Volleyball Voices

Sport Court at the U.S. Open National Volleyball Championships in Phoenix, Arizona

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U.S. Open National Volleyball Championships

Choose Sport Court® For the 21st Year As A Partner For The Games

 

Phoenix, Arizona (PRWeb) June 2, 2010—When the 81st U.S. Open National Volleyball Championships began here on Saturday, May 29, the Phoenix Convention Center—and Sport Court®—will be the center of the volleyball world.

 

Forty volleyball courts under one roof make the event possible, turning the convention center into a volleyball festival. 

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USA Volleyball will again count on longtime partner Sport Court to bring in the red, white and blue playing surfaces for these championships.

 

It will be Sport Court’s 21^st year as the official playing surface for the USA Open National Volleyball Championships.

The games run through June 5. 

Sport Court is providing its Response™ high performance court system, the equivalent of 135,000 square feet.  Nearly a quarter of a million Response modular court tiles will be installed in the Phoenix Convention Center, where men and women volleyball players from throughout the world will gather for the event.

There are 29 playing categories for both men and women, starting with Men’s and Women’s Open and going to Women’s Age 60 and over and Men’s age 75 and over. 

“The championships provide a place for players of every age and ability,” said B. J. Evans, USA Volleyball manager of media relations and publications.  She added that the tournament also includes several previous NCAA® and professional athletes.

 “It’s truly gratifying that men and women—some of them 70 years and older—can play on our Response surface with a system engineered to provide the utmost safety in a playing court,” said Ron Cerny, President and CEO of Connor Sport Court International.   www.sportcourt.com.

“Our Response playing surface is a state-of-the-art engineered polymer surface, which has Lateral Forgiveness™ for player safety while at the same time providing the resiliency needed in this fast-moving sport,” Cerny said.  “Our engineers constantly develop and improve this court system, making it the indisputable choice for volleyball players the world over.”

USA Volleyball has showcased its U.S. Open National Volleyball Championships since the organization’s founding in 1928.  Except for 1943 and 1944 during the height of World War II, the Open has been a mainstay celebrating adult volleyball nationally.  The event is one of the largest national championships in any sport in the United States. 

USA Volleyball’s Evans said close to 5000 individuals and 541 teams will take part. Some will be coming from as far away as Brazil, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Venezuela and Canada, as well as virtually every state within the U.S.  For more information go to:

http://usavolleyball.org/events/2245

About Connor Sport Court International

More athletic events are played on Connor Sport Court surfaces than on any other sports flooring in the world.  Connor sports floors have established themselves as the standard for professional and collegiate sports since the company was founded in 1872.  Sport Court® is a registered trade mark of Connor Sport Court International.  Since 1974, it has identified the original and authentic modular sport surface, continuously improved and patented to provide the highest levels of quality and performance.

Volleyball Pictures 2009: Day One - Volleyball Photos from the FIVB Volleyball World Grand Prix

 World Grand Prix volleyball pictures – 1^st day of competition July 31, 2009

 

In Brasil:

BRASIL – PUERTO RICO

GERMANY - USA

In Poland:

POLAND – THAILAND:

JAPAN – NEDERLAND:

In China:

RUSSIA – KOREA:

CHINA – DOMINICAN REPUBLIC:

 

Congratulations to Italy's Women's National Volleyball Team - 2009 Winners of the FIVB World Grand Champions Cup

In four sets,  Italy's undefeated women's national volleyball team beat fourth-place finishers Japan in a nail-biting two hour volleyball match to win the FIVB Grand Champions Cup volleyball tournament. 

The Italian volleyball women  are also the 2009 European champions and finished ahead of the Brazilian and the Japanese volleyball women.

