June 19, 2026.- Kiera Van Ryk reached the 1,000-point milestone in the Women’s Volleyball Nations League (VNL) on Friday, helping Canada secure its fourth victory of the season, while the Dominican Republic fell to Serbia and further complicated its position in the tournament standings.
Canadian Kiera Van Ryk Reaches 1,000-Point Milestone in VNL Victory Over Bulgaria
Canadian opposite Kiera Van Ryk reached an important milestone of 1,000 career points in the Volleyball Nations League (VNL). In Friday’s match against Bulgaria in Bangkok, she led her team to a four-set victory.
Van Ryk needed only three points to surpass the 1,000-point mark and achieved it in the second set of Canada’s hard-fought 3-1 (25-17, 23-25, 25-23, 28-26) victory over Bulgaria. The 1.88-meter attacker continued to score throughout the match and finished with a match-high 19 points, including one kill block. With that performance, she increased her all-time VNL total to 1,016 points, ranking 11th on the all-time list, just one point shy of breaking into the top 10.
Canada overcame a high number of unforced errors by outperforming Bulgaria in attack, holding a 55-39 advantage in kills, and at the net with a 14-8 edge in blocks.
Middle blocker and team captain Emily Maglio contributed six of Canada’s 14 blocks, while also recording four aces and six successful attacks to finish with 16 points. Outside hitter Alexa Gray, middle blocker Nyadholi Thokbuom, and 20-year-old outside hitter Abagayle Guezen also reached double figures in scoring with 14, 13, and 11 points, respectively.
Unfortunately for Canada, starting setter Brie Fransen suffered an ankle injury during the match. However, her replacement, Quinn Pelland, delivered an excellent performance, guiding the Canadian offense to victory.
Bulgaria produced its best performance so far in the Thai capital. The Europeans outscored Canada in aces, 8-6, and committed 26 unforced errors, ten fewer than the Canadians.
With the victory, Canada improved its record to 4-2 with 13 points, moving up to seventh place in the current VNL standings. Bulgaria remains in 17th place, second from the bottom of the table, with a 1-6 record and three points.
Dominican Republic Falls to Serbia
The Serbian women’s national team earned a 3-0 (25-19, 25-23, 25-18) victory over the Dominican Republic on Friday in the continuation of Week 2, Pool 5 action of the Women’s VNL.
The Dominicans, boosted by the return of captain Brayelin Martínez and Gaila González for extended playing time, suffered their sixth loss of the tournament.
The Caribbean offense was led by Geraldine González, who scored 11 points, including five blocks. Jineirys Martínez added 10 points, while Brayelin Martínez and Gaila González contributed eight points each.
In the team statistics, Serbia held the advantage in attacks (42-37) and aces (5-1), while both teams finished even in blocks with eight apiece.
Schedule of Matches for Saturday, June 20
In the Philippines (local time)
United States vs. Italy at 4:00 p.m.
Dominican Republic vs. Japan at 8:00 p.m.
In Thailand (local time)
Canada vs. Thailand at 8:30 p.m.
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