Italy claims 7th-position at 2011 FIVB Grand Prix after beating China – Volleyball News
Italy defeated host China in a five set thriller and settled for the 7th position in the 2011 World Grand Prix at Macau East Asian Games Dome on Saturday. The final score was 3-2 (25-13, 14-25, 22-25, 25-16, and 15-10). Gioli Simona clipped 23
points for Italy as China’s Wang Yimei did equally well for her team and registered 20 points.
Italy dominated in the first set by making a strong opening. Commanding serves and powerful attack by Simona Gioli swept the feet of the Chinese players. Italians also used the advantage of better physique and put pressure on the rival side. First set plainly
slipped through the Chinese squads hands with a big margin of 12 points.
However, China adjusted their attack tactics in the second set. The Chinese setter, Wei Qiuyue, efficiently triggered her three main point scorers; h*i Ruoqi, Wang Yimei and Xu Yunli. Improved defense and reception from China restricted Italy to a low score
of 14 in the set. As a result, the hosts successfully tied the game score by winning the second set.
The third was a point-to-point battle as both sides showed their strong determination and neither one could build a leading advantage. China went up by four points due to a good combination of ace serves and solid blocks by Wang. The hosts captured the third
set and extended the lead to 2-1.
Italian libero Leonardi Giulia offered solid blocking to China’s spikers in the fourth set. Bosetti Lucia and Gioli stormed their opponents’ half with ground-breaking shots. The hard work paid off and Italy retook control of operations. They pulled off success
in the fourth set. The 15-point golden set also came successfully for Italy and helped them break the dead-lock of 2-2. Ultimately, Italy emerged as the victorious team at the 7th position match.
Chinese captain Wei Qiuyue regretted the loss of final match. She said they worked hard but Italy got the win on account of an experienced team-line. Moreover, she added that China suffered from too many mistakes. She concluded: “I hope the experience of
this tournament will help us improve. The Asian Championship is coming soon, and I wish we can make the necessary psychological adjustments to get ourselves prepared for the upcoming matches.”
Italy captain, Eleonora Lo Bianco, was happy with the match results. She added: “Today we won because we played better in all aspects of the game, especially in serving, defence and blocking. I am satisfied because we fought until the end of the match.”
Italy’s Head Coach Massimo Barbolini had the mutual feelings about the match. He also praised the good defense of powerful serving of his players.
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