Tag: 2024 VNL Female

June 15, 2024.- On Saturday, young Dominican Republic’s opposite Alondra Tapia became one of just four players to score 37 points or more in a VNL match, but saw her team go down to Bulgaria in Hong Kong, while Canada swept France in Fukouka, Japan.

The 20-year-old Dominican had a stellar performance, leaving the court with 35 kills, one block and one ace to her name. The second-best scorer in her team was outside hitter Yonkaira Peña, who tallied 14 points.

Bulgaria defeated Dominican Republic 3-2 (2426, 25-23, 25-22, 24-26, 15-13).

Dominican Republic concludes the 2024 VNL with a record of two wins and nine losses.

Canada  swept France 3-0 (25-14, 25-18, 31-29), with France pushing Canada into overtime points from a tie at 24 in the third set. After multiple match-point opportunities, Canada’s Kiera Van Ryk, who scored 26 points, ended the contest with the final kill at 31-29.

Canada dominated in attacks (53-33), and led in blocks (12-7), while France had more aces (6-3) and made fewer errors (13-16).

This was the second narrow margin for Olympic qualification by this gutsy squad – at last year’s Olympic Qualification Tournament, Canada’s women’s team narrowly missed earning a spot in Paris, coming a close third in their pool. This time around, Canada needed to edge ahead of Netherlands in the rankings to put the team in contention for a position to qualify for Paris 2024. 

Canada has completed all of its 12 matches with seven wins and five losses.

June 14, 2024.- Poland, ranked third in the world, secured a hard-fought 3-0 victory over the Dominican Republic (2-8) with scores of 33-31, 25-20, 25-16 in a match of week three of the Volleyball Nations League in Hong Kong.

The Dominican Republic, ranked 11th in the world, will conclude their participation in VNL at 1:30 AM this Saturday when they face Bulgaria starting at 1:30 AM.

The match was fiercely contested in the first two sets, with thrilling plays, although in the third set, the game opened up in favor of the Polish.

The attack for the victors, who are in second place with nine wins, was led by Stysiak who scored 24 points, followed by Lukassik with 11 and Rosanski with 8.

For the Caribbean team, Yonkaira Peña excelled with 16 points, and Alondra Tapia added 11 points.

The first set was a nail-biter, as the Dominican team started behind (15-12) against Poland, which presented a fierce attack, with an impenetrable block and solid defense.

However, a tip attack from Alondra Tapia tied the score at 20 points after a 3-0 rally by the Dominicans.

From there, both teams engaged in a battle for the ball, and the score was tied about 12 times until Poland took the set 33-31.

June 14, 2024.- Canada will conclude 2024 Volleyball Nations League this weekend with a respectable record and many highlights, but likely falling short of its goal of an Olympic berth.

Earlier today, Netherlands shut out Canada in one of the week’s most anticipated women’s Volleyball Nations League matches in Fukuoka, Japan, just two days before the race for the last Olympic tickets to the women’s volleyball tournament at Paris 2024 officially closes on Sunday.

The Netherlands won 3-0 (26-24, 25-16, 25-23) in the head-to-head encounter with Canada and that result moved Netherlands up in the ranking points for an Olympic spot, just over 22 points ahead of Canada. 

Aside from today’s loss, overall Canada had surpassed expectations, beating many top teams in the last couple of years.

“If you told me three years ago that we’d be in this situation, fighting to go to the Olympics, I wouldn’t have believed you,” Canada’s captain Alexa Gray said in the post-match interview on VBTV. “This group has grown so much and we’ve been through a lot together, climbing in the rankings the past few years, and seeing everyone grow as a team and playing better and better volleyball each year. I’m so proud of this group. I’m honoured to represent Canada and play with these girls.”

In its final match of VNL preliminary phase, Canada faces France on Saturday in Japan, which is 11 pm Eastern time on Friday in Canada. France is automatically in the Olympics as host country. Canada currently has six wins and five losses in VNL 2024.

June 13, 2024.- Canada came out on top of an intense five-set battle at 2024 Volleyball Nations League in Fukuoka, Japan, over the host nation today. 

The final score was Japan 2 Canada 3 (25-23, 25-22, 20-25, 21-25, 14-16).

“That was a big win for us,” said Canada’s head coach Shannon Winzer of her team’s comeback effort after being down two sets to none. “We knew we had to be patient on attack and then work hard on defense around our block and while we kept falling just short in two very close first and second sets, we found our rhythm and our confidence in the third and kept going from there. Big team effort tonight!”

It was a back-and-forth affair, with Canada just edging out Japan in attack points (68-67), service aces even at six and Canada making more errors 26-24. However, Canada’s block was effective with 13 points compared with six for Japan.

Alexa Gray with 30 points and Kiera Van Ryk with 27 points led the attack for Canada. Sarina Koga was top scorer for Japan with 20 points.

