(Montreal) On Tuesday, in Xi’an, China, the Canadian men’s volleyball team took an important step in the right direction at the Olympic qualifying tournament as they recorded a victory in three sets (25-19, 25-22 and 26-24) against the Chinese team.
The two teams were face to face at the end of the first round. The score was 19 when coach Tuomas Sammelvuo’s men managed to outrun their opponents by scoring six of the next seven points to take the first set.
Things got tough for the Canadians in the next set as they trailed 17-12 at one point. Once again, the Maple Leaf representatives were able to score a series of points to bring the score back to 18-18 before taking the game 25-22 a few minutes later.
The third round was also hotly contested as the two countries exchanged leads. The patience of the Canadian players ultimately forced their opponents to make a decisive error at the very end of the match.
“It wasn’t really one of our best games. We had just played five sets against Poland the day before and we were really burned out. Winning 3-0, even when we are tired, it shows our character. We followed the game plan, and even though we were behind at times, we never gave up,” said Nicholas Hoag in an interview with Sportcom after the victory.
Stephen Maar led the Canadiens in scoring with 20 points. For his part, Hoag scored four points in Canada’s victory, two on attacks, one on the block and another on service.
With this victory, Canada is provisionally in second place in Group C with three matches remaining. In order to directly obtain their ticket to the Paris Olympic Games, Canadians must finish in the top 2 of their group.
Since the start of the tournament, Canada got the better of the Netherlands and Argentina before suffering a defeat in five sets against Poland, the only undefeated team in Group C.
The next challenge for Hoag and his teammates will take place early Friday in Xi’an, when they will face Bulgaria, provisionally fifth in the group with a record of two wins and two defeats.
Belgium (2-2) and Mexico (0-4) will be Canada’s last two opponents.
“The matches against Bulgaria and Belgium are very important, it will be decisive for qualification for Paris. These are two teams that play very, very well. We’re going to take the time to study them and we’re going to go for it 100%,” concluded Hoag.
