Volleyball

All of the favourites for the 2015 FIVB Men's Volleyball World Cup predictably cruised through Round 2 of the tournament, setting up an epic finale in Tokyo, starting Monday. Undefeated Poland and the USA will go head-to-head on the first matchday of Round 3, while closest competitors Russia and Italy will also do battle.

All four teams won in straight sets on Friday and have a good chance of finishing in the top two, the spots that come with a ticket for the 2016 Summer Olympics. The USA's lead over Poland is just a single point, and with Russia and Italy close behind, anything could happen in Round 3. Here are the full results from Friday, along with the schedule for Monday:

Date	Team A	Score	Team B
Friday, September 18	USA	3-0	Tunisia
Friday, September 18	Italy	3-0	Venezuela
Friday, September 18	Japan	2-3	Iran
Friday, September 18	Egypt	0-3	Russia
Friday, September 18	Canada	1-3	Argentina
Friday, September 18	Australia	0-3	Poland
Monday, September 21	Italy	TBD	Russia
Monday, September 21	Egypt	TBD	Tunisia
Monday, September 21	Canada	TBD	Venezuela
Monday, September 21	Japan	TBD	Argentina
Monday, September 21	USA	TBD	Poland
Monday, September 21	Australia	TBD	Iran

The current standings:

Rank	Team	W	L	Pts	Sets W	Sets L	Ratio
1	United States	8	0	24	24	2	12.000
2	Poland	8	0	23	24	6	4.000
3	Russia	7	1	21	22	4	5.500
4	Italy	7	1	21	21	5	4.200
5	Argentina	6	2	17	20	10	2.000
6	Japan	5	3	15	18	12	1.500
7	Iran	3	5	9	13	18	0.722
8	Canada	2	6	4	9	22	0.409
9	Venezuela	1	7	3	6	23	0.261
10	Australia	1	7	3	6	23	0.261
11	Egypt	0	8	3	7	24	0.292
12	Tunisia	0	8	1	3	24	0.125

Friday Recap

As expected, the final day of the second round of the 2015 Men's Volleyball World Cup didn't produce any surprises, with the top four teams all easily winning their matches without dropping a set. Those results set up a dream scenario for Monday and the start of Round 3, with undefeated Poland and Team USA going head-to-head in Tokyo.

The Americans still lead the standings, but their next two matches, against Poland and current Olympic champions Russia, will determine whether the Stars and Stripes can finish in the top two and qualify for next year's summer Olympics.

The United States kept Tunisia's point totals under 20 in the first two sets, a clear indication of their dominance, but in the third set, things nearly went wrong for the tournament favourites. Tunisia suddenly found success on the block and just wouldn't go away, holding on until 29-27.

As shared by the FIVB's official Twitter account, Micah Christenson believes he and his team-mates got a little "too comfortable":

. @MChristenson5 says @usavolleyball got "too comfortable" in the third set as they beat Tunisia #FIVBMWCup pic.twitter.com/vszhD1oihr

— FIVB (@FIVBMWorldCup) September 18, 2015

Poland did their part on Friday, beating Australia 3-0 in what officially became the tournament's shortest match, at one hour and 20 minutes, per the event's official website.

The Poles wasted little energy attacking with their serve and appear to be peaking at just the right time, ahead of their big upcoming clash with the Americans.

Russia and Italy, the two teams with just one loss on their resume, also took care of business, winning in straight sets against Egypt and Venezuela, respectively.

The teams will now travel to Tokyo and enjoy the weekend, before the real action starts on Monday. With only the top two teams qualifying for the Olympics, the final three matches of the tournament will be crucial.

The Americans appear to have the toughest schedule remaining, taking on Poland and Russia, but all four of the top four teams will play two more matches among themselves, so anything could happen. The winner of the clash between Poland and the USA is almost guaranteed a finish in the top two, but for the other team, the last two matches will be tense.

Thursday Recap

Iran have given Team USA plenty of problems in recent years, including a shock upset at the 2014 World Championship, and the Stars and Stripes once again appeared to be in trouble during the first set of Thursday's 3-1 win.

The undefeated Americans struggled getting their serve going and couldn't find a way through Iran's tough blocking, leading to a set score of 25-20 in favour of the Iranians.

Libero Erik Shoji told B.J. Evans of USA Volleyball their serve made the difference in the first set:

They’re a good serving team. We knew that from watching them on film. They have really good jump serves and then their float serves are probably the best we’ve faced this tournament. The first set they came out strong and we made adjustments toward the end of the set; just little tweaks, taking a step here or there toward their tendencies.

It marked only the second time in seven matches that the USA dropped a set, but the team changed tactics and dominated the rest of the match. Placing more of an emphasis on the back row, the Americans furiously attacked Iran's defence, finishing with an incredible 58-38 attack advantage. The remaining set scores were 25-19, 25-22 and 25-21.