Canada is still in a tight race to qualify for Paris 2024. More on that process can be found here: https://bit.ly/3xfcDB0

Canada’s next match – a crucial contest against Netherlands as both teams are still vying for an Olympic berth – is at 2:30 am ET on Friday.

HONG KONG, China, June 13, 2024. – Top-ranked Türkiye recovered after losing the first set and had to give their all to defeat the Dominican Republic 3-1 (17-25, 25-15, 25-17, 25-18) to continue  week three of the Volleyball Nations League in Hong Kong.

The Dominican Republic, now with a record of 2-7, will face Poland in the early hours of Friday at 4:55 a.m. (Eastern Time).

Türkiye outperformed in attacks (55-38), blocks (11-7), and service points (9-6). The Dominican team committed fewer unforced errors (17-24).

Alondra Tapia had an outstanding match both offensively and defensively, scoring 14 points, followed by Lisvel Eve-Mejía with 10. Madeline Guillén and Yonkaira Peña each scored 8 points.

Türkiye’s offensive attack was led by Hande Baladın and Ebrar Karakurt, each scoring 17 points, while Melissa Vargas contributed 14 points.

In the first set, the Dominican players appeared very relaxed and focused, setting their pace in both offense and defense, with Yonkaira Peña and Alondra Tapia successfully challenging the Turkish defense.

The Dominican defense was crucial in containing their rivals, who hold the top position in the world rankings. Brayelin Martínez came in at times for substitutions, and for the second game in a row, opposite hitter Gaila González did not see action due to an injury.

The Dominican team took advantage of the fact that Türkiye’s main attacker, Melissa Vargas, was significantly underperforming in the offense.

In the second set, Türkiye came back strongly with attackers Karakurt and Vargas, who battered the opposing defense with powerful spikes.

The first few minutes were closely contested; however, Karakurt pushed Türkiye ahead on the scoreboard at 8-6. From there, they solidified their attacks and defense to extend the lead.

Türkiye executed two rallies of 4-0 and another of 3-0, which were lethal for the Dominicans, who couldn’t read  their opponents’ rhythm. Karakurt ended the set with nine points, and Melissa with eight. It was evident that the “Queens of the Caribbean” lost the joyful playstyle from the first set and were consistently on the defensive.

In the third set, Türkiye managed to maintain dominance over their rivals once again, with Karakurt and Melissa leading the winning attack.

After gaining a good advantage 17-13, they never gave up and capitalized on some defensive errors from their opponents. They won 25-17. Melissa Vargas secured several service aces, as did Karakurt.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado, June 12, 2024. – The U.S. Women’s National Team got its second straight sweep in the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) on Wednesday when it beat Netherlands (25-21, 25-20, 25-22) in Fukuoka, Japan.

The U.S. Women (6-4) will continue week 3 at 11:30 p.m. PT on Friday when they will play Italy (7-2). The U.S. is in sixth place in the standings and the top seven teams plus host Thailand advance to the Final Round on June 20-23. The Netherlands, which is fighting for an Olympic berth by virtue of its world ranking at the end of VNL, fell to 5-5.

Three players led the U.S. Women with 13 points each. Outside hitter Kelsey Robinson Cook had a match-high 11 kills and two aces. Middle blocker Dana Rettke finished with 10 kills, two blocks and one ace. Opposite Annie Drews, who made her 2024 VNL debut, scored on 10 kills, two aces and one block.

“I think, more than the score, I’m just trying to contribute what I can and bring the energy,” Drews told Volleyball World. “Things that weren’t happening on our side of the court took a backseat today.”

The U.S. Women led Netherlands in kills (48-40) and aces (5-0). Netherlands led in blocks (8-6). The U.S. scored 16 points on Dutch errors and committed 15.

Middle Chiaka Ogbogu scored 12 points on nine kills and a team-high three blocks. Outside hitter Kathryn Plummer scored five points on five kills.

Setter Lauren Carlini scored three points on three kills and set the team to a .321 hitting efficiency. Libero Justine Wong-Orantes made some critical plays and was credited with 11 digs and two successful receptions.

The teams were tied 19-19 in the first set when the U.S. scored on successive kills from Cook, Plummer and Drews and a block from Ogbogu to lead 23-19. Netherlands scored twice and the U.S. called timeout. The U.S. reached set point with a Plummer kill and won the match on a Dutch hitting error.

The U.S. jumped out to a 6-2 lead in the second set and never trailed.

The U.S. led the third set 21-18. Netherlands pulled to within one at 23-22. The U.S. scored the final two points on kills by Carlini and Cook.

June 11, 2024 .- Dominican Republic defeated Germany 3-1 (26-24, 21-25, 25-21, 25-21) in the first match of Week 3 of the Volleyball Nations League in Hong Kong, China.