UNIVERSAL SPORTS PRESENTS COVERAGE OF THE FIVB WORLD VOLLEYBALL GRAND PRIX

 

LOS ANGELES – July 30, 2009 – The top 12 female volleyball teams from around the world will compete for the championship title in this year’s FIVB World Volleyball Grand Prix held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  Teams will have to face 2008 Beijing gold medalists and defending seven-time Grand Prix champions, Brazil.  The competition will also included talented teams from the United States, Russia, China and Puerto Rico. The top 5 teams from the Grand Prix, and host team Japan, will qualify for the finals that will be held in Tokyo on August 19-23. Universal Sports will provide online and television coverage of select matches beginning Friday.

 

COVERAGE ON UNIVERSALSPORTS.COM:  UniversalSports.com will provide same-day, on-demand video of the FIVB World Volleyball Grand Prix.  More information, as well as highlights, full-length videos, photos, breaking news and more available at UniversalSports.com/volleyball.

 

Date                Event                                                               Time (all times ET)                                                                             

July 31            USA VS GERMANY                                      Available on-demand

Aug. 1              USA VS. PUERTO RICO                              Available on-demand

Aug. 2              USA VS. BRAZIL                                           Available on-demand

Aug. 7              USA VS. DOMINICAN REPUBLIC             Available on-demand

Aug. 8              USA VS. NETHERLANDS                           Available on-demand

Aug. 9              USA VS. GERMANY                                     Available on-demand

Aug. 14            USA VS. RUSSIA                                          Available on-demand

Aug. 15            USA VS. PUERTO RICO                              Available on-demand

Aug. 16            USA VS. THAILAND                                     Available on-demand

 

 

COVERAGE ON UNIVERSAL SPORTS:  Universal Sports, available in 56 million homes, presents delayed coverage of the following matches of the FIVB World Volleyball Grand Prix.

 

Date                Event                                                             Time (all times ET)

Aug 7               USA VS. GERMANY                                     4 – 6 p.m.

Aug 8               USA VS. PUERTO RICO                              4 – 6 p.m.

Aug 9               USA VS. BRAZIL                                           4 – 6 p.m.

Aug 14             USA VS. DOMINICAN REPUBLIC            4 – 6 p.m.

Aug 15             USA VS. NETHERLANDS                          4 – 6 p.m.

Aug 16             USA VS. GERMANY                                    4 – 6 p.m.

Aug 21             USA VS. RUSSIA                                         TBD

Aug 22             USA VS. PUERTO RICO                            TBD

Aug 23             USA VS. THAILAND                                    TBD

 

 

ABOUT UNIVERSAL SPORTS: Universal Sports, a partnership between NBC Sports and InterMedia Partners, serves as the preeminent multiplatform destination for Olympic-related and lifestyle sports programming available on television and online. Universal Sports is a 24-hour television channel available in 56 million television households (via DTV antenna), including 29 million digital cable homes and 7 million over-the-air homes to date.  The 36 million homes represented are in 43 markets nationwide, including top markets such as New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas-Fort Worth, San Francisco, Atlanta, Washington D.C., Houston, Detroit, Tampa, Seattle, Denver and Orlando.  Major world championship and Olympic qualifying events found on Universal Sports range from track and field, skiing, swimming, gymnastics, marathons and cycling, to volleyball, rowing, triathlon, fencing, speed skating and martial arts. UniversalSports.com delivers an immersive experience via live and on-demand competition coverage, interaction with top athletes through blogs and in-depth access to Olympic sports news and information year round. For more information on the availability of the Universal Sports 24-hour television channel, please visit UniversalSports.tv.

 

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Beth Launiere Joins Team USA Coaching Staff for 2009 FIVB World Grand Prix

Beth Launiere Joins Team USA Coaching Staff for 2009 FIVB World Grand Prix

Competition begins July 31.

 

SALT LAKE CITY – University of Utah head volleyball coach Beth Launiere has been selected as an assistant coach for the U.S. Women’s National Team at the premier annual women’s international tournament, the 2009 FIVB World Grand Prix, July 31 through Aug. 9.   