Team USA will play winless Tunisia in their final Round 2 match before the all-important doubleheader with Poland and Russia.

Poland cruised to a three-set win over Egypt, wasting very little energy in the process (via WorldofVolley.com):

Quick and easy - Poland seized a straight sets win over Egypt - 3-0 (25:20, 25:23, 25:18) #FIVBMWCup #WoV

— WorldofVolley.com (@WofVOLLEY) September 17, 2015

The Egyptians have yet to win a match at the 2015 World Cup and were not expected to put up much of a fight, but they managed to keep the second set close, powered by their excellent serve and attack. They struggled on the block, however, allowing the experienced Poland side to build their lead every time serve shifted.

Russia's win over Canada was a similar story, easily winning 25-21, 25-16, 25-19. The reigning Olympic champions dominated on the block in the first set and smashed Canada's defence to pieces in the second, taking a quick two-set lead.

Canada took a brief lead in the third set and found some success on the block, but the Russians took advantage of the technical timeout to grab some quick momentum and easily served out the match from there.

Italy was never troubled by Tunisia, winning 3-0 and setting up a fantastic scenario as the third round edges closer. None of the top four teams are expected to lose on Friday, as they go up against the four worst-ranked teams in the tournament. Barring a huge upset, the situation at the top of the standings should remain unchanged heading into Round 3.

With Italy facing off against Russia on Monday and Team USA taking on Poland, fans should be in for one spectacular day of volleyball when the final round kicks off.

Canada beat Australia 3-2 in a five-set epic at the 2015 Men's Volleyball World Cup on Sunday.

Elsewhere, the USA maintained their perfect start to the competition as they beat Egypt 3-0, while Poland and Russia continued to nip at their heels with wins over Venezuela and Iran.

Japan lost in straight sets against Italy in a disappointing match for the hosts.

Here are the latest results from the tournament, the updated standings and the schedule for the next round:

Date	Team A	Score	Team B
September 13	Egypt	0-3	United States
September 13	Canada	3-2	Australia
September 13	Italy	3-0	Japan
September 13	Venezuela	1-3	Poland
September 13	Argentina	3-0	Tunisia
September 13	Iran	0-3	Russia

Rank	Team	Played	Won	Lost	Points
1	USA	5	5	0	15
2	Poland	5	5	0	14
3	Russia	5	4	1	12
4	Italy	5	4	1	12
5	Argentina	5	3	2	8
6	Japan	5	3	2	8
7	Iran	5	3	2	8
8	Canada	5	2	3	4
9	Venezuela	5	1	4	3
10	Australia	5	1	4	3
11	Egypt	5	0	5	3
12	Tunisia	5	0	5	1

Date	Team A	vs.	Team B
September 16	United States	vs.	Venezuela
September 16	Italy	vs.	Iran
September 16	Japan	vs.	Tunisia
September 16	Egypt	vs.	Argentina
September 16	Canada	vs.	Poland
September 16	Australia	vs.	Russia
September 17	United States	vs.	Iran
September 17	Italy	vs.	Tunisia
September 17	Japan	vs.	Venezuela
September 17	Egypt	vs.	Poland
September 17	Canada	vs.	Russia
September 17	Australia	vs.	Argentina
September 18	United States	vs.	Tunisia
September 18	Italy	vs.	Venezuela
September 18	Japan	vs.	Iran
September 18	Egypt	vs.	Russia
September 18	Canada	vs.	Argentina
September 18	Australia	vs.	Poland

Sunday Recap

The only place to begin is Canada's phenomenal triumph over Australia, which broke records for the longest and highest scoring match at a World Cup, taking two hours and 49 minutes to complete with 245 points shared, per the tournament's official Twitter feed:

Longest match - 2:49
Highest scoring game - 245 points#FIVBMWCup
Record-smashing Sunday!http://t.co/8kIwpWNj4b pic.twitter.com/KdDm1F9oqM

— FIVB (@FIVBMWorldCup) September 13, 2015

The lead went back and forth between the sides as Australia drew first blood, winning the first set 34-32.

Two strong sets from Canada saw them roar back into the match, but Australia were able to save a match point in the fourth as they levelled proceedings with a narrow 29-27 win.

A hard-fought final set followed and the match was ultimately decided as Steven Marshall served into the net.

John Gordon Perrin led the scoring for the winning side as he racked up an outstanding 26 points, while for Australia Thomas Edgar was equally impressive as he scored 21 points despite only starting the final two sets.

Nevertheless, Edgar was understandably disappointed with the result despite his excellent performance. According to the tournament's official website, he said:

"It was a difficult match. They had a solid attack and counter-attack. We had the momentum at the start but lost it in the second and third set. We battled back in the fourth set. We are still making easy errors. It's about how you finished games, not start them."

