VIETNAM shocked Belgium 25-23, 23-25, 25-20, 25-17 to capture the bronze medal in the FIVB Women’s Volleyball Challenger Cup yesterday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila.
Ace hitter Nguyen Thi Bich Tuyen erupted for 35 points on 34 hits as the world No. 34 Vietnamese held their ground in completing a stunning upset of the No. 13 Belgians.
The win atoned for Vietnam’s 19-25, 14-24, 19-25 loss to No. 16 Czechia in the semifinals to wind up as the only Asian squad in the podium.
It’s a strong follow-up to the Vietnamese’s title run last May in the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) Challenge Cup, which was also hosted by the country led by the Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) president Ramon “Tats” Suzara at the nearby Rizal Memorial Coliseum.
Vietnam, which eliminated host Alas Pilipinas in the quarterfinals with a 25-14, 25-21, 25-22 triumph, pulled off the win with the support from Nguyen Thi Trinh and skipper Tran Thi Thanh Thuy, who chipped in 10 and seven points, respectively.
“I’m very happy for this win and I’m very proud of my teammates. We have a good connection, and we did well today,” said Thuy, dubbed as T4 in the volleyball community.
Save for a close second-set defeat, it was all Vietnam in the duel against the European bet that also bowed out in the semifinals of the tourney backed by global partners Mikasa, Gerflor and Senoh and local partners PLDT, Rebisco, Manila Diamond Hotel, Philippine Olympic Committee, Philippine Sports Commission, Meralco, MWell, Cignal, Fitness First, Maynilad and Foton.
Belgium absorbed a 19-25, 15-25, 16-25 loss against world No. 15 Puerto Rico in the other pairing to settle for a bronze medal match to no avail.
