Thompson’s return key in USA’s VNL debut

Three-time defending Volleyball Nations League champions USA had a solid start to their 2022 VNL campaign on Tuesday, defeating the Dominican Republic in straight sets (25-21, 25-17, 25-18), but the best news for the Americans might lie elsewhere.

· Watch all VNL 2022 matches on Volleyball TV.

The match played in Shreveport-Bossier City, USA, featured a spectacular return by opposite Jordan Thompson, who had been sidelined for most of the last ten months after sustaining a severe right ankle injury.

The 25-year-old Thompson got injured during the pool play stage at last year’s Tokyo Olympics and never returned to the court during the American campaign, which ended with the team standing at the top of the podium at the Ariake Arena.

The opposite tried to return to action during the club season with Eczacibasi in Türkiye, but after just a few matches the condition of her ankle worsened and she ended up sitting out of the rest of the season to recover fully.

That made of her one of the first American players to start preparing for the VNL, and it certainly showed in their victory against the Dominicans when Thompson tallied a match-high 15 points with 13 kills, one block and one ace.

JORDAN THOMPSON - VNL PLAYER STATISTICS

“It’s been awesome to be back,” she said after the match. “I’m just so excited to be back in the gym and to be playing with these women. They’re so incredibly talented and the staff is amazing. We’ve been training really hard in the past few weeks and we’re really excited to continue competing. The younger girls are so talented and they bring so much in terms of competitiveness and aggression to the gym. We love having that fresh energy, especially after the Olympics.”

The only member of the American Olympic roster to be on the court against the Dominicans, Thompson, however, was not the only player to reach 15 points. Outside hitters Sarah Wilhite (ten kills, three blocks, two aces) and Alexandra Frantti (13 kills, two blocks) scored the same number of points too.

Volleyball Nations League 2022: Full schedule

After their successful 2022 VNL debut, the Americans will be back on the court on Friday, when they face NORCECA rivals Canada at 20.00 local time (03.00 on Thursday GMT).

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