As the tournament's Twitter feed noted, the USA ruthlessly capitalised after Egypt showed signs of fatigue following their own five-set epic a day earlier:

USA batter tired Egypt#FIVBMWCup Site A Hiroshimahttp://t.co/71hppqGAvf pic.twitter.com/YCZwWoOr9d

— FIVB (@FIVBMWorldCup) September 13, 2015

The win was fairly routine as Egypt struggled to make the match much of a contest.

Taylor Sander scored 14 for the United States, whose spikes, blocks and serves were far more successful than Egypt's, according to the tournament's website.

Meanwhile, Ahmed Abdelhay was the only Egypt player to register a personal points total in double figures with 11, the next highest being Badawy Mohamed Moneim with a meagre five.

Per the World Cup's website, USA coach John Speraw expressed his delight with their unbeaten start to the tournament, but he maintained there was more to come from his side:

"I was pleased with our focus for this match. It was not an easy one for us. I feel good about where we are at 5-0 through the first round. We can continue to improve. We just have to keep focusing on the next match."

The American's Round 2 fixtures comprise Venezuela, Iran and Tunisia, who were all comfortably defeated on Sunday, and so they should have little trouble in extending their record to eight consecutive wins.

Russia and Poland are unlikely to be far behind, though, as they both impressed on Sunday winning 3-0 and 3-1 respectively. Dmitriy Muserskiy was singled out by FIVB:

Russia’s Muserskiy puts on show in straight-set defeat of Iran#FIVBMWCup Site B Hamamatsu:http://t.co/0o4IWlwmCp pic.twitter.com/NeJ6yuVzJq

— FIVB (@FIVBMWorldCup) September 13, 2015

Indeed, he put in a stunning performance as he was awarded the title of Most Impressive Player for his efforts, as he recorded 20 points, 16 spikes, a block and three aces, according to the tournament's official stats.

Led by Muserskiy, Russia could definitely rival the USA throughout the tournament.

The FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Cup gets underway on Tuesday, as the best teams in the business descend on Japan looking to qualify for the 2016 Olympics.

Twelve nations battle it out for just two qualification spots over the next fortnight, with the privilege of joining hosts Brazil at next year’s Games awaiting the victors.

World champions Poland come into the tournament as favourites, but with the highly rated USA and World Cup pioneers Russia sniffing around, it’s all to play for.

Dates: Tuesday, September 8 – Wednesday, September 23

Groups:

Group A	Group B
Japan	Russia
Italy	Poland
USA	Argentina
Australia	Iran
Canada	Venezuela
Egypt	Tunisia

 

Schedule:

The 2015 World Cup will be played as a round-robin tournament, so the 12 competing nations will play against each other once.

Teams from Groups A and B will face off against their fellow group competitors during Round 1, while Rounds 2 and 3 will see the groups intertwine.

Here’s a look at the full World Cup schedule:

Date	Team A	vs.	Team B
September 8	Canada	vs.	Italy
September 8	United States	vs.	Australia
September 8	Japan	vs.	Egypt
September 9	Australia	vs.	Italy
September 9	Egypt	vs.	Canada
September 9	United States	vs.	Japan
September 10	Italy	vs.	Egypt
September 10	Canada	vs.	United States
September 10	Japan	vs.	Australia
September 12	United States	vs.	Italy
September 12	Australia	vs.	Egypt
September 12	Japan	vs.	Canada
September 13	Egypt	vs.	United States
September 13	Canada	vs.	Australia
September 13	Italy	vs.	Japan

Date	Team A	vs.	Team B
September 8	Argentina	vs.	Iran
September 8	Russia	vs.	Venezuela
September 8	Poland	vs.	Tunisia
September 9	Venezuela	vs.	Argentina
September 9	Tunisia	vs.	Iran
September 9	Poland	vs.	Russia
September 10	Iran	vs.	Venezuela
September 10	Argentina	vs.	Poland
September 10	Russia	vs.	Tunisia
September 12	Poland	vs.	Iran
September 12	Tunisia	vs.	Venezuela
September 12	Russia	vs.	Argentina
September 13	Venezuela	vs.	Poland
September 13	Argentina	vs.	Tunisia
September 13	Iran	vs.	Russia

Date	Team A	vs.	Team B
September 16	United States	vs.	Venezuela
September 16	Italy	vs.	Iran
September 16	Japan	vs.	Tunisia
September 17	United States	vs.	Iran
September 17	Italy	vs.	Tunisia
September 17	Japan	vs.	Venezuela
September 18	United States	vs.	Tunisia
September 18	Italy	vs.	Venezuela
September 18	Japan	vs.	Iran

Date	Team A	vs.	Team B
September 16	Egypt	vs.	Argentina
September 16	Canada	vs.	Poland
September 16	Australia	vs.	Russia
September 17	Egypt	vs.	Poland
September 17	Canada	vs.	Russia
September 17	Australia	vs.	Argentina
September 18	Egypt	vs.	Russia
September 18	Canada	vs.	Argentina
September 18	Australia	vs.	Poland

