VNL 2024: Japan and Poland first semifinalists! Canada and Brazil eliminated
3 min read
First verdict from 2024 FIVB Volleyball Nations League Finals at Atlas Arena in Łódź, with Japan and hosts Poland who secured first tickets for semifinals!
Japan is officially first semifinalist by defeating Canada 3-0 in the first quarterfinal match in straight sets (26:24, 25:18, 26:24).
To make the difference a great Yuki Ishikawa, who left the court with as many as 26 points in just three sets, followed by Tatsunori Otsuka who added 10.
After a hard-fought first set, played point-by-point from start to finish and won with the minimum gap,
they won also the second one this time without major problems but, in the third one, Canada reacted, led by Stephen Maar and Eric Loeppky until the 12-15. However, Ishikawa’s ace leveled the score again and stability is rocked when the same captain put down the ball of 24-23 with a monster block over Arthur Szwarc. Canadian opposite redeemed himself with a great point in the following action, but Ishikawa again, with two spikes in a row, delivered the victory to his Japan.
For Canada, Stephen Maar (14 points), Eric Loeppky (10) and Arthur Szwarc (17) were not enough.
Japan will play against the winner of the Slovenia vs. Argentina match for a place in the final.
This marks Japan’s second advancement to the top four in the history of the Volleyball Nations League!
In the second quarterfinal Poland triumphed over Brazil with a hard-fought 3-1 (18:25, 25:23, 25:22, 25:16) victory.
Despite losing the first set, the players around head coach Nikola Grbic reacted and, in a game played almost entirely at a very high level, managed to win the game.
Key contributors included Wilfredo Leon with 18 points for the winners, and Darlan Souza on the other side of the net, who replied with 21 points.
Bartosz Kurek with 12, and Tomasz Fornal with 11, great protagonist above all in four set, also contributed in Poland’s success, while Brazil’s Yoandy Leal added 17.
This victory avenged Poland’s previous 1-3 loss to Brazil in the intercontinental phase in Fukuoka. Poland will face the winner of the Italy vs. France match in the semi-finals.
__________________
🏐| FIVB VOLLEYBALL NATIONS LEAGUE 2024 |Quarterfinals @ Łódź 🇵🇱
👉🏼Thursday | June 27, 2024 —
• QUARTERFINAL 1 | 17:00 (Local Time) | Japan (4) – Canada (5) 3-0 (26:24, 25:18, 26:24)
| PHOTOGALLERY OF THE MATCH
Japan: Ishikawa 26, Otzuka 10, Nishida 7, Onodera 7, Yamauchi 3, Miyaura 2, Sekita 1, Fukatsu, Kentaro, Tomita, Ogawa (L), Kai, Yamamoto (L), Larry. Coach. Blain.
Canada: Szwarc 17, Maar 14, Loeppky 10, McCarthy 6, Van Berkel 4, Herr 1, Hoag, Hofer, Demyanenko, Walsh, Wassenaar Ketrzynski, Schnitzer, Barnes, Lui. Coach. Sammelvuo.
• QUARTERFINAL 2 | 20:00 (Local Time) | Poland (2) – Brazil (7) 3-1 (18:25, 25:23, 25:22, 25:16)
| PHOTOGALLERY OF THE MATCH
Poland: Leon 18, Kurek 12, Fornal 11, Kochanowski 10, Bieniek 8, Boladz 4, Janusz 2, Popiwczak (L), Bednorz, Śliwka, Lomacz, Semeniuk, Zatorski (L), Huber. Coach. Grbic.
Brazil: Darlan 21, Leal 17, Lucarelli 9, Flavio 7, Lucas 5, Alan 3, Cachopa 1, Bruno, L. Bergmann, Adriano, Honorato, Isac, Thales (L), Mauricio. Coach. Bernardinho.
__________________
— Friday | June 28, 2024 —
• QUARTERFINAL 1 | 17:00 (Local Time) | Italy (3) – France (6) 2-3 (25:19, 20:25, 25:22, 22:25, 11:15)
| PHOTOGALLERY OF THE MATCH
• QUARTERFINAL 2 | 20:00 (Local Time) | Slovenia (1) – Argentina (8) 3-2 (19:25, 25:17, 17:25, 29:27, 15:7)
| PHOTOGALLERY OF THE MATCH
__________________
Semifinals
— Saturday | June 29, 2024 —
• SEMIFINAL 1 | 17:00 (Local Time) | Poland – France 2-3 (25:22, 22:25, 23:25, 25:20, 16:18) 📸 GALLERY
• SEMIFINAL 2 | 20:00 (Local Time) | Slovenia – Japan 0-3 (21:25, 25:27, 29:31) 📸| GALLERY
__________________
👀|QUICK LINKS
• All International news 🗞️
• VNL 2024: ALL NEWS
• VNL 2024: CALENDAR
• Multimedia
• Facebook
• Instagram
__________________
