The 24-year-old opposite dropped 35 points and helped her team overcome Serbia in five sets in Nanjing
Published 02:39, 06 Jun 2026
Szczurowska was unstoppable in the third VNL match of her career
The bronze medalists of the last three editions of the Volleyball Nations League (VNL), Poland became the first national team to secure their third victory in this year's tournament on Friday.
The Europeans extended their winning streak in the opening week of the event by taking down continental rivals Serbia with a hard-fought 3-2 (17-25, 25-19, 25-18, 22-25, 17-15) victory in Nanjing, China.
With their third victory in as many matches, the Poles head into their only day off the week sitting at the top of the VNL standings with seven points - they defeated Belgium in five sets on Wednesday and swept Czechia on Thursday. Italy, Brazil, Japan and Czechia each have six points.
A new face in the Polish national team this season, 24-year-old opposite Julia Szczurowska rose to the occasion and led their victory with an outstanding performance. The player, who had tallied 25 points in her debut against the Belgians, took her game to another level against the Serbians, firing 35 (30 kills, four aces, one block), the highest mark achieved by a single player in the VNL 2026 so far.
#VNL2026 : WELCOME TO THE 30s CLUB, JULIA 🇵🇱🔥
— Volleyball World (@volleyballworld) June 5, 2026
Julia Szczurowska 🇵🇱 is making waves in her first #VNL season, dropping a huge 3️⃣5️⃣ points in this five-set thriller against Serbia 🤩.
📺 Watch the replays on VBTV: https://t.co/tLeKGVNZId
🏐 #BePartOfTheGame #Volleyball pic.twitter.com/GVKVLraB5Y
The team coached by Stefano Lavarini also had outside hitter Julita Piasecka contributing 17 points (16 kills, one block). Serbia, which have a win and a loss with four points amassed, had outside hitter Aleksandra Uzelac as their leading scorer with 25 points (21 kills, two blocks, two aces).
The first match of the day in Nanjing was resolved in three sets and had Czechia sweeping Belgium 3-0 (25-20, 25-22, 25-15). Veteran outside hitter Helena Grozer scored 15 points (11 kills, three blocks, one ace) for the winning side, one more than team captain Michaela Mlejnková and opposite Monika Brancuská.
Saturday's match schedule in Nanjing has Thailand and Belgium clashing at 15:00 local time (7:00 GMT) and China and Serbia meeting at 19:30 (11:30 GMT).
In Brasília, Brazil, the third day of matches was marked by victories of European teams. The first duel of the day at the Nilson Nelson stadium had Bulgaria dominate the Dominican Republic to a 3-0 (25-19, 25-19, 25-13) win. Opposite Mikaela Stoyanova led the way for the Bulgarians with a 21-point (17 kills, four blocks) performance.
A few hours later, back-to-back defending champions Italy returned to action after a day off and continued to roll, securing their second 3-0 (25-22, 25-18, 25-22) victory in Brazil, this one over the Netherlands. Young opposite Merit Adigwe scored 18 points (15 kills, two blocks, one ace) for the reigning Olympic and world champions, four more than Ekaterina Antropova, who continues to settle at the outside hitter spot.
The action continues on Saturday in Brasília, where hosts Brazil will play Bulgaria at 11:00 local time (14:00 GMT) and Italy will face Türkiye at 13:30 (16:30 GMT).
In Québec City, Canada, star outside hitter Mayu Ishikawa had a great showing, leading Japan to victory against rookies Ukraine, who were fresh from their first-ever VNL victory on Thursday. With 22 points (18 kills, four aces) scored by their captain, the Asians overcame the Europeans 3-1 (25-20, 16-25, 25-16, 25-20) to continue undefeated.
The last match of the day had plenty of drama and ended with the United States coming out on top against France in a five-set battle, winning 3-2 (25-21, 23-25, 27-25, 23-25, 15-11). Outside hitter Simone Wank, with 24 points (22 kills, one block, one ace), and opposite Stephanie Samedy, with 20 (18 kills, one block, one ace), were both instrumental in the American victory, while French outside hitter Lilou Ratahiry topped all scorers with 26 points (21 kills, four aces, one block).
Another doubleheader is coming up on Saturday in Québec City - it starts with the duel involving hosts Canada and France at 14:30 local time (18:30 GMT) and ends with Germany facing Japan at 18:00 (22:00 GMT).
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