With middles Weitzel and Schölzer in great form, the Europeans controlled the net
The German blocking presence made a difference at the net
Germany continue in great form in the Volleyball Nations League 2023 at the start of the second week of the Preliminary Phase as the Europeans secured their fourth victory in the tournament on Wednesday, in Brasilia, Brazil.
After winning three of their first four matches two weeks ago in Nagoya, Japan, the team coached by the experienced Vital Heynen dominated Thailand to a 3-1 (25-20, 25-13, 19-25, 25-23) victory at the Nilson Nelson Stadium in the first match for both teams in Pool 4.
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Maintaining basically the same players that guided the team to a promising start in Japan, the Europeans saw their middle blockers step up and produce great performances against the Asians. While Camilla Weitzel led the German offense with 17 points (13 kills, one ace, three blocks), Marie Schölzer wasn’t too far behind, with 15 (12 kills, one ace, two blocks).
“We realized there was a little bit of a mismatch because our middles are very tall, so we tried to use them the most we could and they did pretty well,” setter Pia Kästner commented. “Thailand served very well on the third set and we had some trouble with our passing. It was very difficult to deal with all their combination plays when they were in system too, but in the end, we fought through it. It was really important for us to get a good start this week, just like we did in Japan, as it boosts our confidence for what’s to come.”
Weitzel took advantage over the Thai blockers and had a great performance
Thailand also had a middle blocker leading the way, with Thatdao Nuekjang topping all scorers with 17 points (15 kills, two blocks). Also reaching double digits in scoring were opposite Pimpichaya Kokram and outside hitter Chatchu-On Moksri, with ten points each.
The German physical advantage pushed the Europeans to control the net, getting 13 blocks to Thailand’s seven. The winners also got more points from kills (57 to 54), aces (four to one) and opponent errors (20 to 19).
The Thai will be back on the court in Brasilia on Thursday, when they face the United States at 14:00 local time (17:00 UTC), while the Germans will have the day off, returning to action on Friday, at 14:00 local time (17:00 UTC), to play against Japan.
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