Unstoppable Wada helps Japan keep their record perfect against Canada

Last year’s silver medalists Japan ended the fourth day of the Volleyball Nations League 2025 clear at the top of the standings after the Asians secured their third straight-set victory in Ottawa, Canada, on Saturday.

After taking down the Netherlands and Serbia, the Japanese were faced with the home team, and not even the support of the fans at The Arena at TD Place was enough to stop them from getting their third sweep in as many matches. Bulgaria also triumphed in Ottawa on Saturday, overcoming European rivals Serbia in the tie-breaker.

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Japan’s third straight win in the VNL started with a tight victory in the first set, but after that the Asians took full control of the match to beat Canada 3-0 (26-24, 25-20, 25-19) and collect 6.54 FIVB World Ranking points - they are sixth in the list.

The positive result also placed the Japanese by themselves at the top of the standings, with nine points earned – Paris Olympic medalists Italy and Brazil and reigning European champions Türkiye come next, with eight points each.

High-flying opposite Yukiko Wada had a tremendous performance for the Japanese team, delivering 20 points with 19 kills and one ace. Team captain and outside hitter Mayu Ishikawa came next, with nine (seven kills, two aces).

“We knew the match was going to be tough and that’s what we saw in the first set,” Wada said. “We tried to use our serving to our favor and to be aggressive with our offense. I’m happy that we got to solve the problems we had on the court.”

Canada outscored Japan in blocks by eight to zero, but their 30 errors to their opponents’ 19 proved too much. Captain and opposite Kiera Van Ryk led their offense with 13 points (11 kills, one block, one ace), while outside hitter Hilary Johnson added nine (seven kills, two blocks).

Bulgaria take the world champions down

The second match of the day in Ottawa saw Bulgaria produce another surprising result in the VNL 2025, taking down reigning world champions Serbia. After beating the Dominican Republic 3-1 on Thursday, the Europeans needed all five sets to overcome their continental rivals 3-2 (12-25, 25-19, 25-16, 10-25, 17-15).

Up-and-coming opposite Mikaela Stoyanova had a big role in the second Bulgarian victory in three matches, scoring a team-high 18 points against the Serbians, with ten kills, an impressive six blocks and two aces. Team captain and outside hitter Elitsa Atanasijević added 15, with 14 kills and one block.

Outside hitter Aleksandra Uzelac had another strong performance in the VNL 2025, tallying 23 points (19 kills, two blocks, two aces), but still couldn't take the Serbians to their first victory in the tournament. Middle blocker Hena Kurtagić also had a good night, contributing 15 points, with nine kills and six blocks.

VNL 2025 – Match Schedule & Results

All six teams that are part of Pool 1 will be in action on Sunday, the last day of matches in Ottawa. The Dominican Republic and Japan will meet in the first match of the day, scheduled for 11:00 local time (15:00 GMT), with Bulgaria and the Netherlands battling at 14:30 (18:30 GMT) and Canada and Serbia ending the day at 18:00 (22:00 GMT).

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