Australia overcame a rough start to down Chinese Taipei in four sets, 23-25, 25-15, 25-19, 25-18, for a triumphant start to its 2024 AVC Challenge Cup for Women campaign on Wednesday at the historic Rizal Memorial Coliseum in Manila.
The Volleyroos rebounded after their comeback fell short in the first frame, taking the next three sets convincingly to join India at 1-0 in Pool A, where the Philippines is grouped.
Australia and the debuting Alas Pilipinas will face off tomorrow at 7 p.m., still at the same venue.
“We’ve got still quite a young team, so there were a few nerves in the first set, and Taipei are always a tough opponent, so we were able to regain our composure enough to help our attack. I think the girls got better and better generally,” said Volleyroos head coach Russell Borgeaud on their performance.
“The last time we played Philippines two years ago they were very strong and we lost in five sets so it’s gonna be a very tough match and gonna be a very good match,” he said, recalling their 25-21, 19-25, 25-19, 18-25, 12-15 defeat to the Creamline-Philippines squad in the 2022 AVC Cup which was held at the Philsports Arena in Pasig.
Australia showcased its tall stature, capitalizing on its 5-foot-10 average height against Taiwan’s 5-foot-6 average, as evidenced by the blocking discrepancy of 18-1.
Middle blocker Cassandra Dodd by herself collected 10 blocks to go with six attacks for 16 points while Caitlin Tipping got a game-high 21 points on 19 spikes and two rejections.
Opposite hitter Emma Burton also ended up in double digits for Australia with 11 points as Caitlin Whincup and Kara Inskip logged eight points apiece.
Hsu Fangmin led the charge for the Taiwanese with 15 points while Lin Liangtai got 10 as well in the losing cause.
Chinese Taipei, the youngest team in the tournament with just 17 to 19-year-old players, will shoot for its first win tomorrow against India, which beat Iran earlier in the day.