The Dominican Republic currently sits in 11th place with a record of 3-6. Their next opponent will be Turkey, the reigning VNL champions.

Dominican Republic had a slight edge in attacks (52-51) and conceded fewer points from  errors (21-26). Both teams were even in blocks (11-11) and aces (8-8).

The Dominican offense was led by its two outside hitters, Yonkaira Peña and Madeline Guillen. Peña scored 18 points, and Guillen added 16 points. Opposite hitter Alondra Tapia contributed 15 points.

Middle blocker Camilla Weitzel led Germany with 18 points, and opposite Emilia Weske scored 15 points.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado, June 11, 2024. – The U.S. Women’s National Team opened week 3 of the Volleyball Nations League preliminary round with a sweep (25-15, 26-24, 25-20) of France on Tuesday in Fukuoka, Japan.

The U.S. Women (5-4) will continue week 3 at 8 p.m. on Wednesday when they will play Netherlands (5-4). The U.S. is in seventh place in the standings and the top seven teams plus host Thailand advance to the Final Round on June 20-23.

U.S. opposite Jordan Thompson led all scorers against France with 20 points on a match-high 17 kills (.371 hitting efficiency), two aces and one block.

“I was really proud with how we stuck together as a team,” Thompson told Volleyball World. “We could obviously play more clean, but I was really happy we could win in three.”

The U.S. Women led France in kills (46-38) and aces (7-3). The U.S. scored 20 points on France’s errors and committed 12. France led in blocks (6-3).

After finishing the first set with eight errors, France cleaned up its play in the second set and led 18-16. The U.S. used a Thompson kill and ace from Larson to tie the score. At 20-20, the U.S. scored twice on a kill from Carlini and an attack from Thompson, but the teams were tied again at 23-23. The U.S. called timeout and France followed with a service error that gave the U.S. set point. A U.S. service error tied it at 24. Kills from Larson and Carlini gave the U.S. the set win.

The third set stayed close until the U.S. used a service run by Thompson to increase its lead from 7-6 to 10-6 and rolled to the match win.

June 11, 2024.- The third competition week of 2024 Volleyball Nations League’s preliminary phase is underway in Fukuoka, Japan, for Canada’s women’s team.

It was not the start that Canada was hoping for, with a 3-0 loss (25-16, 25-15, 25-14) to Italy in the week’s opening match for these two teams.

“Italy is an exceptional team, I’d say one of the strongest teams we have faced so far this year,” said Canada’s head coach, Shannon Winzer. “We didn’t play to our full potential for sure, and that is disappointing, no one wants to lose like that, but the margin of error becomes even smaller against such a strong team.”

Stats favoured Italy: 37 to 30 attack points, 11 to 1 blocks, and 7 to 2 in serves. Canada lost eight more points to errors than Italy.

“We struggled on first contact, we struggled on attack…. It just wasn’t a good game at our end. The best thing we can do is take what we can from it and move on as quickly as possible. What we do next is the most important thing.”

Opposite Paola Egonu of Italy led the charge with 18 points for her team; Kiera Van Ryk contributed 13 points to Canada’s effort.

Canada is still in a tight race to qualify for Paris 2024. More on that process can be found here: https://bit.ly/3xfcDB0

Canada’s next match is against host Japan on June 13. 

ARLINGTON, Texas, June 2, 2024.- United States gave itself chances to win, but in the end, it suffered a five-set loss (21-25, 25-20, 25-21, 12-25, 15-12) to the world’s top-ranked team Türkiye in a Volleyball Nations League preliminary match on Sunday at College Park Center.

United States (4-4) split their first eight matches in VNL action and is in eighth place. Eight teams, including host Thailand, will advance to the Final Round. The U.S. will return to play on June 10 at 11:30 p.m. PT against France (1-7) to begin the third and final week of preliminary play in Fukuoka, Japan. Türkiye (6-2) finished the first two rounds in fifth place.

 Seven players scored at least five points for the U.S., whose depth was the key in a dominating fourth set and taking the lead late in the fifth.

Opposite Jordan Thompson recorded team-highs of 13 kills and 16 points, while recording three blocks and seven digs. Jordan Larson finished with 14 points on the outside with 12 kills and two service aces, shared match-high honors with seven successful receptions, and added nine digs.

 Libero Justine Wong-Orantes finished with a team-high 14 digs and setter Jordyn Poulter added 11.

 “We run really deep. We have people who can come off the bench and change games for us,” Poulter said. “This entire VNL, we are looking to get better, and I think tonight we got better. It wasn’t the result we wanted, but we got better. We are going to use the next five days before we leave for Japan to see how much better we can get in our gym.”

 Middle blocker Dana Rettke was the other U.S. player who scored in double digits with 13 points on 10 kills and three blocks. Outside Kathryn Plummer totaled eight points and middle blocker Chiaka Ogbogu led all players with five blocks, adding a pair of kills.

