The Volleyball Nations League (VNL) 2023 tournament in Brasilia, Brazil, saw a series of unexpected outcomes and hard-fought matches on its fourth day of competition. Teams from Germany, Croatia, and Serbia notably left their marks, offering some unforgettable moments.
Germany kicked off the day with a surprising 3-2 victory (25-23, 14-25, 25-22, 20-25, 15-8) over Japan, a team known for its remarkable performance in the league. Hannah Orthmann’s impressive score of 24 points and Marie Schözel’s 16 points were crucial for Germany’s success. Despite commendable efforts from Japan’s Sarina Nishida (Koga) and Arisa Inoue, who scored 24 and 20 points respectively, Germany clinched the victory.
The tournament then witnessed another momentous event as Croatia claimed their first-ever VNL victory. Making their debut, the Croatian team overpowered Korea in a straight-set victory (25-23, 25-21, 25-14) in their sixth match. Martina Šamadan emerged as the top scorer with 18 points, backed by Dijana Karatović’s contribution of 11 points. Hoyoung Jung stood out as the only player on the Korean team to score in double digits, achieving 10 points.
In the final game of the day, Serbia triumphed over Thailand in a thrilling five-set encounter (24-26, 22-25, 25-17, 25-12, 16-14). Following a recent defeat against Brazil, Serbia demonstrated impressive resilience to overturn a two-set deficit and claim victory. Key performances included Sara Lozo’s 22 points, Ana Bjelica’s 18 points, and Bianka Busa’s 15 points. Thailand’s Chatchu-On Moksri and Pimpichaya Kokram gave stiff competition with scores of 21 and 20 points, respectively, but it was the Serbians who savored the win at the end.
