By Maryam Hessby
Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand, October 2, 2021 – The Philippines’ Choco Mucho found Kazakhstan’s Zhetysu too strong to go down in straight sets at the Asian Women’s Club Volleyball Championship at the Terminal 21 Hall here on Saturday, ending their preliminary Pool A campaign in third place following their two losses in a row.
After a straight-set letdown to hosts Nakhon Ratchasima QminC VC in the previous match on Friday, Choco Mucho came into the court with the winning attitude, only to leave the competition venue with their heads low in disappointment with two consecutive losses, this time at the hands of Zhetysu, the Kazakh side loaded with strong players including Russian Valeriya Shatunova, Azerbaijani Anastasiya Gurbanova and Mame Fatou Diouf from Senegal.
Choco Mucho, hoping to make amends for their first loss on Friday, played well in the first set against Zhetysu but still found the impeccable rivals too hot to handle as they narrowly went down in the hard-fought first set 23-25.
Zhetysu continued their superb form and thanks to the tightened defence and back-to-back attacks in crucial moments, they annulled the Philippine fightback for the impressive 25-19, 25-15 win in the second and third sets.
Anastasiya Gurbanova chipped in with 19 points for Zhetysu, while Tyler Marie Kalei Mau led Choco Mucho with 11 points.
Zhetysu on Sunday will challenge Nakhon Ratchasima QminC VC in their last preliminary match to determine the Pool A winners, while Choco Mucho, which are assured of finishing third in the Pool, will have a rest day.
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