Date	Team A	vs.	Team B
September 21	Italy	vs.	Russia
September 21	Japan	vs.	Argentina
September 21	United States	vs.	Poland
September 22	Italy	vs.	Argentina
September 22	Japan	vs.	Poland
September 22	United States	vs.	Russia
September 23	Italy	vs.	Poland
September 23	Japan	vs.	Russia
September 23	United States	vs.	Argentina

Date	Team A	vs.	Team B
September 21	Egypt	vs.	Tunisia
September 21	Canada	vs.	Venezuela
September 21	Australia	vs.	Iran
September 22	Egypt	vs.	Venezuela
September 22	Canada	vs.	Iran
September 22	Australia	vs.	Tunisia
September 23	Egypt	vs.	Iran
September 23	Canada	vs.	Tunisia
September 23	Australia	vs.	Venezuela

Holders Looking to Repeat History

Russia have enjoyed ample success in the World Cup over the years, winning six times and taking 10 medals from just 12 tournaments.

The Russians dominated the 2011 tournament, winning 10 of their 11 matches and finishing all of three points ahead of Poland in the final standings.

They kick off against Venezuela, who reached the World Cup due to Brazil’s absence from the South American qualifiers, and they’ll fancy their chances of getting the ball rolling with a victory.

Still, the Russians haven’t been in the best of form in the World League and come into the tournament looking for redemption.

But that’s exactly what star man Dmitriy Muserskiy believes they’ll achieve, as he told the FIVB Volleyball World Cup’s official website:

In the Russian team there is always only one goal: first place. At the very least, to play in the final. It does not matter whether it is the World Cup, World League or a friendly tournament.

The desire to rehabilitate ourselves after a bad performance in the World League is not our priority. We are only focused on a successful performance at the World Cup.

All eyes will be on the Russians on September 9, as they take on world champions Poland.

The Poles have dominated the World Cup holders during the World League, winning four matches on the spin, and come into the tournament off the back of three impressive warm-up victories against France, Japan and dark horses Iran.

Elsewhere, the USA can never be written off, while 1995 World Cup winners Italy always play a part.

Either way, only two nations will be handed tickets to Rio next year. With so much on the line, it’s all set to be incredibly tense from the first serve to the last.

There’s no such thing as an easy game at the Volleyball World Cup, and although the likes of Russia, Poland and USA will be favourites to qualify for Brazil, the tournament has served up many a shock down the years.

A British woman has been jailed for one year after attending a men's volleyball match in Iran.

Activist Ghoncheh Ghavami, 25, was first arrested in June while trying to attend a match with a group of women. She was later released, but Ghavami has now been jailed once again after being found "guilty of spreading anti-regime propaganda," her lawyer told the BBC.

Women have been banned from watching men's volleyball in the country since 2012, an expansion of a law against watching football.

Amnesty International has called for Ghavami's immediate release, and the British Foreign Office has also released a statement saying, "We have concerns about the grounds for this prosecution, due process during the trial, and Miss Ghavami's treatment whilst in custody."

Eurosport reports that "Women are banned from Iranian football matches with Gen Esmail Ahmadi Moghaddam, chief of the Iran police, having said that it is 'not yet in the public interest' for them to share the stands with men."

Eurosport also published quotes on the jailing from Amnesty International's director, Kate Allen: 

It's an outrage that a young woman is being locked up simply for peacefully having her say about how women are discriminated against in Iran.

The authorities should investigate allegations that Ghoncheh was subjected to death threats by her interrogators and provide compensation for her arbitrary detention and her prolonged solitary confinement.

A Facebook page entitled Free Ghoncheh Ghavami has been set up, and her brother, Iman Ghavami, has also established an online petition calling for her release.

[BBC, Eurosport]

We've come to the midway point of the opening round of the 2014 Men's Volleyball World Championships in Poland, with 24 of the top nations in the world vying for the ultimate prize.

The top four teams from each of the four pools will qualify for the next round, entering two new groups from which the eventual semi-finalists will emerge. Brazil are looking to defend their 2010 title and are once again favourites to walk away victorious.

Here are the full results for the matches played on Wednesday, 3 September:

	Result
Cuba	0-3	Germany
Bulgaria	2-3	Canada
Finland	3-0	Korea
Mexico	1-3	China
Tunisia	0-3	Brazil
Egypt	0-3	Russia

The updated standings:

Rank	Team	Pts	W	L
1	Poland	6	2	0
2	Argentina	3	1	1
3	Australia	3	1	1
4	Venezuela	3	1	1
5	Serbia	3	1	1
6	Cameroon	0	0	2

Rank	Team	Pts	W	L
1	Brazil	6	2	0
2	Finland	5	2	0
3	Germany	3	1	1
4	South Korea	3	1	1
5	Cuba	1	0	2
6	Tunisia	0	0	2

Rank	Team	Pts	W	L
1	Russia	6	2	0
2	China	6	2	0
3	Bulgaria	4	1	1
4	Canada	2	1	1
5	Egypt	0	0	2
6	Mexico	0	0	2

Rank	Team	Pts	W	L
1	Iran	5	2	0
2	Belgium	4	1	1
3	France	4	1	1
4	United States	3	1	1
5	Italy	2	1	1
6	Puerto Rico	0	0	2

Outlook

Pool A

Hosts Poland have started the tournament in an excellent manner, taking the top spot in a group without a clear favourite for the second, third or fourth spots.

