Two pool matches remain to settle FIVB Women's Club World Championship semifinals
Rabita Baku (1-0) won the lone FIVB Women’s Club World Championship match played on Tuesday in Doha, Qatar. The match was the first of the tournament for Rabita.
Day five of the FIVB Volleyball Club World Championships starts Wednesday with the women’s competition taking center stage with two matches. Rabita Baku (1-0) face Brazil’s Sollys Nestle Osasco (1-0, 3 points) in a Pool B match at 3 p.m., followed by Turkey’s VakifBank TTelekom Istanbul (1-0, 3 points) taking on Kenya Prisons Nairobi (0-1, 1 point) in a Pool A contest at 5 p.m.
Rabita Baku 3, Chang Bangkok 1 Azerbaijan’s Rabita Baku used a 16-0 block advantage to defeat Thailand’s Chang Bangkok 25-19, 21-25, 25-15, 25-17 during Pool B of the FIVB Volleyball Women’s Club World Championship.
The match marked Rabita Baku’s first contest in the tournament, while Chang Bangkok concluded pool play with a 0-2 record. Rabita Baku wrap up pool play on Wednesday at 3 p.m. versus Brazil’s Sollys Nestle Osasco (1-0). Both Rabita Baku and Sollys Nestle Osasco have qualified for the semifinals on October 13 regardless of the final pool match results as the top two teams in each of the two three-club pools advance.
Rabita Baku was sparked by Natalya Mammadova’s 20 points, while Sanja Starovic contributed 18 points and Natasa Osmokrovic 14 points. Mammadova and Starovic each tallied five blocks in the victory. Chang Bangkok was paced by Wilavan Apinyapong’s 16 points, while Onuma Sittirak totaled 13 points. Rabita Baku possessed a 12-centimeter average in height advantage among the starting lineups to control the net action. Rabita Baku managed a 56-49 edge in attacks. Chang Bangkok held a 5-4 advantage in aces.
“We are very happy with this win,” Rabita Baku captain Natalya Mammadova said. “It's a very good start for our team because several players just arrived from their national teams. Even though we weren't able to prepare very well for this competition, I still believe we played a good game.”
“Today we tried to do the best we can,” Chang Bangkok captain Wilavan Apinyapong said. “We played against a very strong team, of which several players are a lot taller than we are. That made it very difficult for us to attack because they were able to block us quiet easily.”
FIVB Volleyball Women’s Club World Championship Highlights
Top Scorers by Day October 8: 18 – Malgorzata Glinka (VakifBank TTelekom Istanbul) vs. Mirador Santo Domingo October 9: 22 – Ivna Marra (Sollys Nestle Osasco) vs. Chang Bangkok October 10: 25 – Jeoselina Rodriguez (Mirador Santo Domingo) vs. Kenya Prisons Nairobi October 11: 20 – Natalya Mammadova (Rabita Baku) vs. Chang Bangkok
Top Scoring Performances 25 – Jeoselina Rodriguez (Mirador Santo Domingo) vs. Kenya Prisons Nairobi on Oct. 10 22 – Ivna Marra (Sollys Nestle Osasco) vs. Chang Bangkok on Oct. 9 20 – Wilavan Apinyapoing (Chang Bangkok) vs. Sollys Nestle Osasco on Oct. 9 20 – Brackcides Khadambi (Kenya Prisons Nairobi) vs. Mirador Santo Domingo on Oct. 10 20 – Natalya Mammadova (Rabita Baku) vs. Chang Bangkok on Oct. 11
Top Blocking Performances 7 – Adenizia Silva (Sollys Nestle Osasco) vs. Chang Bangkok on Oct. 9 6 – Ana Beatriz Correa (Sollys Nestle Osasco) vs. Chang Bangkok on Oct. 9 5 – Ivna Marra (Sollys Nestle Osasco) vs. Chang Bangkok on Oct. 9 5 – Diana Khisa (Kenya Prisons Nairobi) vs. Mirador Santo Domingo on Oct. 10 5 – Natalya Mammadova (Rabita Baku) vs. Chang Bangkok on Oct. 11 5 – Sanja Starovic (Rabita Baku) vs. Chang Bangkok on Oct. 11
Top Service Ace Performances 4 – Malgorzata Glinka (VakifBank TTelekom Istanbul) vs. Mirador Santo Domingo on Oct. 8 3 – Bahar Toksoy (VakifBank TTelekom Istanbul) vs. Mirador Santo Domingo on Oct. 8 3 – Jelena Nikolic (VakifBank TTelekom Istanbul) vs. Mirador Santo Domingo on Oct. 8 3 – Brackcides Khadambi (Kenya Prisons Nairobi) vs. Mirador Santo Domingo on Oct. 10 3 – Deborah Constanzo (Mirador Santo Domingo) vs. Kenya Prisons Nairobi on Oct. 10
Highest Set Score 26-24 – Chang Bangkok def. Sollys Nestle Osasco on Oct. 9 (set 3) 26-24 – Sollys Nestle Osasco def. Chang Bangkok on Oct. 9 (set 4) 26-24 – Mirador Santo Domingo def. Kenya Prisons Nairobi on Oct. 10 (set 4)
