Canada beats Japan, sets up key match Volleyball Nations League match with Dutch

FUKUOKA, Japan – Canada came back from two sets down to post a 3-2 win over Japan on Thursday in Volleyball Nations League action.

Calgary’s Alexa Gray led Canada with 30 points as Canada won with set scores of 23-25, 22-25, 25-20, 25-21 and 16-14.

Kiera Van Ryk of Surrey, B.C., added 27 points for Canada, while Sarina Koga led Japan with 20 points.

Canada edged Japan 68-67 in attack points, service aces were even at six and Canada made more errors (26-24). But Canada outscored Japan 13-6 on blocks.

“That was a big win for us,” Canada head coach Shannon Winzer said. “We knew we had to be patient on attack and then work hard on defence around our block and while we kept falling just short in two very close first and second sets, we found our rhythm and our confidence in the third and kept going from there.”

Canada’s next match is a crucial meeting with the Netherlands on Friday.

The Dutch are ninth in the world rankings and currently hold the final qualifying spot for the Paris Olympics, but No. 10 Canada is just 2.09 ranking points below them.

Canada finishes VNL competition Saturday against 20th-ranked France, while the Dutch close against No. 34 South Korea. The final spots at the Paris Games will be decided at the end of the competition.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 13, 2024.