VNL 2025

Netherlands beat Czechia to propel Germany to VNL Finals

Americans, Dutch and Czechs in contention for last available spot

Published 04:25, 12 Jul 2025

Czechia (CZE) vs. Netherlands (NED) women - Pool 7 - Preliminary Phase #51257260

Fantastic atmosphere for the Netherlands v Czechia match in Apeldoorn

Another spot at the women’s Volleyball Nations League Finals was booked on Saturday and left only one last vacancy up for grabs. With the Netherlands’ five-set victory over Czechia in Apeldoorn, Germany claimed a ticket to Lodz and left three teams – USA, the Netherlands and Czechia – in contention for the one remaining berth in Poland. The Americans occupy the coveted eighth place in the current VNL standings on a 6-4 win-loss record and 17 points, and two points from two games remaining will get the job done for them. The Dutch surpassed the Czechs into the ninth place. They stand on 5-6 and 15, while Czechia are on 5-6 and 14.

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In a hard-fought battle, the Netherlands delighted the home fans with a 3-2 (25-23, 23-25, 14-25, 25-19, 15-10) rollercoaster victory over Czechia. 22-year-old opposite Elles Dambrink fueled the Dutch with a match-high 21 points, including one ace and one kill block, on the way to success. She was supported by 20-year-old outside hitter Helena Kok with 15 points, while 22-year-old middle blocker Britte Stuut contributed 10 points.

“Maybe it was because of all the people here,” exclaimed 22-year-old outside Iris Vos to VBTV after the match. “It’s crazy to play – these guys are amazing! They really helped me through all of it. Almost everybody played today and everybody was really important. We needed everybody and finally it worked, so it was great. We managed our block-defense and that made the difference.”

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20-year-old opposite Monika Brancuska was Czechia’s most prolific scorer of the game with 19 points. Another three Czech players reached the double digits – outside and captain Michaela Mlejnkova with 16, 22-year-old outside Magdalena Bukovska with 14, and middle blocker Magdalena Jehlarova, who raised five kill blocks to finish with a total of 10 points.

“The game today was very special, because the gym was full. With all the people in orange, it was a great atmosphere! I saw all the people clapping… We really enjoyed it here,” commented Czechia’s libero Daniela Digrinova. “We came here to fight as a team, to improve ourselves, and to win as much as we can. We put it as our standard goal to win two games a week and I hope we can still make it.”