 

Launiere, who led her team to 10 NCAA Tournament appearances, including trips to the Sweet 16 in 2001 and 2008, in 20 seasons as head coach of the Utes, will help the 2008 Olympic Games silver medalist Team USA compete against a field of 12 national teams playing a total of 69 matches over four consecutive weekends in 10 world-wide cities. Team USA’s preliminary rounds are set to take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on the first weekend, Li Miao, Chinese Taipei during the second weekend and Bangkok, Thailand over the third weekend.

 

“I feel fortunate to have this opportunity to work with Hugh McCutcheon and Karch Kiraly as well as some of the top players in our country,” Launiere said. “I look forward to helping the team in any way I can and bringing back the international experience gained from this tournament to the Utah volleyball program.” 

Launiere and the US National team will begin the tournament at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, as part of Pool A. The Americans will open against Germany on July 31 and Puerto Rico on Aug. 1. They will play the featured match of the preliminary round on Aug. 2 as Team USA takes on host and 2008 Olympic Games gold medalist Brazil.

The team then travels to Miao Li, Chinese Taipei, for Pool D play, Aug. 7-9, to play the Dominican Republic (Aug. 7), Netherlands (Aug. 8) and Germany (Aug. 9).

Launiere will be on the team’s coaching staff through the first two preliminary rounds, then return to Salt Lake City Aug. 10 as the Utes begin preseason practice. Team USA will continue to Bangkok for the conclusion of group play. If they qualify for the finals, the Americans head to Tokyo, Aug. 19-23.

 

For additional information on the 2009 FIVB World Grand Prix, go tohttp://www.fivb.org.

 

- UU -

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What's 5 feet 8 inches tall and has a 43 inch vertical jump? USA Volleyball Outside Hitter. Meet Angie Pressey

4 – Angie Pressey, Outside Hitter, 5 feet 8 inches tall from Lake Mary, Florida., is/was a California Bear.

From Calbears.com: Meet Angie Pressey

From Calbears.com: 

From sfgate.com

"Most coaches had decided she was too small to play front row," he said. 

"She's got a great leaping ability but a lot more than that. A lot of athletes who are smaller can jump well, but none of them (is) as powerful as she is or as skilled in the backcourt. She's one of the quickest players we've ever had, and she's an amazing blocker."

(volleyball quote from coach Rich Feller, California Berkeley Volleyball, sfgate.com)

Angie Pressey Volleyball Photos on flickr

From cvu.com National Player of the Week

Mad Hops from The Daily Californian

   

 "I don't do cold," she says. 

(volleyball quote from Angie Pressey, Daily Cal.com)

"I know I have to get more consistent," says Pressey. "In high school, I could just hit over people. Here, I have to change my shots in order to be successful."

"The game is a lot faster," she adds. "You are responsible to know our scouting reports. Before, I just went out there and played, but now there is a lot more preparation that goes into the game."

(volleyball quote from Angie Pressey, Daily Cal.com)

Angie Pressey Named Toyo Tires Pac-10 Volleyball Scholar-Athlete

From cstv.com: 

California's Angie Pressey Named Pac-10 Volleyball Player of the Week

 The junior outside hitter was named Co-MVP of the Cal Molten Classic.

At Pac Ten Talk and Cal Bears.com: Angie Pressey Named to All-Tournament Team at USA Volleyball Adult

“My freshman year I was, of course, my size and I know my teammates were like ‘What are our coaches doing?’” says Pressey. “So maybe the first time that I actually hit a ball in practice they were like, ‘Oh OK, this is why she’s here.’”

volleyball quote from Angie Pressey (calbears.com)

Get to Know the USA Volleyball Players Competing in the FIVB Women’s Junior World Championships

Here's Seven Reasons Why Players Will Gossip About The New Nfinity Volleyball Shoe This Season

 

2009 U.S. Women’s Junior National Team

1 - Kendall Bateman 

Setter, 5-11, Manhattan Beach, Calif., SCVA, University of Southern California, 2008

From Volleyball Magazine: 

From berecruited.com: 

From Kendall Bateman Photo Gallery on Max Preps.com:

2 - Kelsey Black 

Outside Hitter/Libero, 6-0, Amarillo, Texas, Sun Country, Texas A&M, 2008

From kbtx.com: 

“Kelsey will benefit greatly by training and hopefully competing at such a high level prior to her freshman year,” A&M head coach Laurie Corbelli said. 