In a remarkably close match, both on the court and statistically, the teams tied with 61 kills. The U.S. held a 14-11 advantage in blocks, while Türkiye had one more ace (4-3). The U.S. scored on 25 of Türkiye’s errors and committed 22.

 “Our team battled incredible fiercely,” U.S. Head Coach Karch Kiraly said. “That was a real positive to take from this. Even when it was rough, we figured out how to push and get to a generally better spot until right at the end of the match.”

 Melissa Vargas of Türkiye showed why she is one of the best players in the world with 27 points on 23 kills, two blocks, and two aces. She also totaled double digits in digs with 10.

June 02, 2024.- Canada’s decisive effort earned the team a 3-0 (25-15, 25-12, 25-18) win over Korea today in Volleyball Nations League play in Arlington, Texas. 

Attackers Kiera Van Ryk and Alexa Gray led scoring with 13 points apiece, followed by middle blocker Emily Maglio with nine points and setter Brie O’Reilly with five aces and seven total points.

“There are no easy games in VNL”, said Canada head coach Shannon Winzer. “Coming out against Korea we wanted to put a lot of pressure on them with serve, work to be clean on block and have our attackers vary their attack in angles and shots. Most importantly we wanted to remind ourselves to enjoy playing the game! I think we did a pretty good job and can find confidence going into an important round three”.

Today, Canada dominated in attack points (44-21), blocks (8-5) and aces (9-4). Errors favored Korea by one (15-14).

It was a marked difference from Friday’s loss to Serbia: “It felt like we played with a ton of pressure against Serbia, and we made mistakes that are uncharacteristic of us. We need to find a way to continue to play free and enjoy the moment, regardless of what is on the line. Pressure is only going to increase and that game gave us good information about ourselves and we can now come up with a plan to handle it better for next time”.

The next round is in Fukuoka, Japan, where Canada plays Italy on June 11, and then Japan, Netherlands and France.

The team sits at five wins and three losses.

The women’s team is still in contention to qualify for Paris 2024 via the World Rankings.

June 1, 2024.- Involving the teams ranked third and fourth in the FIVB World Rankings, the match between Americans and Polish was among the most anticipated of the week in Texas.

The Europeans prevailed over the home side with a 3-1 (29-27, 25-22, 20-25, 25-23) victory, in a rematch of last year’s VNL bronze medal match, which was also held in Arlington.

Tokyo Olympics MVP outside hitter Jordan Larson carried the American offense, with 21 points (20 kills, one block), followed by opposite Jordan Thompson, with 18 (16 kills, one block, one ace).

United States (4-3) will finish their first round of VNL on Sunday against world No. 1-ranked Türkiye (5-2) on Sunday. Poland finished its first round on Saturday at 8-0.

Dominican Republic ends Week 2

Dominican Republic fell in a hard-fought 1-3 (20-25, 25-23, 24-26, 23-25) to Japan.

Dominican opposite Gaila Gonzalez-Lopez hammered out the match high of 25 points, supported by outsides Madeline Guillen and Yonkaira Pena Isabel with 16 points apiece.

Koga led Japan win 19 points, all on offense. Hayashi and Ishikawa finished with 15 points each, while middle blocker Nichika Yamada added another 10, four of which in stuff blocks.

Dominican Republic has a 2-6 win-loss record.

ARLINGTON, Texas, May 31, 2024. – After two days off from competition, the U.S. Women’s National Team returned to the court and won its third consecutive match in Volleyball Nations League preliminary play with a 3-0 (25-17, 25-22, 25-22) triumph over Bulgaria on Friday night.

The U.S. Women (4-2), ranked fourth in the latest FIVB world rankings, come back tomorrow to face first-place (7-0) and world’s third-ranked Poland at 2:30 p.m. PT/4:30 p.m. CT. Poland has dropped just one set in this year’s VNL and defeated the U.S. in last year’s VNL bronze medal match. Bulgaria, which broke a four-match losing streak with a 3-2 win over Korea on Wednesday, fell to 1-5.

Outside hitter and Texas native Avery Skinner had a tremendous match in her home state, leading all players with 17 kills and 19 points, adding 10 digs and a team-high four successful receptions.

Outside hitter Ali Frantti, who was one of three U.S. players to total 10 points, is embracing her veteran status. “I want to help the new women out. It feels weird to be older, but I am trying to take on more of a leadership role and I am excited for it,” said Frantti, who was playing with former Penn State teammates Micha Hancock and Haleigh Washington. “In the second set, I was looking at the lineup and thinking this was six, seven, eight years ago we were doing this. It has been great to play with Micah and Haleigh for all these years. It’s really a special moment for us.”

Middle blocker Washington finished with 10 points, hitting .615 with nine kills and one error in 13 total attacks, while setter Hancock led the team with three blocks, scored seven points, totaled 10 digs, and ran the offense that hit .453 with a 20-kill advantage, 51-31.

