Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand, May 14, 2017 – Three unbeaten teams Thailand, Chinese Taipei and Kazakhstan have already secured their berths in the round of the last eight teams following their straight two victories at the SMM 2nd Asian Women’s U23 Volleyball Championship at The Mall Nakhon Ratchasima’s MCC Hall on Sunday.
Hosts Thailand mercilessly crushed Macao in lop-sided battle
Title-hotshots Thailand made it two in a row on Sunday after demolishing underdogs Macao in a completely one-sided battle 25-12, 25-8, 25-8 on Sunday.
The Thai players, who powered past Hong Kong in their first match the previous day, were spearheaded by Chatchu-on Moksri and Pimpitchaya Kokram, two key players who joined the Thailand women’s national team for several major competitions including the World Grand Prix. With the straight two wins, Thailand topped Pool A with six points to advance to the round of the last eight teams.
Pimpichaya Kokram became the top scorer of the team after scoring 11 points, while Chachu-on Moksri had 10 points. Law Weng Sam led Macao with only 4 points.
After the match, Thailand’s head coach Nataphon Srisamutnak expressed his satisfaction over the team’s performance.
“We learned from the mistakes we made in the Saturday’s match against Hong Kong and we improved in this match. But we still have some points that we have to adjust especially in defence and blocking. I think we served and attacked well. I would like to thank Thai fans here at the venue and those supporting us in front of TV. We will do our best in this tournament.” Nataphon said.
“In the next round, we are due to play both Kazakhstan and Chinese Taipei.They are strong teams in this tournament. We will not underestimate them, but will try our best in every match we play,” he added.
Chen Tau’s 17 points assist Chinese Taipei to beat Australia in straight sets
Following the Thailand’s footsteps, Chinese Taipei also sealed their second win after sailing past Australia in straight sets 25-21, 25-14, 25-20 on Sunday.
Talented Chen Tzu Ya was the top scorer of Chinese Taipei with 17 points, while Tseng Wan Ling added with 7 points. Katrina Janssen and Jennifer Tait scored 8 and 6 points respectively for Australia.
Chinese Taipei will take on Kazakhstan, both claiming straight two wins, to decide the winners of Pool C on Monday.
Kazakhstan overwhelmed Sri Lanka in completely one-sided encounter
Kazakhstan showed no mercy to Sri Lanka to crush the underdogs in a totally lop-sided affair 25-14, 25-8, 25-12 on Sunday.
Yekaterina Sakharova scored a match–high 16 points for Kazakhstan, while Aidana Oryntayeva added 10 points. Senewirathna topscored for Sri Lanka with only 5 points.
The Sri Lankans, who went down in straight sets to Chinese Taipei in the curtain-raisers the previous day, played a must-win match against the Kazakhs to keep their hopes of advancing to the next round alive. However, Kazakhstan completely smashed the rivals’ sweet dreams.
Sri Lanka, suffering straight two losses, have already been relegated to the 9th-13th classification round. The Sri Lankans are due to take on winless Australia in their last preliminary match on Monday.
Japan kicked off their campaign with 3-0 win over Vietnam
Powerhouses Japan registered their first win at the top-notch tournament following a scintillating 25-12, 25-15, 25-21 victory over Vietnam on Sunday.
“We prepared well for this match as we knew Vietnam are a very strong team and they have good spikers. We trained together only two weeks before this tournament. Our goal is to win the tournament, but I found that Thailand and Kazakhstan will be our toughest opponents. We will do our best in the next round,” said Japan’s head coach Kiyoshi Abo.
Nanaka Sakamoto topscored with 10 points for Japan, while Hikari Kato,Ayaka Sugi and Nozomi Itoh scored 9 points apiece. Tran Thi Thanh Thuy led Vietnam with 11 points.
Iran downed Malaysia 3-0 to taste first victory
Iran, playing their opening match at the championship, brushed off Malaysia in straight sets 25-21, 25-23, 25-16 in their Pool D preliminary match on Sunday.
“This is our first match of the tournament, so we were quite nervous. It was quite tough in the first set as our opponents played well and we also made so many errors. But after we got adapted to the court conditions, we came back to our own game and were able to play fast. I am very happy for our first victory,” Iran’s head coach Sedighi Sima said after the match.
“We trained together for only two months before playing in this tournament. Our goal is to finish among the top four teams,” she added.
Fatemeh Amini topscored with 11 points for Iran, while Mona Ashofteh added 10 points. Low Mei Cing and Alicia Yii led Malaysia with 13 and 7 points respectively.
On Monday, the last day of the preliminary matches, Hong Kong will take on Macao to decide the second team to join Thailand to the next round. Japan will play Uzbekistan, while Kazakhstan will challenge Chinese Taipei to decided the top spot in Pool C. Australia will meet Sri Lanka, with Iran taking on New Zealand.
Sunday’s results
Thailand b Macao 3-0 (25-12 25-8 25-8)
Japan b Vietnam 3-0 (25-12 25-15 25-21)
Kazakhstan b Sri Lanka 3-0 (25-14 25-8 25-12)
Chinese Taipei b Australia 3-0 (25-21 25-14 25-20)
Iran b Malaysia 3-0 (25-21 25-23 25-16)
Match schedule
Preliminary round
May 15, 2017
Hong Kong v Macao
Japan v Uzbekistan
Kazakhstan v Chinese Taipei
Australia v Sri Lanka
Iran v New Zealand
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