“And for her to train both as an outside hitter and libero will make her a more complete player than she already is, and she will be able to help the team in many different ways. As a 5-11 attacker, she knows how smart and crafty she has to play, and going against international teams’ big blocks, she will develop new ways to get around the block. Also her pass-to-attack is really strong, and if she is only passing, that is great too. It is another key dimension and gives her more opportunities to make the final roster.”

 

3 - Morgan Broekhuis 

Opposite/Setter, 6- 6, Colorado Springs, Colo., Rocky Mountain, Colorado Juniors, 2010, University of Nebraska

From the Denver Post.com: 

From Gazette Preps.com: 

“I would say that playing club helps more for high school because club’s just a more tense and competitive atmosphere compared to high school. So I think that the people who play club have the better skills in high school.”

Morgan’s response when asked if she won the lottery what is the first thing she would buy?

“I would go and have a custom pair of jeans made just for me. Just because I have the hardest time finding jeans ever. I would find someone to make a custom pair of jeans just for me so that they would fit perfectly."

From the Rocky Mountain News: 

Morgan’s reply when she tells people she’s a setter:

"I always get a surprised look when I tell people I'm a setter," she said. "They say, 'You must be a middle.' I don't think about it too much, I'm just used to it."

4 - Karissa Cook 

Setter, 6-0, Santa Cruz, Northern Cal, Main Beach, 2009, Stanford

From kcba.com: 

Video interview of Karissa Cook: 

From High School Playbook: Karissa Cook Video: 

 

5 - Amanda Dowdy 

Middle Blocker, 6-3, Thrall, Texas, Lone Star, Texas Tech, 2008

"To make the USA Junior National Team is such an honor and an amazing opportunity," said Dowdy. "It is definitely a dream come true."

From Maxpreps.com 

From flotrack.org: Video interview on High jump competition – Gold in the 2A State High Jump:  

On big12sports.com: Texas Tech Student-athlete Spotlight

“I wanted to come here to make the program strong and better than ever,” said Amanda, whose confidence and determination are strong personality traits. “I knew I would love it here. I wanted to compete in the Big 12 and Tech was just a perfect fit.”

 

6 - Lilla Frederick 

Outside Hitter/Libero, 5-10, Huntington Beach, Calif., SCVA, Pepperdine 2008

7 - Alex Hunt 

Outside Hitter, 6-0, Granger, Ind., Hoosier, Michigan, 2008

"We are extremely proud of Alex being named to the junior national team," commented Wolverine head coach Mark Rosen. "For her to be recognized amongst such a stellar crop of talent that competed at the tryout is just an amazing accomplishment for her and says a lot about our program."

From wsbt.com: 

"It's been a lot of fun playing here the past three years,” Hunt told WSBT News. “We've had some good wins against Penn and Marian — the Marian games always stand out the most."

From Big Ten.org: Alex hunt on Big Ten 2008 All Freshman  Team

 

8 - Ashleigh McCord 

Outside Hitter, 6-1, Wylie, Texas, North Texas Region, Rice, 2008

From conferenceusa.cstv.com: Rice selected to US Junior National Volleyball Team

From conferenceusa.cstv.com : Rice selected to USA A-2 Team 

From ncaa.com: 

9 - Sarah Shaw 

Outside Hitter, 6-2, Austin, Texas, Lone Star, Austin Juniors, 2010

From austinsportscenter.com: http://www.austinsportscenter.com/index.php?pid=1377