Though she usually plays outside hitter, Khalia Lanier made her debut at opposite for the U.S. Women and finished with 10 points on 10 kills while scoring the winning point in each of the final two sets.

“Khalia did a really nice job in a position she doesn’t play very much,” U.S. Head Coach Karch Kiraly said. “Credit to (setter) Micha Hancock for having confidence in Khalia to get that kill to finish out the second set and the third.”

“I’m happy to get an opportunity, wherever it is,” Lanier said. “I think I started with two errors. I definitely had to work out some kinks. But it feels good to be on the court, no matter what position, in a USA jersey.”

Libero Morgan Hentz was one of three U.S. players with double-digit digs, leading all players with 11. Middle Asjia O’Neal finished with seven points on five kills and joining Skinner and Frantti with two blocks.

With the U.S. using its sixth different lineup in as many matches, Kiraly was encouraged by what he saw through two sets. “We haven’t been together that long and it’s not that easy. It’s the same for all the teams in VNL. You have to get it together quickly and see if we can run a really smooth offense. So far, we’ve seen some really nice glimpses,” he said.

Asked what he would deem a success apart from winning, Kiraly stated, “One thing is always that we look the same no matter whether we won the point or lost the point. No matter how great or how poor we were, we flush that and bring a really good version of ourselves to the next point.”

May 31, 2024.- Canada lost to Serbia in Volleyball Nations League action in Arlington, Texas.

Serbia outplayed Canada to win 3-1 (25-22, 21-25, 26-24, 25-20) as the women’s tournament heats up for all teams.

Though Canada led in attacking, 63-55, the team fell short in blocking (10-9), ace serves (6-2), and had more errors 26-17. Scoring was led by Kiera Van Ryk of Canada (20 points) and her teammate middle blocker Emily Maglio (18 points). Aleksandra Uzelac led the winning side with 19 points.

Captain Alexa Gray told VBTV: “We weren’t scoring as easy as we normally do, and we made a few too many errors in all four sets. I think we’re still trying to find our rhythm this week. But we’re still fighting with some of the best teams in the world and we must bounce back for the next match.”

After a nice 3-0 win over Germany yesterday, today’s loss puts Canada in a tight position in the battle for a Paris berth, now almost neck and neck with the Netherlands, who beat Dominican Republic earlier today, in the ranking points.

Canada has four wins and three losses so far in VNL 2024. 

Canada plays an important match against Korea on Sunday, June 02, also in Arlington.

The women’s team is still in contention to qualify for Paris 2024 via the World Rankings.

Seven women’s teams are already qualified for the Games. The remaining five places are filled by selecting the top five not yet qualified teams in the FIVB World Ranking as of the end of the preliminary phase of Volleyball Nations League.

MACAU, China, May 31, 2024. – Dominican Republic lost 1-3 (17-25, 25-23, 21-25, 17-25) to the Netherlands in what was the Caribbean team’s penultimate match in the second week of the Volleyball Nations League.

The Europeans dominated in all areas of the match with 59-52 in attacks, 11-8 in blocks, and 7-3 in serves, and they were helped by 21 points on unforced errors by the Caribbean team.

Dominican Republic was more effective with 89 positive digs compared to 71 for the Netherlands.

For the Dominican Republic, Yonkaira Peña was the top scorer with 16 points, 15 on kills and one  block. Gaila González contributed 15 points, including 3 blocks and an ace. Vielka Peralta and Geraldine González also reached double digits with 10 points each.

Nova Marring of the Netherlands led all scorers with 21 points, 18 on kills, one block, and two  service points. Elles Dambrink contributed 16 points in the European team’s victory.

On June 1st, the Dominican Republic will conclude their week two of the Women’s VNL facing Japan.

May 30, 2024.- Canada’s women’s team made a statement today with a 3-0 sweep of Germany in Volleyball Nations League (VNL) in Arlington, Texas. 

The set scores were 25-20, 25-15, 25-22. Canada led in attacking (54-40), blocking (8-3), serving (7-3), but had five more errors than Germany.

“We took care of business today,” said head coach Shannon Winzer. “Our game plan was to take out the German middle attack and it starts with service pressure and then finishes with our executing our blocking assignments. The team did a great job of following the game plan and everyone did their jobs today.”

Canada’s Alexa Gray led scoring with 19 points; followed by teammates Kiera Van Ryk with 15, including three aces, and Emily Maglio also with 15 points. Lena Stigrot led Germany in scoring with 11 points.

Canada has four wins and two losses so far in this VNL season.

Setter Brie O’Reilly told VBTV post-match: “I was expecting us to fight really hard; we know how important this week is. I felt like we approached this game focused, point by point and like we were on a mission!”

Concluded Winzer: “It was a very good game and hopefully something we can continue to build on to take on Serbia tomorrow.”

