The Bulgarian women's national team continues without success in the second week of the Nations League. The team, led by Marcello Abbondanza, lost to Canada 1:3 (17:25, 25:23, 23:25, 26:28) in Bangkok, after being completely evenly matched with their opponent in three of the four sets.
The loss costs Bulgaria more positions in the world rankings. The national team is now 27th in the world with 145.48 points, which is the lowest ranking in the team's history. The defeat resulted in a deduction of 1.84 points from the team's total. Canada maintained its 10th place with 258.89 points.
In the Nations League standings, the Bulgarians remain in the penultimate 17th position with one win and six losses.
After the heavy 0:3 defeats to Poland and Thailand, this time the "Lionesses" showed a much better performance. After losing the first set, they managed to tie the score with 25:23 in the second part. The third set was decided at the very end, and in the fourth, the national team reached set point at 26:25 but failed to convert it. Canada closed the match 28:26, ending the suspense.
Miroslava Paskova and Alexandra Milanova played a particularly strong match, being the main scorers for the Bulgarian squad, but the strong play of Alexa Gray, Emily Maglio, and Kiera Van Ryk tipped the scales in favor of the North Americans.
Team Statistics
| Indicator | Bulgaria | Canada |
|---|---|---|
| Attack points | 39 | 55 |
| Block points | 8 | 13 |
| Service points | 8 | 6 |
| Points from opponent errors | 36 | 25 |
| Total points | 91 | 99 |
The statistics clearly show where the difference came from. Canada scored a full 16 more points in attack and 5 more in block. Bulgaria compensated with better serving and significantly more points from opponent errors, but the Canadian superiority in offense was decisive.
Game Elements
| Indicator | Bulgaria | Canada |
|---|---|---|
| Digs | 107 | 102 |
| Receptions | 84 | 83 |
| Organized attacks | 155 | 154 |
This shows how even the match was, at least in numbers. Bulgaria had more saved balls in defense, better reception, and even a minimal advantage in organized attacks. This indicates that the problem was not in building the game, but in the effectiveness of finishing the attacks.
Top scorers
| Bulgaria | Points | Canada | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Syikova | 14 | Van Ryk | 19 |
| Paskova | 13 | Malio | 16 |
The top scorer for Bulgaria is Borislava Syikova with 14 points, followed by Miroslava Paskova with 13. For Canada, the main burden fell on Van Ryk, who finished with 19 points, and Malio added another 16.
Rankings and the worrying trend
| Team | Rank | Points | Change after the match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bulgaria | 27 | 145.48 | -1.84 |
| Canada | 10 | 258.89 | +1.84 |
Bulgaria continues to pay a high price for the poor results in the last two years. The drop to 27th place is a historic low for the women's national team. The positive for Marcello Abbondanza's team, which is the youngest in the competition, is that the game against Canada was significantly more competitive compared to the previous two matches in Bangkok, but this did not bring the much-needed points in the standings.
photo:volleyballworld.com
