2025 VNL Jun 5: Two Wins for Poland, Italy and Brazil

The second day of the Volleyball Nations League 2025 featured six exciting matches across three pools, with Poland, Italy, and Brazil each earning their second victories in the tournament.

The day began in Beijing, where Belgium defeated Thailand 3-1 (25-22, 25-23, 24-26, 25-22). Belgian captain Britt Herbots delivered an outstanding performance, leading all scorers with 31 points in four sets to guide her team to victory.

In the second match in Pool 3, Poland defeated China 3-1 (25-22, 20-25, 25-19, 25-21), maintaining unbeaten. Speaking to VBTV after the match, Chinese middle blocker Wang Yuanyuan highlighted her team’s lack of experience, citing Poland’s strong blocking and attacking as key challenges. Polish opposite Magdalena Stysiak expressed satisfaction with her team’s performance, emphasizing their solid play throughout the game.

In Pool 1 action in Ottawa, Bulgaria claimed a 3-1 victory over the Dominican Republic (25-21, 30-32, 25-19, 31-29). Bulgarian opposite Mikaela Stoyanova, during her VBTV interview, reflected on the importance of the win after their opening-day loss to Canada. She attributed the result to the team’s belief in themselves and their ability to work together as a unit.

The second match in Ottawa saw the Netherlands rebound from their first-day loss to defeat Canada in four sets (25-18, 22-25, 25-15, 25-23). Netherlands middle blocker Indy Baijens, speaking to VBTV, noted that her team had worked on several small aspects of their game, including defense and serving, and praised the younger players for stepping up in their first VNL experience.

In Rio de Janeiro, Italy emerged victorious in a five-set thriller against Germany (22-25, 25-10, 20-25, 25-13, 15-9). Italian opposite Ekaterina Antropova led the scoring with an incredible 31 points. Germany’s head coach Giulio Cesare Bregoli, in his VBTV interview, commended his team’s effort but acknowledged their inconsistency, which proved costly in the match.

The final match of the day saw Brazil dominate the USA in straight sets (25-18, 25-17, 25-19), securing their second win of the tournament. A turning point came late in the second set when, leading 18-17, Brazil scored seven consecutive points to close out the set and maintain their momentum.

(Featured image source: Volleyball World)

(Written by Boris CHUNG Bok Man)