The team previously standing in ninth place, Voreas Hokkaido, managed to distance themselves even further from the bottom after two away wins over Nagano Tridents, which raised them to seventh place on 4-10 and 13. Nagano dropped from seventh to eighth on 3-11 and 13. In the first game, Voreas achieved a 3-1 (25-18, 25-19, 21-25, 25-21) victory with a team-high 20 points from Taiwanese opposite Chang Yu-Sheng, including four blocks and an ace. His Canadian counterpart Matthew Neaves top-scored 21 points, all in swings, for Nagano. Sunday’s game went five sets, and in the overtime of the tie-breaker, Voreas celebrated another victory, a dramatic 3-2 (23-25, 20-25, 25-23, 29-27, 16-14). This time, Estonian outside hitter Mart Tammearu led the way with 26 points, including three aces and two blocks, while Neaves finished with 25, featuring two aces and four blocks.
Sunday’s competition offered yet another five-set battle, in which Osaka Bluteon, who are also preparing for the upcoming FIVB Volleyball Men’s Club World Championship in Brazil, beat Tokyo Great Bears. Saturday’s game between these two teams finished 3-1 (25-22, 23-25, 26-24, 25-20) hosts Osaka’s way. Bluteon were led by opposite Yuji Nishida with four aces and two kill blocks towards a team-high 19 points, while his Polish counterpart Bartosz Kurek produced a match-high 20 for Tokyo. The second match went 3-2 (25-21, 19-25, 26-28, 28-26, 15-11) in favor of Osaka with a team-high 17 points, all in attack, from Cuban outside Miguel Lopez, while Kurek topped the chart again, with 28 points, including four blocks and an ace. The three sets lost cost Bluteon the first place in the current standings and they fell to second on 13-1 and 37. Great Bears also dropped by one position, down to sixth place on 5-7 and 14.
