World No. 19 Canada struggled to find its footing after a disappointing campaign in the Manila Leg of the FIVB Volleyball Nations League.
Their woes piled up on Saturday noon after getting stunned by Bulgaria in straight sets, 24-26, 22-25, 21-25.
Kiera Van Ryk was the lone bright spot for Canada. She led the team with 20 markers on 17 attacks and three service aces in a losing effort.
With the loss, the team concluded the Manila Leg with a 1-3 tally.
Moments after their final game in the Philippines, Van Ryk pointed out that they could’ve played at a higher level and with better consistency in their bid to rack up wins in Week 2.
“I would say it’s pretty up and down personally and also as a team,” claimed the 23-year-old outside hitter.
“We could’ve been steadier all throughout. When we played Belgium, we played at our level, we played our volleyball really well. But in the other matches, we were really up and down. We weren’t very consistent in who we are as a team and that made us struggle against the other teams.”
Canada previously held a 2-2 record by the end of Week 1 held in Shreveport-Bossier City, Louisiana before landing in the Philippines.
They opened the Manila Leg on the wrong foot, absorbing a sweep at the hands of Thailand in their first game in the country, 19-25, 22-25, 24-26.
In the following game, Canada managed to bounce back against Belgium by winning in four sets, 25-22, 25-21, 22-25, 25-22. However, their momentum was then shut down by China as they were dealt by a 1-3 loss, 16-25, 25-18, 12-25, 18-25.
After their most recent loss to Bulgaria, Canada now sits at the 10th spot of the standings with a 3-5 record. Only the top eight teams will see action in the final round of the tournament including host country Turkey.
Shannon Winzer’s squad will resume action on June 29 for the start of their Week 3 campaign set to be staged in Calgary, Canada. Slotted in Pool 5, they will be going up against Turkey, Serbia, Germany, and The Netherlands.
Heading to Week 3, Van Ryk knows that her squad will have to play at their best if they want to climb up the standings and eventually make it deep into the postseason.
“Of course, that’s our goal. We’re gonna keep fighting,” she stressed. “I don’t know all the numbers, I don’t know how we have to do. We probably have to win all our games in the next round.
“Obviously, that’s our goal — we wanna be the best team that we can be here and do the best that we can. We’re trying to take it one game at a time, go home, recover, and go out strong when we go back to Canada.”
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