rivals Argentina and advance to the quarterfinals of the tournament.

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With eight of the 16 national teams that started the tournament still alive in the race for the title, the four quarterfinals will be held on Thursday, with Mexico and China battling at 10:30 local time (15:30 GMT), the Chinese Taipei and Brazil meeting at 13:30 (18:30), Italy and Türkiye dueling at 16:30 (21:30) and Peru and Japan facing each other at 19:30 (00:30, Friday).

One of three continental derbies held in the Round of 16, the duel between Peruvians and Argentineans was easily the most exciting of them as it took the hosts all five sets to produce a 3-2 (21-25, 25-19, 25-20, 21-25, 15-13) victory and move forward.

Outside hitters Paola Moreano, with 22 points (all in kills), and Gianella Chanca, with 17 (15 kills, two blocks), led the Peruvian offense in the match. Argentina had the match’s top scorer in outside hitter Justina Fortes, who left the court with 26 points (kills, one ace).

Peru’s opponents in the quarterfinals, Japan had a less stressful journey in the Round of 16 as the Asians had no trouble beating Ecuador 3-0 (25-9, 25-18, 25-15) with outside hitters Aileen Mcallister and Yoritomi Kaho producing 14 and 13 points, respectively.

In another continental derby, Mexico dominated the Dominican Republic to secure a 3-0 (25-18, 25-19, 25-16) victory and progress in the tournament. The Mexicans were led by opposite Yliana Zuñiga, who produced a match-high 16 points, with 11 kills, four aces and one block.

They will now play China, who overcame Croatia 3-0 (25-12, 25-7, 25-11) in the most lopsided match of the Round of 16, with three players reaching double digits in scoring – outside hitters Huang Yuexin (19) and Sun Hongyun (16) and middle blocker Guo Zhongnan (15).

The Asian derby of the Round of 16 had the Chinese Taipei topping Thailand 3-0 (25-14, 25-15, 25-22) to keep charging ahead. They counted on 20 points (18 kills, one block, one ace) from captain Chen Pin-Yu to beat their continental rivals.

The Asians will now face Brazil, who lost their first set in the tournament, but still managed to defeat Egypt 3-1 (25-18, 25-13, 15-25, 25-12) thanks to 13 points from outside hitter Laura Maccarone.

European rivals Italy and Türkiye will meet in the quarterfinals – pushed by ten points from opposite Perla Massaglia, the Italians had no trouble beating Canada 3-0 (25-19, 25-17, 25-17) while the Turkish got 14 points from outside hitter Ceyda Kuyan to take Puerto Rico down 3-0 (25-18, 25-7, 25-18).

The teams eliminated in the Round of 16 will now compete in the playoffs from ninth to 16^th place, which start on Thursday with four duels – the Dominican Republic vs. Croatia at 11:00 local time (16:00 GMT), Canada vs. Puerto Rico at 14:00 (19:00), Thailand vs. Egypt at 17:00 (22:00) and Argentina vs. Ecuador at 20:00 (01:00, Friday).

FIVB Volleyball Girls’ U17 World Championship: results and schedule

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