FIVB U20 Women’s World Championship European Qualification has entered a white heat stage. Russia from Pool F and Poland from Pool E will be joining Italy and Serbia to make it to the U20 World Championship (WCH) held in Mexico later this summer.
Pool E in Wieliczka (POL)
Poland vs Belgium 3:1 (25-17, 28-30, 25-13, 25-17)
In the last match in Pool E, Poland leveraged upon the home court advantage to edge Belgium in 4 sets, claiming the ticket to WCH. The victory also carries a special meaning to Poland that it is avenging their 1-3 loss to Belgium from the first-round qualifier held back in January in Portugal.
In the same pool, regardless of zero chance to make it into the WCH, both Germany and Bulgaria fought for their best result. With stronger execution on the court, Germany ultimately celebrating a 3-0 victory (25-15, 25-21, 25-23), also their only victory out of the tournament.
Pool F in Turgutlu (TUR)
Russia vs Turkey 3:2 (19-25, 17-25, 25:21, 25:21, 15:10)
Turkey and Russia locked horns on Sunday in a match and delivered an exciting match together for the audience. Riding on the hometown supports, Turkey gained an upper hand with two sets lead in the first half of the match. However, the course of the game changed in the third set dramatically after strategic substitution made by Russian head coach Vadim Pankov. The fighing spirits brought Russia back to tie with Turkey after the fourth set. In the golden set, it proves once again that when the turbo of the Russian powerhouse has turned on, you can never easily stop it. The guest team finally calim the match together with the ticket to WCH from Turkey.
On the other side, the Netherlands has wrapped up the tournament with a triumphant 3:0 victory against Croatia.
(Photo: CEV)
