The Netherlands top the final standings with prefect record in the third and final round of CEV qualifications for Japan 2018. Winners of the qualifier- The Netherlands and runners-up Bulgaria joined previously qualified Russia, Serbia, Turkey, Italy, Azerbaijan and Germany into the European contingent for the World Championship from September 29 through October 20, 2018.
Sunday’s first match was supposed to be the icing on the cake, as neither the Netherlands nor Bulgaria had lost any matches so far in the tournament. The Dutch had more arguments in the battle to stay unbeaten and maintained their impeccable record with a 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-23) shutout of the Balkan Lionesses.
Netherlands’ Robin De Kruijf and Bulgaria’s Elitsa Vasileva shared the top scorer honours with 13 points each. Yvon Belien and Lonneke Sloetjes added 10 each to the winning team’s tally.
“I am very proud of the whole group – the team, but also our great staff,” said Jamie Morrison, coach of the Netherlands. “We worked hard all summer and that is the result right now. The start was not great in May, but here we showed we absolutely belong at the World Championship. This tastes even better on the eve of the European Championship, where we want to play a dominant role.”
Final Standings:
1. The Netherlands
2. Bulgaria
3. Belgium
4. Czech Republic
5. Slovenia
6. Greece