Canada plays 7th-ranked Serbia on Friday, also in Texas, at 4:30 local; 5:30 pm ET.

The women’s team is still in contention to qualify for Paris 2024 via the World Rankings.

MACAO, China, May 30, 2024 – Dominican Republic lost 0-3 (12-25, 19-25, 21-25) to Italy in their second match of the second week of the 2024 Women’s Volleyball Nations League.

The Italian team outperformed the Queens of the Caribbean in all aspects of the game, leading 40-25 in attacks, 8-1 in blocks, and 6-3 in serves. They also capitalized on the 23 unforced errors by the Caribbean team to secure the victory.

Vielka Peralta and Gaila González were the top scorers for the Dominican Republic with 7 points each, while Italian Paola Ogechi Egonu stood out with 20 points.

Dominican Republic has now recorded 4 losses and 2 wins in the 2024 VNL. On May 31, they will face the Netherlands, and they will conclude the second week on June 1 against Japan.

MACAO, China, May 28, 2024. – The Dominican Republic ended up losing 1 set to 3 (22-25, 25-20, 17-25, and 24-26) against Thailand, at the start of the second week of the Women’s Volleyball Nations League.

Dominican Republic has a record of 2-3 and their next opponent will be Italy on Thursday, May 30 (12:30 Eastern Time).

Volleyball Nations League 2024: schedule and results

Thailand was superior to the Caribbean Queens in almost all areas of play, with a 64-61 advantage in attacks and a 5-4 advantage in blocks. They also capitalized on the 23 Dominican unforced errors. The Caribbean team performed better in serving, with 5 aces compared to 4 from the Asians.

Dominican Gaila González was the top scorer of the match with 20 points, 18 on kills and two on blocks. Yonkaira Peña contributed 18 points, and Jineiry Martínez was the third with double digits, scoring 10 points.

The top scorer for Thailand was Hattaya Bamrungsuk with 17 points, consisting of 13 attacks, 2 blocks, and 2 serves. Wipawee Srithong added 16 points to Thailand’s victory.

ARLINGTON, Texas, May 28, 2024.- Playing in front of the home fans in Arlington, United States  opened the second round of Volleyball Nations League preliminary play with a 3-1 (25-22, 25-17, 23-25, 25-20) victory over Canada on Tuesday night.

The United States  (3-2) will return to the court to face Bulgaria (0-4) on Friday, May 31, at 6 p.m. PT/8 p.m. CT.

Canada, which is fighting for a berth at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris based on its world ranking, fell to 3-2. The next match for Canada is Germany on May 30 at 17:00 Eastern time (16:00 local time in Arlington, Texas).

Volleyball Nations League 2024: schedule and results

Outside hitter Kathryn Plummer made her 2024 VNL debut and scored a team-high 16 points on 14 kills and two blocks. Outside hitter Jordan Larson (12 points, two blocks, one ace) and opposite Jordan Thompson (13 kills, one block, one ace) each contributed 15 points.

Middle blockers Dana Rettke and Asjia O’Neal, who were both making their 2024 VNL debuts, had a combined 17 points and five blocks, each finishing with six kills. Rettke posted a team-high three blocks. 

“We had our hands full tonight (with Canada),” U.S. Head Coach Karch Kiraly said. “This was only really day 4 for us together because we had a lot of people finish late in the pro season in Europe… It’s going to be rough and it’s not always going to look pretty, but that’s OK.”

Canada finished with a 59-52 advantage in kills, but the U.S. made only 11 errors in the match, while Canada totaled 33.

Outside hitter Alexa Gray led all scorers with 20 kills and 23 points, while teammate Kiera Van Ryk totaled 17 kills and 20 points. Emily Maglio was also solid for Canada in the middle with eight attack points and three blocks. 

“It’s tough to beat a top team in the world when you make 33 errors,” explains Canada’s head coach, Shannon Winzer. “We have a few things we need to clean up, but we also continue to do a lot right, and we are still in a good position for a strong round. Going into our next game against Germany we want to go back to controlling the ‘controllables’ and being patient in attack. Our subs continue to do a great job for us and our whole team is willing to do whatever is needed to get the job done.”

ARLINGTON, Texas, May 27, 2024.- Three players from Texas and seven Olympic gold medalists are on the roster for the U.S. Women’s National Team at the second round of the Volleyball Nations League, May 28-June 2 in Arlington, Texas.

Volleyball Nations League is the world’s premier annual international indoor volleyball tournament. The top 16 teams in the world play four matches a week for three weeks of preliminary competition. The top eight teams at the end of the preliminaries will go to the Final Round.

The U.S. Women went 2-2 in their first week of play in Rio de Janeiro. In Arlington, they will face Canada (3-1), Bulgaria (0-4), Poland (4-0) and Türkiye (2-2).