Argentina are the top seed (No. 7) but suffered a surprising 3-1 loss against Serbia, who themselves were blown out of the water by the Polish team. The Serbs will play Australia next, and the young Volleyroos have impressed early in the tournament.

Coach Jon Uriarte saw his team (predictably) lose 3-0 against the hosts, and as he told VolleyballAustralia.org, consistency will be key:

Every match at the World Championships is completely different, and I think against Poland we suffered.

The level of precision, how every mistake counts a lot. There is the challenge – we wanted to be prepared for that, but we weren’t.

The challenge is how long it will take to become a consistent team to perform. We suffered yesterday, we will come back today in training with the feeling how painful the mistakes yesterday were, and then we will see if in the next match we can take feedback from what happened last match and do better.

Venezuela complete the list of teams tied for second, with Cameroon yet to record their first points of the tournament. On current form, those two seem likely to miss the cut for the second round.

Pool B

Brazil easily won their first two matches of the tournament, recording their sixth straight World Cup win against Tunisia on Wednesday, as shared by Infostrada:

#FIVBMensWCH: TUN v BRA: Brazil are on 5-match winning streak at the WCh and can win 6 in a row for 6th time in history of the competition.

— Gracenote Olympic (@GracenoteGold) September 3, 2014

They proved their dominance by handling Germany 3-0 in their opener, but the win over Tunisia came at a cost, as shared by FIVBMensWCH, as they lost captain Bruno Rezende to injury:

https://twitter.com/FIVBMensWCH/status/507263987164401664

The defending champions will receive a surprising challenge from Finland, the lowest-seeded team in the group. The underdogs surprised everyone when they upset Cuba 3-2 on the opening day and backed that result up with a 3-0 win over Korea, giving them five points and putting them in excellent position to advance.

Cuba's start to the tournament has been dreadful, as they also lost 3-0 to the Germans, but they should still qualify for Round 2 over Korea and Tunisia.

Pool C

China have announced their return to the highest stage of volleyball with a bang, tying favourites Russia for the lead in Pool C after two matches.

The Chinese took care of Egypt and Mexico in their first two, winning both 3-1, and they looked excellent doing so. For a team that hasn't cracked the top 10 at the tournament in years, the early proceedings are encouraging.

Mexico's Carlos Guerra likes what he has seen from his team so far, although he would prefer to watch their strong play go hand-in-hand with some results:

https://twitter.com/FIVBMensWCH/status/507217193587974144

Bulgaria have somewhat underwhelmed in the early stages of the tournament, but they seem like a safe bet to join the top duo in the next round. The last spot will come down to Canada, Egypt or Mexico, with the Canadians holding a two-point advantage.

Pool D

Anything seems possible in Pool D, where heavy favourites Italy are currently on the outside looking in and Belgium, the tournament's lowest seed, chase group leaders Iran by a single point.

Belgium took Team USA to five sets and easily defeated Puerto Rico, and with four points already they could cause the shock of the tournament by eliminating one of the favourites.

Iran have ruled Pool B so far, and the USA still seem like a safe bet to make it through, which likely leaves Italy and France to battle it out for the final ticket to the next round.

The Italians hold the tiebreaker thanks to their 3-2 win, but ranked third in the world, they'll need to significantly raise their level of play to hang with teams like Russia and Brazil this year.

Schedule

	vs.
Cameroon	vs.	Argentina
Puerto Rico	vs.	USA
Serbia	vs.	Australia
Iran	vs.	France
Poland	vs.	Venezuela
Italy	vs.	Belgium

For the complete schedule of the 2014 Men's Volleyball World Championships, visit Poland2014fivb.org by clicking here.

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No. 12-seeded Wisconsin rode its Cinderella story all the way to the championship game, but the team came up just short against No. 2 Penn State in the first All-Big Ten final in tournament history. The Nittany Lions won their sixth national championship in four sets (25-19, 26-24, 20-25, 25-20).

Ariel Scott was the star of the game, finishing with 21 kills and proving too much for the Wisconsin front line to handle. It was a total team effort, however, with setter Micha Hancock totaling 48 assists in the championship match.

The first set was very close until Penn State’s four-point run fueled by two Katie Slay kills put the Nittany Lions up by five. That gap was too large for Wisconsin to overcome, and Scott punctuated the set with a kill to start Penn State on its road to victory.

Penn State carried that momentum into the second set, opening up a 6-1 lead thanks to three consecutive spikes by Scott. At that point, it seemed as though the bright lights might be too much for the Badgers, but they clawed their way back to tie the set at 14 apiece.

