Czechia secured a spot in the 2024 FIVB Challenger Cup gold medal match and next year’s Volleyball Nations League after a decisive victory over Vietnam, 25-19, 25-14, 25-19 on Saturday evening at Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila.
The Czech team, qualifying from the European Golden League with a second-place finish, aims to clinch their first gold tomorrow at 6:30 PM.
They previously reached the final in 2019 but lost to Canada in five sets.
“We are very excited to be in the Challenger Cup Final. We can’t wait to play against Puerto Rico tomorrow,” said opposite spiker Gabriela Orvosova, who led with 17 points, including 14 attacks, two aces, and a block.
After trailing significantly in the first two sets, Vietnam’s Tran Thi Thanh Thuy and Nguyen Thi Bich Tuyen rallied in the third, narrowing a 13-18 deficit to just one point, 17-18.
However, Orvosova, Katerina Valkova, and Magdalena Jehlarova combined forces to secure Czechia’s victory and a spot in the championship round.
Helena Havelkova and Ela Koulisiani contributed 13 and 11 points respectively for the winning team, with Koulisiani achieving six spikes, three blocks, and two aces.
Jehlarova dominated Czechia’s blocking efforts (13-2), contributing five blocks alongside her attacking play for a total of 10 points.
Vietnam’s Tuyen, who scored 30 points against Alas Pilipinas yesterday, was limited to 12 points as Czechia effectively defended her at the net.
Thuy added nine points for the Southeast Asian team.
Vietnam will compete against Belgium tomorrow at 3:00 PM for the bronze medal.