From westlakepicayune.com: 

From westlakepicayune.com

 

10 - Alexis Olgard 

Middle Blocker, 6-6, Spokane, Wash., Evergreen, Spokane Splash, 2010

From Spokane.net: 

From seattletimes blog: 

From usavolleyball.org: 

11 - Hayley Spelman 

Opposite Hitter, 6-6, Las Vegas, Nev., SCVA, TCA, 2009

From Rivals.com: 

From Volleyball Monthly: 

"I was tall at her age, also," Janet said. "Mentally for girls, it can be tough. The first thing someone says when they see you is, ‘Wow, you’re tall.’ Yep, I’m tall. We needed a sport that could validate her height, something immediate where we could show her that it’s great to be tall. It’s hard to tell that to a 13-year-old who’s taller than her teachers."

From Go Stanford.com: 

From the Las Vegas Review Journal: 

"I really liked tennis," said the 6-foot-6-inch Spelman, who in her freshman year was a state finalist as a member of Bonanza's top doubles team. "But I was introduced to volleyball, and I liked it even more.

From berecruited.com: 

12 - Mallory Woolridge 

Middle Blocker, 6-3, Henrico, Va., Old Dominion Region, USPAV, 2010

From Digitalsports.com: 

"I didn't think I was ever going to be good," Woolridge said. "I was awful."

From Times Dispatch.com:

"It's like crazy to go play against other countries at this level," she said.

* Katie Slay 

Middle Blocker, 6-7, Raleigh, N.C., Carolina Region, Triangle VBC, 2010, Penn State

* Note from USA Volleyball: Katie Slay originally named to the U.S. Women’s Junior National Team, but withdrew due to injury. Alexis Olgard was named to replace her on the roster

 

Head Coach is Paula Weishoff, Assistant Coach John Corbelli, Jim Stone, Team Manager Denise Corlett

 

 

 

 

Penn State NCAA Volleyball Champion Fawcett Enjoying Time in Caribbean on Professional Circuit

Penn State NCAA Volleyball Champion Fawcett Enjoying Time in Caribbean on Professional Circuit

Fawcett is now getting paid to play.

“It’s crazy,” Nicole Fawcett said Monday night. 

“I could care less if I got paid. It’s my passion, it’s what I love doing, so to get paid for something you love to do and surround yourself with people who also love doing that, it’s a dream come true. It’s kind of a surreal thing.”

Fawcett is the new outside hitter for Las Gigantes de Carolina (The Carolina Giants) in Liga de Voleibol Superior Femenina, Puerto Rico’s pro league which began its season in January.

Check out more stories on volleyballvoices.com of 

college volleyball players playing volleyball internationally. 

Great Britain National Volleyball team coach loses job over funding cuts

"We owe a great deal to Dr Lorne Sawula, one of  volleyball's most recognised authorities in coaching for how he has developed the players over the last couple of years."

Dubai to host Italian Women's League Volleyball Tournament finals

The best Italian professional ladies volleyball clubs will take part in the tournament including many Italian players and professionals from other European and South American countries.

Shaikha Shamssa Bint Hashr Al Maktoum the Dubai International Ladies Volleyball Championships Organising Committee President and UAE Volleyball Association board member, has reached an agreement with Mauro Fabrias the chair of the Italian ladies league to organise a Grand Ladies Volleyball Tournament in Dubai.

Rio has a US$14.4 billion budget for 2016 Olympics Games!

Rio, seeking to bring the Olympics to South America for the first time, is competing against Chicago, Madrid and Tokyo. All four cities submitted their bid documents last week to the International Olympic Committee, which will select the host city on Oct. 2 in Copenhagen.

FIVB Women's World Cup:Kenya's Women's National Volleyball Team

VOLLEYBALL: Kenyans crash to Cuba in opening match Daily Nation (subscription) - Nairobi,Kenya Poor reception and blocking were to blame as Kenya lost its first match of the women's volleyball World Cup campaign in Hamamatsu, Japan on Friday to four ...