The set went into extra points, and again it was Scott who came up big for Penn State. With the set tied 24-24, the right-side hitter scored two points to give Penn State a 2-0 advantage and bring it one set away from a national championship.

Facing elimination, the Badgers again started slow in the third set, falling behind 1-5. This time, however, Wisconsin was able to overcome the deficit and take a 17-12 lead and eventually win the set to get on the board.

The final set was a back-and-forth battle, much like the opener, with the teams entering the home stretch even at 18. Three Penn State errors resulted in Wisconsin taking a 23-20 lead and threatening to take the match to a fifth and deciding set.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t the Badgers’ day and the Lions scored the last five points of the match behind two service aces from Taylor Morey.

It was a thoroughly entertaining match, and it was much closer than the four-set outcome indicates. While the loss certainly wasn’t how the Badgers wanted their season to end, they can certainly hold their heads high as they played exceptionally well against the Lions.

Furthermore, the play of freshman setter Lauren Carlini was an enormous bright spot and a sign of good things in Wisconsin’s future. Carlini rose to the occasion throughout the tournament and was controlling the Wisconsin attack, including a 50-assist performance in the Final Four upset of No. 1 Texas.

According to Dennis Punzel of The Wisconsin State Journal, Wisconsin coach Kelly Sheffield had this to say about Carlini:

The bigger the lights, the better. That’s her mentality. The kid’s whatever she is, 18 years old, and she was born for this. The bigger the crowd, the more moxie that comes out of her, the more confidence.

Wisconsin was the lowest seed to ever make the tournament, but with another year of experience under Carlini’s belt, the Badgers won’t be the No. 12 seed next year.

The 2013 NCAA women’s volleyball championship will be a showdown between Wisconsin and Penn State on Saturday, Dec. 21, in Seattle.

It’s an improbable finale, as the No. 12-seeded Badgers have managed to beat the odds in every round thus far. After taking down No. 1 Texas in the semifinals, Wisconsin has to win just one more match to cap one of the most incredible runs in tournament history.

The No. 2 Nittany Lions lived up to expectations on their side of the bracket, impressively knocking out No. 3 Washington in straight sets to advance to the title contest against a familiar Big 10 rival.

Let’s take a look at where you can watch this thrilling showdown and preview the action.

When: Saturday, Dec. 21 at 9:30 p.m. ET

Where: KeyArena at Seattle Center, Seattle

Watch: ESPN

Live Stream: WatchESPN

Bracket

Preview

Both of the two participants in this championship matchup have earned the right to be here.

Wisconsin avoided a few tough opponents in the early going, notably avoiding No. 5 Florida and No. 4 Missouri after both powerhouse programs were upset, but the Badgers proved to be for real by eliminating Texas, the top seed in the event.

Badgers star Ellen Chapman spoke with Jack Hamann of NCAA.com after the contest about what her team was able to do to nab that improbable win:

“We're just a bunch of ballers out there and our back court is going to keep hitting those hard hits that they keep putting at us. And just never giving up on those balls is what set us apart from them, I think.”

With its victory in the semis, Wisconsin became the lowest seed to reach the finals in tournament history.

Now, only Penn State stands in the way of Wisconsin. The Nittany Lions are heating up at the right time, as evidenced by their sweep of the Huskies in the semis. They also have two regular season victories over the Badgers, but it is always tough to beat an opponent three times in a single year.

Washington had only been swept once this season, getting clocked by Stanford—a team that Penn State eliminated in the quarterfinals on Nov. 20.

Penn State's Daja McClendon was on fire in the semis, mounting 23 attacks and 11 kills in the match. She’ll be instrumental to the Nittany Lions’ chances of knocking out their pesky underdog opponent on Saturday.

Expect an exciting contest that will come right down to the wire. With both teams on the cusp of a championship, they will dig in and give everything they have in order to win it.

It’s definitely worth tuning in to check out the action and see which squad can wind up as the national champion in what promises to be a thrilling match.

BYU's Jennifer Hamson was an absolute terror on the court last season as a junior. The 6'7" opposite totaled 458 kills with a 4.09 kills-per-set average and a .362 hitting percentage.  She also added 328 blocks and 206 digs en route to helping lead the Cougars to a 28-4 record, a share of the West Coast Conference title and a Sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA tournament.

Her performance didn't go unnoticed, as she was named the West Coast Conference Player of the Year and a First-Team All-American by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.

Hopes were high for Hamson as she prepared to return for her senior season. 

Those hopes will have to be postponed now, as Hamson announced this week that she will be redshirting this upcoming season and will play out her final year of eligibility in 2014, according to Jay Drew of The Salt Lake Tribune.

What could cause a first-team All-American to postpone her final year of eligibility?

In Hamson's case, her outstanding talent was actually the cause.

