The Turkish women's national team achieved a difficult 3:2 (17:25, 25:20, 25:16, 23:25, 15:11) victory over the Dominican Republic in a match from the first week of the Volleyball Nations League in Brazil.
The match saw many twists and turns. The Dominicans started stronger and took the first set 25:17. Turkey responded with two consecutive sets – 25:20 and 25:16, but the opponent brought back the intrigue after a 25:23 success in the fourth set. In the tie-break, the Turkish team asserted control and closed the match at 15:11.
| Statistic | Dominican Republic | Turkey |
|---|---|---|
| Attack | 58 | 68 |
| Block | 16 | 15 |
| Ace | 3 | 2 |
| Points from opponent errors | 20 | 20 |
| Total points | 97 | 105 |
| Digs | 100 | 101 |
| Receptions | 100 | 92 |
| Sets | 169 | 163 |
Turkey made the difference primarily in offense, scoring 68 points against 58 for the Dominican Republic. The Caribbean team partially compensated with better blocking and more direct points from serves, but could not maintain the same attack efficiency. It is noteworthy that both teams finished with an equal number of points coming from opponent errors.
| Dominican Republic | Points | Turkey | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heredia | 17 | Erkek | 21 |
| Peña Isabel | 15 | Başyolcu | 18 |
Erkek was the most effective player in the match with 21 points and led the Turkish team to victory. Başyolcu added another 18 points. For the Dominican Republic, Heredia scored 17 points, and Peña Isabel finished with 15.
The victory brought Turkey a valuable success in a contested match, but also a minimal increase in their world ranking points. The Dominican Republic, on the other hand, took one point from the dramatic loss after five sets, but symbolically dropped in the world ranking.
photo:volleyballworld.com
