Nippon Steel Sakai Blazers delivered the shock of the weekend in Japan’s men’s Daido Life SV.League, sweeping a rare double-header series against Tokyo Great Bears to climb away from the bottom of the standings. Sakai, who entered the round second from last, beat Tokyo in straight sets on Saturday before backing it up with a four-set win on Sunday, sending their higher-ranked visitors home without a single point. Italian outside hitter Tommaso Rinaldi paced the opening match, while Danish opposite Ulrik Dahl led the scoring in the second. The two wins lifted Sakai to eighth place, while Tokyo stayed fifth despite the setback.
League leaders Suntory Sunbirds Osaka kept rolling with two road victories over Wolfdogs Nagoya in front of sellout crowds. Captain Ran Takahashi starred in Saturday’s four-set win, and veteran opposite Dmitriy Muserskiy powered Suntory through a five-set battle on Sunday to maintain their grip on first place.
Elsewhere, Hiroshima Thunders and Toray Arrows Shizuoka split their series, JTEKT Stings Aichi swept both matches at Voreas Hokkaido, and Osaka Bluteon cruised past last-place Nagano Tridents with two dominant shutouts.
Results – Men’s SV.League (11th Leg)
- Sakai Blazers def. Tokyo Great Bears 3–0, 3–1
- Suntory Sunbirds Osaka def. Wolfdogs Nagoya 3–1, 3–2
- Toray Arrows Shizuoka def. Hiroshima Thunders 3–1
- Hiroshima Thunders def. Toray Arrows Shizuoka 3–0
- JTEKT Stings Aichi def. Voreas Hokkaido 3–2, 3–0
- Osaka Bluteon def. Nagano Tridents 3–0, 3–0