Reigning champions Suntory Sunbirds Osaka are one step closer to defending their Daido Life SV.League title after securing a thrilling semifinal victory over Wolfdogs Nagoya. In Sunday’s decisive third match, the Sunbirds triumphed 3-1 (22-25, 25-23, 25-22, 28-26) and booked their place in the championship final against JTEKT Stings Aichi.
Dmitriy Muserskiy was the star of the match, delivering an outstanding performance with 27 points. Ran Takahashi supported the attack with 18 points, while Aleksander Sliwka added 11 points.
Despite a heroic effort by Nimir Abdel-Aziz, who scored a match-high 33 points with six aces and three kill blocks, Wolfdogs Nagoya narrowly missed the chance to push the match into a fifth set. Taito Mizumachi and Tine Urnaut added 19 and 11 points, respectively, for the Wolfdogs.
The turning point came late in the fourth set when Nagoya, trailing by four points at 20-24, made a stunning comeback to earn a set point. However, a red card issued to Urnaut for premature celebration canceled their advantage, and Suntory capitalized on Nagoya’s mistakes to close out the match.
“We faced a lot of ups and downs today,” said Suntory head coach Olivier Lecat. “I’m very proud of our players for staying focused until the end. Thanks to Wolfdogs Nagoya for such an exciting game. Now, we rest and prepare for the final.”
The best-of-three championship final series will take place at LaLa arena TOKYO-BAY:
- May 3, 12:10 local (03:10 UTC): Suntory Sunbirds Osaka vs. JTEKT Stings Aichi
- May 5, 16:10 local (07:10 UTC): Suntory Sunbirds Osaka vs. JTEKT Stings Aichi
- May 6, 16:10 local (07:10 UTC): Suntory Sunbirds Osaka vs. JTEKT Stings Aichi (if necessary)
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