Bangkok, Thailand, August 2, 2021 – Reigning and consecutive two-time Asian champions Japan bowed out of the Tokyo 2020 volleyball tournament after upset loss in must-win clash against Dominican Republic at Ariake Arena in Japan on Monday.
World No.8 Dominicans, who missed the cut for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, performed superbly to stun the host side in dramatic four sets 25-10, 25-23, 19-25, 25-19. It was a sweet revenge for the Dominicans’ 2-3 loss to the same opponents at this year’s FIVB Volleyball Nations League in Rimini, Italy.
Four Dominicans scored double digits in this match, with Prisilla Rivera Brens chipping in with 17 points. Jineiry Martinez kept good company to add 16 points, while Bethania De La Cruz De Pena and Elizabeth Martinez Brayelin bagging 14 and 12 points respectively. Sensation Sarina Koga became the match’s top scorer with 22 points including 20 attacks, while Ai Kurogo bagged 18 and Mayu Ishikawa and Haruyo Shimamura claimed 8 points apiece.
At the end of the pool round-robin preliminaries on Monday, Dominican Republic had 8 points from 2 wins against 3 losses to finish in fourth place in Pool A and become the last team to secure a quarterfinal berth. Japan collected 4 points from one win against 4 losses to come in 5th position in the group and crash out of the Tokyo 2020.
The Japan’s high hopes to qualify for the quarterfinals turned the greatest challenge they had to overcome after they went down 2-3 to Korea, resulting in a do-or-die battle between Japan and Dominican Republic in their last Pool A clash.
With their backs against the wall, Japan needed a must-win match against the Dominicans no matter what the score to ensure their slot in the quarterfinals.
However, things turned sour for the host side on Monday when they failed to cope with the Dominicans’ resilience and extreme power through Prisilla Rivera Brens’ fine attacks with scintillating blocks from Bethania De La Cruz De Pena.
The first set became a completely one-sided affair, with the Dominicans gaining total control to seal the victory with ease 25-10.
In the second set, the Dominicans chased from trailing 1-5 to level at 7-7. Ishikawa and Kurogo tried to bring Japan back on track, but the strong visitors foiled the hosts’ determined efforts. The Dominicans found the huge gap in the Japan’s court, with Rivera producing effective drop shots and Martinez turning the heat on the Japanese with her spectacular attacks. Despite putting up a gallant fight, the Japan’s attempts were to no avail. The Dominicans went on to win the closely-contested set 25-23.
To keep their comeback hopes alive, the Japanese needed a strong start in the third set and they had their job well done to take the set 25-19, thanks to Koga’s aggressive attacks and Shimamura’s lightning-fast spikes.
The fourth set seemingly turned out to be a similar script as the first set when the Dominicans raced to commanding lead by wide margin of 7 points at 16-9 and then widened the gap to 24-17. Japan did not give up easily as they hit back to score two points in succession before the Dominicans survived the hosts’ scare to capture the thrilling set 25-19 and match.
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