Cuba had little difficulty in racking up a win in their first match of the 2007 World Cup, overcoming the gallant Kenyans 3-0 of 25-11, 25-18 and 25-20 in a match that lasted 66 minutes and was watched by 586 fans. Cuba won the global title in 1999 but lost out in 2003 to China.

After the results, the issues over team selection immediately came to fore. The decision by Kenya Volleyball Federation (KVF) to drop first choice and Africa’s best receiver Mildred Odwako from the line-up will continue to haunt the team as her understudy Judith Tarus failed miserable to impress at the back court contributing massively for the loss.

Statistics posted after the game had Captain Catherine Wanjiru and Tarus on the receiving end. Wanjiru failed to inspire her team as Ndasaba took over to make individual contribution making a total of 26 attacks against Wanjiru’s seven. Of the 26 balls that Ndasaba hit 16 found the target while for Wanjiru only one went through the Cuban defence blocks.

“We were weak in reception and defence at the net, but our attack was good.

We are not pleased with the result of the game, but we will continue to try our best and improve on our weak points,” said Wanjiru.

click Kenya loses to Cuba to read more about the match

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Kenya fall to former champs Brazil --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

By Oscar Pilipili in Japan

Former champions Brazil danced to the samba rhythm to outclass Kenya 3-0 (25-16, 25-7, 25-14) in a thrilling Federation of International Volleyball (FIVB) World Cup match at Hamamatsu Arena.

Kenyans had vowed to contain the mighty Brazilians when they left their hotel and almost lived up to that promise by scaring their opponents with powerful attacks.

Dorcas Ndasaba, who collected nine points in the match, led the attack with hard hitters Edna Rotich, Diana Khisa and Doris Nafula Palang’a supporting.

They restricted Brazil to a narrow lead in the opening set but the fire in them burned out at 15-18 as the South Americans widened the gap to claim it 25-16.

Click Kenya Women's volleyball team to read more

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FIVB Women's World Cup:Kenya's Women's National Volleyball Team

Kenya’s volleyball squad gets right uniform

There was a sigh of relief at the Kenyan camp in Japan after the team received the proper uniform for the ongoing international volleyball tournament.

The Federation of International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) had on Wednesday night given Kenya a 24-hour deadline to have appropriate uniform failure to which they would have been punished.

The uniform was delivered at the Hamamatsu Arena just when the team was warming up for their opening match against Cuba.

Had Kenya failed to meet the condition the FIVB could have either allowed them to use the kit that was said to be of poor quality at the preliminary enquiry and fined over Sh1m or be expelled from the competition.

Kenyans found themselves in an embarrassing position when organisers of the event rejected the uniform purchased in Nairobi saying it did not meet the standard set by the world body.

Team manager, Martin Makokha, had to call the Kenyan embassy for assistance.

The embassy in turn called Nairobi to consult officials of the National Olympic Committee of Kenya and the Kenya Volleyball Federation who reached an agreement that helped the team purchase three sets of 12 pieces each from a Japanese company at a cost of $3,000.

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Japan first to surprise Serbia and Montenegro

FIVB Women’s World Championship host country Japan today became the first team in the competition to beat the strong side from Serbia and Montenegro. World No. 7 Japan beat the 30th ranked Serbia and Montenegro 3-2 to put an end to the Balkan side’s surprise winning streak. The victory by the hosts in the tie-break set left Brazil and Russia as the only teams unbeaten so far in the tournament. One of these remaining 100% records will come to an end on Sunday, as the two strong favourites meet head-to-head in a battle for first place in Pool F in their final match of the second round.

Serbia and Montenegro suffer first loss

Italy made sure they kept their World Championship destiny in their own hands as the defending champions made short work of Chinese Taipei today. The Italians' 25-15, 25-13, 25-14 win means they are guaranteed a semi-final berth if they win their final second round match against hosts Japan. Chinese Taipei are now out of the medals reckoning, but are still on course to make the classification matches in Osaka next week.

