Making just their second participation in the event, the Ukrainians got to celebrate their second World Championship victory ever and their first since 1994, when they topped Italy in a pool play match. With the three points collected, they ended up in third place in Pool H.
Middle blocker Diana Meliushkyna was Ukraine’s top scorer in the historic match with 13 points (nine kills, three blocks, one ace), one more than opposite Anna Artyshuk (nine kills, three aces) and two more than outside hitter Oleksandra Milenko (ten kills, one ace).
“We did a great job to win a World Championship match for our country,” outside hitter Valeriia Nudha reacted. “This is such a big deal. We’re all happy to be here, and it was a big experience for our team. We were able to play well against some of the best teams in the world. Unfortunately, we didn’t get enough points to advance, but it was a great experience.”
