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*** The Official 2019 Volleyball Nations League Thread ***


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I'd like to bring good news, but frankly, I don't think you guys are cheering hard enough. This is on you.

 

Team USA is currently down 2-1 in the match. The good news is that we're tied on overall points 82-82 as we play in the fourth, with the Good Guys leading 17-10.

 

Gotta get this win & push it to five. Then we'll see who's in better shape.

 

My money's on America.

 

UPDATE - The Fightin' Red, White & Blue have taken Game 4. It's a race to 15 for all the marbles.

 

 

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Early match today against a familiar opponent, fellow NORCECA member Dominican Republic.

 

The DR is 2-3 in the 2019 VNL, having lost their last three matches to Italy, Serbia and China. All three losses were lopsided, 3-1 affairs.

 

We'll see what kind of fire Team USA brings in today's match. Could be a trap game after yesterday's big win over Italy. Still, I think the Americans should win, and 3-1 seems pretty likely. Could drop one of the first two games, then come back and put them away.

 

Remember, kids, that this is a little bit the American B Team. We're allowing Michelle Bartsch-Hackley, Kelsey Robinson, Carli Lloyd and Captain Jordan Larson to rest these first two weeks since their club seasons ended just a few weeks ago.  Expect to see these guys next week in Lincoln.

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2 hours ago, knapplc said:

We'll see what kind of fire Team USA brings in today's match. Could be a trap game after yesterday's big win over Italy. Still, I think the Americans should win, and 3-1 seems pretty likely. Could drop one of the first two games, then come back and put them away. 

 

Yeah. So. About that.

 

Team USA got trounced in Game 1, 25-10.  :blink::blink:

 

We won Game 2 25-16.

 

So just a bit of a hangover from yesterday's match.

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Getting a little concerning now. Team USA is playing lackluster volleyball. Dominican Republic won Game Three and leads the match two games to one.

 

Early in the fourth. Gotta win 'em all now.

 

EDIT - We took Game 4. Tied up 2-2, heading to the Fifth.

 

It was 17-17, then America closed out on an 8-2 run to win 25-19.

 

That (hopefully) bodes well for the fifth.

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A new day, a new pool, time to move on. The VNL comes to Lincoln for the second straight year, this time to fill up the Vault.

 

Team USA announced their roster for the Lincoln matches. You may find some of the names familiar...

 

 

Quote

 

U.S. Women Set Roster for VNL Matches in Lincoln

The U.S. Women’s National Volleyball Team returns to Lincoln, Nebraska, to play Korea, Germany and Brazil June 4-6 as part of the FIVB Volleyball Nations League.

 

U.S. Women’s National Team Head Coach Karch Kiraly and his staff have chosen a balance of veteran players to compete alongside younger athletes getting their first real taste of FIVB competition - and turning some heads on the court with a strong start in the early stages of the VNL.

 

Larson, Robinson, Lloyd, Dixon and Gibbemeyer are making their 2019 VNL debuts in Lincoln.

 

The U.S. Women host No. 9 Korea on June 4, No. 13 Germany on June 5 and No. 4 Brazil on June 6. All matches will be played at the 15,500-seat Pinnacle Bank Arena. The U.S. matches start at 7:30 p.m. CT in the round robin format, while the non-USA match is at 4:30 p.m. CT each day. Tickets can be purchased by clicking here.

 

Team USA is in second place in the 16-team VNL. The Americans, 5-1 in the VNL with 15 points, won their first five matches before losing to zonal rival Dominican Republic in a heart-breaking five-set loss. While using a young roster, the U.S. has already defeated the gold and silver medalists from the 2018 FIVB World Championships in this year’s VNL in Serbia and Italy.

 

The American roster heading to Lincoln includes Olympians Larson, Robinson and Lloyd as the veteran cornerstones. All three players did not participate in the opening two weeks of VNL as a means to recover from a long overseas professional season. Larson and Robinson competed on separate teams in Turkey, while Lloyd played with a club in Brazil.

 

Meanwhile, the U.S. roster has youth on sides that continues to earn roster spots into week three of VNL. Foecke and Poulter finished their collegiate eligibility at Nebraska and Illinois this past fall. Rettke still has two years of college eligibility remaining at Wisconsin, while Thompson and Lake will be seniors this fall at Cincinnati and BYU, respectively. All five made their FIVB debuts in the opening week of the VNL and have been key parts on why Team USA is 5-1 in the early going.

 

U.S. Women's National Team Roster for FIVB Volleyball Nations League Week #3 – Lincoln, Nebraska
# - Player (Position, Height, College, Hometown)
2 – Jordyn Poulter (S, 6-2, Illinois, Aurora, Colorado)
3 – Carli Lloyd (S, 5-11, California, Bonsall, California)
6 – Tori Dixon (M, 6-3, Minnesota, Burnsville, Minnesota)
8 – Lauren Gibbemeyer (M, 6-2, Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota)
9 – Madi Kingdon Rishel (OH, 6-1, Arizona, Phoenix, Arizona)
10 – Jordan Larson (OH, 6-2, Nebraska, Hooper, Nebraska)
11 – Annie Drews (OPP, 6-4, Purdue, Elkhart, Indiana)
12 – Jordan Thompson (OPP, 6-4, Cincinnati, Edina, Minnesota)
17 – Megan Courtney (L, 6-1, Penn State, Dayton, Ohio)
18 – Mikaela Foecke (OH, 6-3, Nebraska, West Point, Iowa)
20 – Dana Rettke (M, 6-8, Wisconsin, Riverside, Illinois)
23 – Kelsey Robinson (OH, 6-2, Nebraska, Manhattan Beach, California)
24 – Chiaka Ogbogu (M, 6-2, Texas, Coppell, Texas)
27 – Mary Lake (L, 5-7, BYU, Palm Springs, California)

 

Head Coach: Karch Kiraly
Assistant Coaches: Luka Slabe, Tama Miyashiro, Erin Virtue
Technical Coordinator: Jeff Liu

 

 

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On 5/30/2019 at 1:27 PM, knapplc said:

Welp. There's no more unbeatens in the VNL.

 

Dominican Republic defeats previously unbeaten America 3-2, winning the fifth 15-11.

 

More on this in a bit. Weird fifth game.

 

I still haven't seen a replay of the Dominican Republic vs USA so I'm quasi curious  of what the "weirdness" was in the fifth game of the match.

 

As far as the upcoming matches in Lincoln, I find it interesting that Kiraly is confident enough in his young talent that Bartsch-Hackley can sit this week out also (last year's VNL MVP). Dixon and Gibbemeyer are on notice in the middle, because Rettke isn't going anywhere and Haleigh Washington has shown she can perform at a high level (Washington isn't on the 14 team roster for Lincoln). It will be interesting to see if Kiraly makes Robinson a libero again after this set of matches and allows Foecke to stay while bringing in Bartsch-Hackley. Foecke probably needs to come up big (but that is her wheelhouse).

I was watching the Serbia highlights and I continue to be impressed with the athleticism of the play, It really is enjoyable to watch as a spectator. It is too bad that it is not more mainstream i.e. Fox Sports or ESPN. Much more entertaining than the WNBA.

 

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Team Good Guys wins Set 3 and takes a 2-1 match lead.

 

I can't go to this match, or tomorrow's match, because of reasons. But I am SORELY disappointed that the Lincolntonian crowd isn't raising utter hell in defense of this team.

 

You can be damned sure I will not have a voice on Friday after cheering on the Huskers (*I mean Team USA) on Thursday.

 

 

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