SANTA ROSA, Laguna — Ukrainian duo Valentyna Davidova and Anhelina Khmil delivered a commanding start before surviving a tense second-set thriller, 21-13, 24-22, to eliminate Olympian Taliqua Clancy and Stefanie Fejes of Australia and secure a spot in the semifinals of the Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour Nuvali Challenge on Saturday at the Nuvali Sands Courts.
Davidova and Khmil dominated the opening set before weathering a spirited comeback from Clancy — who made her first appearance in this year’s Beach Pro Tour — and Fejes, who pushed the Ukrainians to the limit in the second set before ultimately bowing out.
The ninth-seeded Ukrainian pair maintained control early in the second frame before Clancy, a silver medalist at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, sparked a 5-1 run that erased a 13-16 deficit and gave the No. 15 Australians an 18-17 edge.
From there, the set turned into a back-and-forth battle, with both sides trading heavy blows in a tense finish. A crucial double contact violation by Khmil then handed Australia a 19-20 set point opportunity.
Khmil quickly made amends, scoring back-to-back points to swing Ukraine ahead, 21-20, but Clancy and Fejes held their composure under pressure, saving two match points to extend the thriller deep into the frame.
The set remained on a knife’s edge before Khmil finally broke through with a well-placed drop shot to create another opening. Fejes then misread her attack, sending it long and sealing the victory for Ukraine, which advanced to the semifinals of the tournament organized by the Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) and the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) under chairman Patrick Gregorio.
“It was a hard battle from both sides. We knew who we were going to play against. We knew Steffi and Taliqua,” said two-time Beach Pro Tour gold medalist Khmil, who finished with 24 points.
“They’re such great players, and we knew it wasn’t going to be easy. But it was a great performance from us, and we had so much fun. We’re really thrilled that we managed to win,” she added.
Khmil and Davidova will face another Team USA pair in No. 10 Madelynn Anderson and Alaina Chacon in the semifinals on Sunday at 8 a.m. The Americans earlier defeated Brazil’s Andressa Ramalho and Taina Bigi, 21-16, 21-19.
Meanwhile, top-seeded Monika Paulikiene and Aine Raupelyte of Lithuania will battle No. 26 Emi van Driel and Mila Konink of the Netherlands, also at 8 a.m.
Paulikiene and Raupelyte controlled the match from start to finish, dismantling Ukraine’s Tetiana Lezerenko and Sofiia Kurnikova, 21-7, 21-17, to advance to the semifinals in commanding fashion in the tournament supported by the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC), Rebisco, Akari, Ayala Land, and PLDT.
Van Driel and Konink also showed their class, sweeping past fellow Dutch pair Nigella Negenman and Floor Hogenhout, 21-9, 21-14, to complete their own semifinal march in the international tilt hosted by the City of Santa Rosa and supported by Medical South City Luzon and Jersey Haven.
In the men’s division, No. 5 Julian Friedli and Jonathan Jordan of Switzerland will face No. 10 Thomas Hodges and Ben Hood of Australia, while No. 9 Adrian Heidrich and Yves Haussener of Switzerland take on No. 14 Philipp Huster and Sven Winter of Germany, both at 9 a.m.
Friedli and Jordan survived a dramatic 17-21, 28-26, 18-16 win over Austria’s Paul Pascariuc and Alexander Horst earlier in the day, while Hodges and Hood swept Latvia’s Ardis Bedritis and Arturs Rinkevics, 21-18, 21-11.
On the other hand, Heidrich and Haussener pulled off the biggest upset of the round, toppling top-seeded Eylon Elazar and Kevin Cuzmiciov, 21-18, 21-13, to reach the semifinals, while Huster and Winter also advanced after staging a reverse sweep over compatriots Maximilian Just and Lui Wust, 18-21, 21-16, 15-10.