World No. 5 Cuba remained on the heels of Italy and Serbia and Montenegro with a comfortable straight-sets victory over Korea. The three-time world champions improved their win-loss record to 4-2 by defeating the eighth-ranked Koreans 25-19, 25-14, 25-22. With the loss, Korea dropped to 0-6 for the second round and will be one of two teams in the pool going home before the final stages in Osaka on November 15-16.

Turkey took a giant step towards the classification matches with a straight sets win over Poland, dealing the Poles' chances of survival a severe blow in the process.
The Turks put distance between themselves and their European rivals at the lower end of the group with a clinical 25-18, 25-22, 25-19 victory. Poland must now win their final Pool E match against Cuba, and hope Turkey lose to Korea, to even stand a chance of booking a ticket to Osaka next week. But Turkey's debut appearance at the World Championships looks set to continue as they look ever more comfortable on the world stage. Turkey’s solid performance in the last few matches have even elevated 23 year-old wing spiker Darnel Neslihan to the top of the scorers table.

Japan produced an astonishing comeback to inflict a first defeat of the World Championships on Serbia and Montenegro. The hosts lost the first two sets 25-18, 25-22 but roared back to take the next three 25-18, 25-21, 15-11 for an epic victory in front of a capacity crowd of 8,000 at Nagoya Rainbow Hall. It was Serbia and Montenegro's first defeat in eight World Championship matches after sweeping the first round 5-0 and winning their first two of the second round.

Click here to Read more

Brazil, Russia only unbeated teams before head-to-head encounter

Russia cruised past the United States to stay unbeaten in Pool F, overcoming the Americans 25-20, 25-21, 25-17. The U.S.A. fell to 2-4 in the group standings. Russia’s Coach Giovanni Guidetti maintained his confidence ahead the team’s final second-round match against the unbeaten Brazil, despite a suspected leg muscle injury to the 1.93 metre universal player Lioubova Shashkova. “We don't have to do anything special because it's a match for first place in the pool. Obviously we'll be playing to win. If Shashkova's injury is serious in any way, then we won't play her,” he said.

German coach Giovanni Guidetti had called for a return to basics but it was Brazil who did the simple things well in their 3-0 Pool F victory in Osaka that confirmed their place in the semi-finals. Brazil took their unbeaten streak to eight matches with their 25-16, 25-22, 25-15 win. They now face a crunch showdown with another unbeaten team, Russia, in their final group match on Sunday to decide the pool winners.

Germany have brought much raw passion and enthusiasm to the competition, the highlight being their victory over China in Pool B in Sapporo last week. Guidetti wanted a repeat of that bravado against Brazil. But in terms of sheer skill and physical presence, they were no match for the Brazilians, who unleashed their battery of big spikers against the overwhelmed Germans. Germany now have a 3-3 record in Pool F following defeat to the Netherlands and victory over Puerto Rico, adding to their two victories from Pool B in Sapporo. Brazil's record, minus two games from Pool B in Kobe, is 6-0.

China raised their record to 3-3 with a 28-26, 25-14, 25-22 victory over Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico fell to 0-6 in Pool F and, as the only team in the group yet to record a win, face elimination after the second round. China are chasing Brazil and Russia in the qualification stakes.

The Netherlands bounced back from their heavy defeat to Russia to inflict a 3-0 win on Azerbaijan. Their 26-24, 25-22, 26-24 victory gave them their second triumph in Osaka following a 3-2 win over Germany on Wednesday. For Azerbaijan, it was their second loss of Pool F but they only had themselves to blame after throwing away numerous opportunities to get on top of their opponents. The Dutch have a 3-3 record in Pool F for fifth place, though they have no chance of reaching the semi-finals, while Azerbaijan drop to 1-5 and lie in seventh, one place off the bottom.

Click here to Read more