Volleyball Nations League 2024: schedule and results

Middle blockers Chiaka Ogbogu and Asjia O’Neal and outside hitter Avery Skinner, who all grew up in Texas, will be on the roster for Arlington.

Ogbogu is a 2020 Olympic gold medalist who grew up in Coppell, Texas, and played for the University of Texas.

O’Neal grew up in Southlake, Texas, and has won two NCAA National Championships with the University of Texas.

Skinner grew up in Katy, Texas, and played at the University of Kentucky, where she won an NCAA National Championship, and later at Baylor.

Olympic gold medalists who are joining Ogbogu on the roster are setters Micha Hancock and Jordyn Poulter, libero Justine Wong-Orantes, outside hitter Jordan Larson, opposite Jordan Thompson and middle Haleigh Washington.

VNL veterans on the roster are libero Morgan Hentz, outside hitters Ali Frantti, Khalia Lanier and Kathryn Plummer, and middle Dana Rettke.

Head Coach Karch Kiraly is a three-time Olympian and three-time gold medalist as a player who took over as head coach in 2013. He has led the U.S. Women to a World Championship in 2014 and an Olympic gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Games.

Kiraly’s first assistant is Tama Miyashiro, who won a silver medal as a libero with the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team. The second assistants will be Marv Dunphy, Alfee Reft and Erin Virtue.

The U.S. Women are the reigning Olympic champions and were ranked No. 2 in the world going into VNL. They have won the VNL three times (2018, ’19, ’21) since its inception in 2018. In 2023, they finished fourth overall.

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil, May 19, 2024.- United States ended the first round of Volleyball Nations League preliminary play on a high note with a sweep (25-23, 25-20, 25-18) of the Dominican Republic on Sunday in Rio de Janeiro.

United States dominated on the attack, leading the Dominican Republic in kills 51-35. The U.S. also led in aces 4-1. The Dominican led in blocks 11-6 and the teams tied in scoring errors 14-14.

Avery Skinner and Chiaka Ogbogu combined for 30 points, with the outside hitter producing 18 and the middle blocker adding another 12. Outside hitter Brayelin Martínez was the Dominican leading scorer with 11 points.

The 7.96 points earned with the sweep helped the United States gain a spot in the World Rankings, moving up to fourth place. The Dominicans remained in ninth place.

Volleyball Nations League 2024: schedule and results

The women will now have a week off in the VNL 2024 before returning to the court from May 28 to June 2. Brazil, the Dominican Republic, France, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Thailand and hosts China will play in Macau while Bulgaria, Canada, Germany, Korea, Poland, Serbia, Türkiye and hosts USA will compete in Arlington.

Next week, the men will start their campaigns with pools in Rio de Janeiro (Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, Germany, Iran, Italy, Japan and Serbia) and Antalya (Bulgaria, Canada, France, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovenia, Türkiye and USA).

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado, May 16, 2024.– The U.S. Women’s National Team fell to China 3-1 (23-25, 25-23, 25-22, 25-19) on Thursday at the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) at the Maracanazinho in Rio de Janeiro.

The U.S. Women (1-1) will look to bounce back against host Brazil (2-0) on Friday at 5 p.m. PT.

Volleyball Nations League 2024: schedule and results

While the U.S. Women have already qualified for the Olympic Games, China (2-0) has not and is looking to qualify via its world ranking at the end of VNL.

Led by outside hitter Li Yinying (20 kills) and setter Wang Yuanyuan (eight blocks), China was strong at the net, leading the U.S. in kills (60-58) and blocks (12-6). The U.S. Women led in aces (5-4). The U.S. scored on 22 Chinese errors and committed 20.

Opposite Danielle Cuttino led the U.S. scoring with 19 points on 16 kills, two blocks and one ace. Outside hitter Jordan Larson added 18 points on 16 kills (.411 hitting efficiency), one block and one ace.

“We had moments where we were grooving,” Larson told Volleyball World. “We know what we need to do to get better. I am proud of us for sticking through it.”

Outside hitter Avery Skinner scored 14 points on 12 kills, one block and one ace. She was also credited with 14 digs and 11 successful receptions.

Middle blocker Anna Stevenson Hall added nine points on seven kills, one block and one ace.

Middle Chiaka Ogbogu totaled five points on four kills and one ace. Middle Brionne Butler, who subbed for Ogbogu in the third set and finished the match, scored three points on three kills.

Setter Lauren Carlini scored one point with a kill. Libero Justine Wong-Orantes was credited with 11 digs and seven successful receptions.

Outside hitters Ali Frantti and Sarah Wilhite Parsons also played as substitutes.

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil, May 16, 2024.- Canada’s women’s team earned its first win at the 2024 edition of Volleyball Nations League against a familiar tough opponent, Dominican Republic. But the Dominican team couldn’t hold back a determined Canada, ending in a 3-0 (25-20, 25-21, 25-22) sweep in Rio, Brazil.

