China closer to Łódź after thrilling five-set victory over the Dominican Republic

China got one step closer to qualifying for the Volleyball Nations League 2025 Finals after they showed impressive determination and cold blood to get their first victory in the third and last week of the event’s Preliminary Phase on Wednesday in Arlington.

Facing the Dominican Republic, a direct contender for one of the four spots left in the VNL 2025 Finals, the Asians were slightly better to prevail 3-2 (25-22, 17-25, 22-25, 25-22, 15-13) at the College Park Center and get closer to making the trip to Łódż, Poland, where the Finals are going to be held from July 23-27.

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With the victory over the Queens of the Caribbean, the Asians remained in sixth place, but are a little bit more comfortable in the VNL standings, now having six wins and 17 points. Perhaps more importantly, they prevented the Dominicans, who rank tenth with four wins and ten points, from making a push at the start of the last week of the Preliminary Phase.

Outside hitter Mengjie Wu was instrumental in the Chinese victory, leading her team with an impressive 25 points (22 kills, two aces, one block) – it was her fourth straight match with 24 points or more in the VNL 2025.

Team captain and opposite Gong Xiangyu overcame a slow start, which saw her register just one point in the first two sets, to end the match as the team’s second most productive player, with 18 points (16 kills, two blocks).

“Our players deserve a lot of credit for this victory,” head coach Yong Zhao said. “They played with a lot of fire and fought back. We did a good job with our blocking and defense at the end of the match. We’ll look into this match and see where we can improve for the next ones.”

Blocking was a key factor in the Chinese victory as the Asians got 15 points at the net against just ten of their opponents. That helped offset the Dominican dominance in kills (74 to 65) and aces (eighth to six). It was a match of not many errors, with the Dominicans giving up 18 points and the Chinese, 15.

Named team captain this week, star outside hitter Brayelin Martinez kep the Dominicans in the game with a tremendously productive performance – she left the court with 33 points, registering 28 kills and five blocks. Opposite Gaila Gonzalez also stood out, tallying 22 points (17 kills, five aces).

“I thought we were pretty aggressive and our serving was really good,” setter Ariana Rodriguez said. “China had their good points, obviously, because they’re a great team, but we never gave up. We played all five sets, went back and forth, but somebody has to lose.”

Germany beat Canada in five

In the first match of the week in Arlington, Germany came out on top in another five-set battle against Canada, winning 3-2 (24-26, 25-20, 23-25, 25-23, 15-13). Hosts the United States and Thailand play later, at 19:30 local time (00:30 GMT, Thursday).

Volleyball Nations League 2025: full schedule and results

On Thursday, Thailand and Germany will face off at 16:00 (21:00 GMT), with the USA and the Dominican Republic meeting later, at 19:30 (00:30 GMT, Friday).

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