Today saw six matches being played in the third week of the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) 2023 in Korea and Thailand.
In the opening Pool 5 match in Suwon, Poland emerged victorious against Germany, becoming the first team to secure their place in the 2023 VNL Finals, along with host country USA. The match concluded with a nail-biting 3-2 (15-25, 25-19, 25-18, 19-25, 17-15) score, with Polish opposite Magdalena Stysiak and German outside hitter Lina Alsmeier both topping the scoresheet with 22 points each.
In the subsequent matches held in Korea, the USA team convincingly outplayed Bulgaria with a 3-0 (25-15, 25-17, 25-16) victory, while the Dominican Republic triumphed over the hosts Korea with an equally decisive 3-0 (25-18, 25-18, 25-16) win.
Over in Bangkok, Pool 6 witnessed the Netherlands keeping their VNL Finals aspirations alive by defeating Croatia 3-0 (25-20, 25-11, 25-15) in the first match of the day. In this Dutch victory, Indy Baijens was a standout, garnering 16 points, while Martina Šamadan was Croatia’s primary offensive force, contributing 11 points.
In the day’s second match in Bangkok, Canada managed to surprise Brazil with a hard-fought 3-2 (28-30, 25-22, 25-23, 21-25, 17-15) victory. Alexa Gray was the top scorer for Canada with 25 points, and her teammate Kiera Van Ryk added another 19 points. On the Brazilian side, captain Gabriela ‘Gabi’ Guimaraes put up the most resistance, scoring 20 points.
In the day’s final match in Bangkok, Turkey demonstrated a strong performance against the hosts, Thailand, securing a decisive 3-0 (25-15, 25-15, 25-20) victory. Derya Cebecioglu was the most effective player for Turkey and the match’s top scorer with 13 points, while Eda Erdem also reached double digits with 12 points. The most effective players for Thailand were Thatdao Nuekjang with 9 points and Hattaya Bamrungsuk with 6 points.
