Italy averted a massive meltdown and denied fellow European side Serbia in a thrilling 25–14, 25–15, 18–25, 21–25, 15–12 marathon to keep its Week 2 campaign unscathed in the 2026 FIVB Women’s Volleyball Nations League presented by the Philippine Sports Commission on Thursday at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.
In full control early, the reigning champions appeared set for a straight-sets win before the Balkans finally found their rhythm and dragged the match into a deciding fifth set. Serbia, however, ran out of steam down the stretch as Italy steadied itself to secure back-to-back wins in the week.
Serbia mounted a last-ditch comeback, even leveling the fifth set at 10 after trailing by four. The Italians then faltered with several errors before Nina Cajic delivered a timely kill to keep her side within striking distance.
But back-to-back kills from Josephine Obossa and a Linda Nwakalor block on Anja Zubic restored Italy’s cushion at 13–10.
From there, an exchange of points sealed the match in one hour and 43 minutes.
Obossa led the charge for Italy with 18 points, while Sarah Fahr added 17 and Linda Nwakalor chipped in 13.
Ekaterina Antropova, limited early, finished with 12 points to round out the balanced attack for the defending champions.
“This game is full of ups and downs the whole time. We started really well, but then when they put in their starters, we struggled a little bit. But I think we did some good things and some things we had to work on. This is a new team, and also young, so we have to figure it out,” said Obossa, an opposite hitter playing in Japan for the Toray Arrows.
The defending champions were off to the races at the onset, capitalizing on Serbia’s fatigue after a five-set battle against Japan the other night and the opponent’s decision to field a rotated lineup.
After Serbia winger Vanja Bukilic cut the deficit to six, 10–16, with a well-timed spike, Italy stretched the lead back to double digits after Fahr denied Tica at the net, cruising to a dominant opening set.
The second set followed a similar pattern as the world No. 1 side overwhelmed Serbia with 11 attack points, but it was their net defense that truly broke the opposition’s resistance.
Fahr continued to be a menace at the net, collecting three more blocks in the set for a total of five. Obossa added two rejections as Italy finished with six blocks in the second frame alone.
Serbia, however, had other plans and surged early in the third set behind Nina Cajic, who led the charge with six points.
The World No. 9 side then capitalized on Italy’s errors in the fourth set, overturning an 11–17 deficit into a 25–21 win to force a decider.
Italy, though, would not be denied, with Obossa and Fahr leading the way with 18 and 17 points, respectively.
The reigning Olympic champions, now 5–1, will face the in-form USA in a high-stakes clash on Saturday at 4 p.m.
Cajic finished with a game-high 19 points on 17 kills, one block, and one service ace for Serbia, but it was not enough as the side absorbed a fourth straight five-set heartbreak.
The Southeast European squad (1–4) will look to snap its skid against the Dominican Republic in less than 24 hours on Friday at 4 p.m.