Hamson is also a star center on BYU's basketball team.  She led the WCC in blocks, was second in rebounds, fourth in field-goal percentage and 10th in points in the conference.  That led to her being named to the WCC all-conference team.

Being a two-sport athlete in college is difficult enough.  Being the star player for two different sports teams at your college is nearly impossible.

Hamson chose to separate her senior seasons for the two sports in order to give each the focus they deserve, and to preserve herself.

While Hamson's problem may be fairly unique, she was able to come up with a solution that works.

BYU fans may be sad to see their First-Team All-American sit out this season, but Hamson did what was best for her and both of her teams.

So far 2013 has been a good year for veteran AVP beach pro Jake Gibb. He’s got a new partner in Casey Patterson and the duo has been heating it up on the world tour, playing in three finals and winning a gold medal at the Shanghai Grand Slam.

I spoke to Jake by phone while he was at the San Francisco Airport awaiting a flight to the Beach Volleyball World Championships in Poland this week.

You’re off to Poland, you’ve been traveling a lot this year.

 We’ve been everywhere. This will be our last big trip for the season.

How is it traveling with Casey?

 He’s annoying and drives me up the wall (pauses). Just kidding. Actually we have so much in common that it’s pretty easy.

How does the atmosphere at events around the world compare to back home with the AVP?

It’s different, it really varies a lot from tournament to tournament and country to country. You go to Austria and it’s a total party atmosphere, they’re selling beer in the stands and it’s a riot, it’s insane. But it totally varies from country to country.

You and Casey are currently ranked No. 3, a couple weeks ago you were ranked No. 1. Does that give you confidence, pressure, or both?

Well, ranking this early in the season means nothing. The most important thing to me over ranking is we know we can win.  We know we have what it takes to win. Now it’s just putting it together. And it’s a battle with a ton of really good teams.

Who are some of the tough teams you could face in Poland?

The hottest team right now is Latvia's Aleksandrs Samoilovs and Janis Smedins and Brazil's Pedro Salgado and Bruno Oscar Schmidt. Also the Polish team of Grzegorz Fijalek and Mariusz Prudel are really good.

Do you think you and Casey could be considered among the favorites?

Oh favorites, I hate that word. Everyone in the top 16 could be called a favorite. It’s just that tough out there. There’s so many good teams, I wouldn’t say that we’re the favorite.

But you have a gold medal, so you’re off to a good start with Casey.

Yeah, it’s been fun. It’s been fun to have some early success, and some early tougher times. We’ve been in three finals and so we know we can beat anybody in the world but we also know we can lose to anybody in the world, so we know we have to give it everything we’ve got in every match.

Do you see yourself going into the next Olympic cycle with Casey?

Yes.

You’ll be 40 when Rio 2016 rolls around. Are there other beach players who’ve competed in the Olympics at that age?

Sure, Todd Rogers was 39 last year, I think Emanuel was 40. Three or four 40-year-olds played in the last Olympics for Beach Volleyball. For whatever reason we can maintain at a high level late in our careers, so I hope to do the same.

Do you think for USA Beach Volleyball players it’s important to have a strong domestic league like the AVP?

That’s what we are, we’re AVP athletes. It’s huge for us. I consider myself an AVP athlete and I like to supplement it with the world tour. That’s how I look at it. I love the AVP tour. It’s what beach volleyball’s all about.

What guidance or advice would you offer to young beach athletes who want to one day compete on the big stage, be it the AVP, World Tour or the Olympics?

Set realistic goals. If you’re not at the level going for the Olympics, don’t set that as a goal. Set more attainable goals and see if you can reach them. I think that’s a common mistake of people throwing out a general “I’d like to be the best in the world” when you’re not the best in your city.

It’s really important to learn to win in whatever place you are in life. I played in Utah for three years and won everything out there and I was probably ranked No. 200 in the nation. I wasn’t that great of a player but I learned how to win so I think that’s the important thing there.

Because you’re an athlete who’s come back from testicular cancer, I wanted to ask you about Lance Armstrong. Do you feel we lost a hero with everything that happened? 

It was hard to witness to be honest. I’d kind of backed him when people questioned him. I’d just always thought that how could a guy be tested and go through what he went through and be cheating? So yeah it’s disappointing, you know he’s kind of a scumbag after it all comes out. It’s just my opinion, I don’t know him. My only connection with him is we both had testicular cancer and we’re both athletes.

Do you see yourself as an inspiration for people out there who might have testicular cancer? The fact that you beat it and you’re out there winning gold medals?

Not really. I think there’s a lot more inspirational people than me who have gone through a lot tougher time with cancer than me. I felt like I was lucky, I caught mine early and it didn’t affect my life as much as some people. So I think those people are the inspiration.

So there was never a point when you thought it could end your career?

Yes there was. I thought I was gonna have to go through chemotherapy and that was gonna crush down my year at least and probably at that point, maybe not be able to keep playing.

Must’ve felt good when you found out you didn’t need chemo.

