USA took the much needed victory in their last match of the women’s Volleyball Nations League Preliminary Phase to secure the last available spot in next week’s Finals in Thailand and did so in an emphatic manner, defeating hosts Japan in straight sets in Fukuoka on Sunday. In other key matches on the last competition day, Brazil defeated defending champions Türkiye to finish the stage undefeated in 12 games, Italy and China also finished on a high note by beating reigning world champions Serbia and Poland, respectively, to shape up next week’s quarterfinal match-ups as follows: Brazil v Thailand, Italy v USA, Poland v Türkiye, and China v Japan.
VNL 2024
USA shut out Japan to secure last spot at VNL Finals
The Preliminary Phase is over and the quarterfinal match-ups set
Published 02:10, 16 Jun 2024
China and Japan will open the event in Bangkok on Thursday, June 20, at 17:00 local time (10:00 UTC), followed by hosts Thailand taking on Brazil at 20:30 (13:30). Friday’s second competition day will open with the quarterfinal between Italy and USA at 17:00 (10:00). The last semifinalist will emerge from the clash between Poland and Türkiye at 20:30 (13:30).
The final list of women’s teams that qualified for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games will be officially presented shortly.
- Watch Volleyball Nations League 2024 live on VBTV
The ambience in Fukuoka before Japan’s last game of the Preliminary Phase, against USA
In front of an official count of 7,618 fans on the stands in Fukuoka, the United States outplayed Japan on all counts to celebrate a 3-0 (25-15, 25-18, 26-24) victory and finish the Preliminary Phase in seventh place on a 7-5 win-loss record and 22 points, just above the cut-off for the Finals a point clear of the Netherlands, who kept their hopes up after defeating Korea by a convincing 3-0 (25-21, 25-11, 25-17) earlier on Sunday in Fukuoka. Three players shared the top-scorer honours of the match between Japan and USA. American outside hitter Avery Skinner, American opposite Andrea Drews and Japanese outside Mayu Ishikawa finished with 13 points each. Two more US players reached the double digits, a testament to setter Lauren Carlini’s great performance in distributing the attacks. Star outside Jordan Larson produced 12 points, while middle blocker Anna Stevenson Hall added another 11. Japan’s substitute opposite Yukiko Wada also registered 11 points. The Asian team ended up on 8-4 and 25 in fifth place in the Preliminary Phase standings.
Over in Hong Kong, in front of 9,710 spectators, Brazil made sure to complete their perfect run through the Preliminary Phase with 12 consecutive victories. The dessert was an emphatic 3-0 (25-14, 25-14, 25-19) sweep of their encounter with defending VNL champions Türkiye. Opposite Rosamaria Montibeller led the way with 14 points, including two kill blocks. Middle blocker Ana Carolina Da Silva (Carol) impressed with three kill blocks and two aces to reach the double digits with an 11-point total. On the European champions’ side, opposite Melissa Vargas topped the chart with 13 points. The mighty Brazilians won the Preliminary Phase on 12-0 and 34, while last year’s winners finished sixth on 8-4 and 25.
Hong Kong hosted the last match of the Preliminary Phase, with as many as 10,542 fans cheering from the stands. China delighted the home crowd by handing Poland their second defeat of the season, an emphatic 3-0 (25-23, 25-15, 25-19) straight-setter. Four players reached the double digits in scoring, all on the Chinese squad. Middle blocker and captain Yuan Xinyue led the way with 16 points, including two aces and two blocks, followed by outsides Li Yingying and Wu Mengjie with 14 and 11 points, respectively, and middle Wang Yuanyuan with 10. The Asian team improved to 9-3 and 26 to rise to fourth place in the final standings, while Poland finished third on 10-2 and 30.
Ecstatic Chinese captain Yuan Xinyue
Taking advantage of Poland’s setback in their last game, Italy took second place on 10-2 and 31, after claiming a 3-1 (25-20, 20-25, 25-23, 25-22) victory over Serbia in their last match earlier on Sunday in Fukuoka, with most of both teams’ big stars resting. Italian opposite Ekaterina Antropova produced a match-high 18 points. Outside hitter Alice Degradi added another 17, while middle blocker Sara Bonifacio finished with 11. On Serbia’s side, opposite Vanja Bukilic and outside Vanja Ivanovic led the way with 16 and 15 points, respectively. The reigning world champions finished 11th on 3-9 and 9 and failed to qualify for the Finals.
In Sunday’s first match in Hong Kong, Germany shut out Thailand by a solid 3-0 (25-17, 25-21, 25-20) and surpassed the opponents into the 12th place in the table as both teams finished on 3-9, but the Germans collected 14 points against Thailand’s 12. The Asian team, however, will play in next week’s Finals as the host nation.
For the Netherlands, Canada, the Dominican Republic, Serbia and Germany, who lined up in the places from eighth to 12th, as well as for France, Korea and Bulgaria, who finished 14th, 15th and 16th, respectively, VNL 2024 is over.