“It was a good solid game for us,” said head coach Shannon Winzer. “We felt in control the first two sets, playing aggressive but calm volleyball. Winning in three was really important because we wanted to maximize the world ranking points, so when we fell behind in the third with a shaky start it was great to see the players battle with a sense of urgency to come back and take the third set.”

Canada led in attack points 43-37, blocks 7-6 and ace serves 4-1. Dominican Republic also made more errors than Canada 21-19. Alexa Gray led Canada in scoring with 19 points and Kiera Van Ryk had 18.

Winzer commented: “Our service pressure was much better tonight (than against Brazil yesterday), as was our block/defense. China is next and they are a very tough team to beat in system, we will need to bring our best serving game tomorrow!”

Dominican Republic is qualified for Paris 2024, while Canada is battling for each set and match to qualify via ranking points.

Early in the tournament, Canada is 1-1.

Viewers guide:
-Next match is versus China on May 17.
-All matches are streamed on VBTV and CBC Sports and CBC Gem.
-VNL Web site: https://en.volleyballworld.com/volleyball/competitions/volleyball-nations-league/

The women’s team is still in contention to qualify for Paris 2024 via the World Rankings.

Seven women’s teams are already qualified for the Games. The remaining five places are filled by selecting the top five not yet qualified teams in the FIVB World Ranking as of the end of the preliminary phase of Volleyball Nations League.

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil, May 15, 2024.- The Dominican Republic Women’s Volleyball Team, known as “Las Reinas del Caribe,” got off to a good start in their Volleyball Nations League debut by defeating the reigning world champion Serbia 3-1 (25-18, 25-17, 21-25, 25-20) in a Pool 2 clash.

On Thursday, the Dominican team will face Canada in their second VNL match at eight in the evening (Dominican time).

Volleyball Nations League 2024: schedule and results

This is the second consecutive victory for Las Reinas del Caribe against Serbia, as they also defeated them last September in the Pre-Olympic Tournament held in China, where the Caribbean team secured their fourth ticket to the Paris Olympic Games. Serbia’s main player, Tijana Boskovic, did not play.

The victory over a higher-ranked opponent earned the Dominicans 9.86 points in the FIVB World Rankings and made them regain eighth place from Japan. Serbia dropped the same amount of points, but remained in fourth place.

Dominican Republic scored 56 attacks, while Serbia managed 38. Serbia led in blocks 14-12 and in serves 4-3.

Dominican Yonkaira Peña topped all scorers with 18 points (16 kills, one block, one ace), one more than fellow outside hitter Brayelin Martínez and opposite Gaila Gonzalez.

Opposite Ana Bjelica led Serbia’s offense with 15 points (12 kills, two blocks, one ace).

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado, May 16, 2024. – The U.S. Women’s National Team opened the 2024 Volleyball Nations League with a 3-1 (25-22, 19-25, 25-12, 25-18) on Wednesday at the Maracanazinho in Rio de Janeiro.

The U.S. Women (1-0) will face China (1-0) in their second Preliminary Round match at 1:30 p.m. PT on Thursday.

Three-time NCAA champion Madi Skinner made her debut with the U.S. Women, playing opposite instead of her usual outside hitter. She led all scorers with 19 points on 12 kills, four blocks and a match-high three aces.

Volleyball Nations League 2024: schedule and results

“My teammates supported me through and through,” Skinner told Volleyball World. “They gave me a lot of confidence as we were training throughout the last week.”

Overall, the U.S. Women led Thailand in kills (53-49), blocks (12-1) and aces (8-4). Nevertheless, Thailand used tough passing and digging, and took advantage of nine U.S. errors, to win the second set.

“Thailand is a great team and can be very dangerous at any time,” U.S. Head Coach Karch Kiraly told Volleyball World. “We were a little too error prone in that second game and we (needed) to get back to our steadiness.”

The U.S. Women also had setter Jordyn Poulter back in the lineup after a yearlong absence while she rehabbed from a knee injury she suffered while playing for her Italian club team. She and backup setter Lauren Carlini, who subbed in the second set, combined to help the team to a .364 hitting efficiency.

Behind Madi Skinner, outside hitter Ali Frantti scored 14 points on 13 kills and one ace. Madi Skinner’s sister Avery Skinner scored 11 points on nine kills, one block and one ace at outside hitter.

Middle blocker Anna Stevenson Hall totaled 12 points on nine kills, one block and two aces. Middle Brionne Butler totaled 10 points on six kills and four blocks. Poulter added two points on a kill and block.

Libero Zoe Fleck made her senior team debut and was credited with 12 digs and six successful receptions.

Backup outside hitter Sarah Wilhite Parsons scored two points on a kill and ace. Substitute opposite Danielle Cuttino scored two points on a kill and block.