Yeah it’s up there with the top three happiest days of my life.

For more information on the upcoming AVP Pro Beach Volleyball tour, visit www.avp.com.

 

 

As a titan in the sport of beach volleyball, Kerri Walsh Jennings stands tall—literally, as she is listed at 6'3"—as well as figuratively above the competition.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbdyQbB830c

Being a two-time AVP (Association of Volleyball Professionals) MVP and having three gold medals under her belt, there is not much Walsh Jennings has left to prove. However, volleyball runs through the course of her veins and with the AVP Tour back, she will not sit idle as she gears up for another tour and eventual run for gold in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

“As long as I keep getting better (I’ll keep playing volleyball),” Walsh Jennings said with a sly grin. “For sure I want to go to Rio, and my goal is to qualify and win another gold medal. After that I’ll take care of it (possibly retire from the sport) when it comes."

Walsh Jennings will be looking for a new partner for gold, as her partner in crime Misty May-Treanor has since retired. Walsh Jennings has said an announcement will be made soon on her new partner, but she is more locked into the AVP tour at the moment.

It was announced in May that the AVP will kick off a seven-city tour, which begins on August 16 in Salt Lake City, Utah and ending on October 20 in Huntington Beach, California. Along the way, the tour will make stops in Manhattan Beach, California, Cincinnati, Ohio, Atlantic City, New Jersey, St. Petersburg, Florida and Santa Barbara, California.

Walsh Jennings is excited about the tour resuming and getting the chance to hit the sand again.

“I can’t even begin to tell you how excited I am and all the athletes are (to begin the tour)” Walsh Jennings said. “When there is a summer without the AVP it just feels wrong. Not only is it great to be back, but it’s under new ownership and leadership—we needed it. I believe in their vision.”

Walsh Jennings will be joined on the AVP circuit with some of the greats in the sport—both on the men and women’s side. Phil Dalhausser, Todd Rogers, silver medalists Jen Kessy and April Ross, and Olympians Sean Rosenthal, Jake Gibb and Nicole Branagh will be some of the other featured athletes.

“We’re going to have the best players in the world compete on this tour.” Walsh Jennings added. “It’s going to be a smaller draw size, (so) every single match is going to be intense.”

The tour will hit some new spots this summer, as the AVP recently announced an alliance with IMG. The addition of Manhattan Beach is an especially welcomed sight for Walsh Jennings, as are the other new stops.

“The partnership with IMG is huge,” Walsh Jennings said. “Manhattan Beach is basically Wimbledon for beach volleyball. I never been to Atlantic City (or) St. Petersburg. Cincinnati, believe it or not, is an amazing mecca for volleyball, so I can’t wait to get out there. There’s not a bad stop on the schedule.”

In correspondence with the new tour, the AVP has come to an agreement with CBS Sports Network and CBS Interactive to showcase the sport. CBS Sports Network is set to air live men's and women's championship round action from each stop on the tour, while CBS Interactive will provide a live stream of the preliminary rounds from each event on AVP.com. This will be the first time the sport will be televised since 2010.

With the increased exposure, Walsh Jennings is amped that more of the country will get to see more of the sport.

“It’s a huge and exciting partnership,” Walsh Jennings explained. “CBS is an invested partner and they want to grow the sport and the AVP. We want to make this prime time and mainstream. We need to get in front of more people, whether it be on TV or in person.”

With the AVP tour just a little more than two months away, Walsh Jennings is juggling both training and raising a family. (And when I say juggling, I mean quite literally, as accompanying Walsh Jennings on this interview was her precious two-month old daughter Scout Margery in her arms).

Walsh Jennings, who is married to Casey Jennings—a veteran of the AVP tour— have three children together. Along with Scout Margery, Kerri and Casey have two boys: Joey, 4, and Sundance, 3.

“My husband and I, I feel like we’re the ultimate team,” Walsh Jennings said. “We’re both chasing the same dreams. We work as a team and we feel our kids are part of our team. We go through the madness together. It’s a labor of love and it’s something I wanted my whole life. It’s a blessing to be able to combine the things I love.”

Trying to get back into beach volleyball shape can be hectic, too, says Walsh Jennings.

“(Training) has been intense,” Walsh Jennings said as she described a day in the life of her training regimen. “I have been on the beach for about two and a half weeks (now). Every day is humbling as I get my strength, speed and agility back. I’m playing volleyball two or three hours a day and then I’ll have one or two other workouts that will last anywhere between an hour and two hours.”

Obviously Walsh Jennings has a full plate, but when you talk to her and get to know her, she probably wouldn’t want it any other way. Walsh Jennings relishes her time balancing her sport and her family.

“We’re bringing our kids everywhere (on this tour), so it’s going to be a fun, family adventure,” Walsh Jennings concluded. “My husband will be playing as well. There is so much to look forward to.”

For the latest on the AVP, visit their site at www.avp.com.

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