Canada’s men’s volleyball team recovered from a sweep at the hands of Italy in its world championship opener by defeating China 25-23, 25-21, 25-23 in Pool E action on Monday in Ljubljana, Slovenia.
“I’m happy with the 3-0 win; that matters for a lot of reasons,” Canada head coach Ben Josephson said in a statement released by Volleyball Canada. “Fatigue and recovery in this tournament are a big deal as well we know there are a lot of teams vying to get into the next round and every set will matter.
“Most importantly, we were able to build on that third set we played with Italy [that went to 39-37 on Saturday].”
Italy also prevailed 25-13, 25-18 in the first two sets.
“We are getting better and that’s what we need to do for Turkey [on Wednesday],” Josephson said. “We’ve got 48 hours to recover and prepare and hopefully continue to get better with each set of this tournament.”
WATCH | Full match replay: Canada vs. China:
Watch Canada take on China at the 2022 FIVB men’s volleyball world championship from Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Against China, Canada prevailed on attack points (41-35), service aces (5-3) and made fewer errors, but China led in blocking points (7-4).
Ryan Sclater led the Canadians in scoring with 16 points.
The competition, also held in Poland, sees 24 teams spread across six pools of four, playing in a single round-robin format. The top two nations in each pool and the four best third-placed teams will qualify for the elimination round.
WATCH | Canada swept by Italy on Saturday:
.jpg?crop=1.777xh:h;*,*&downsize=510px:*510w)
Watch Canada battle Italy at the 2022 FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Championships in Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Canada’s roster
- #3 — Derek Epp – Saskatoon
- #4 — Nicholas Hoag – Sherbrooke, Que. (captain)
- #5 — Eric Loeppky – Steinbach, Man.
- #7 — Stephen Maar – Aurora, Ont.
- #8 — Brett Walsh – Calgary
- #10 — Ryan Sclater – Port Coquitlam, B.C.
- #11 — Pearce Eshenko – Banff, Alta.
- #12 — Lucas Van Berkel – Edmonton
- #17 — Ryley Barnes – St. Paul, Alta.
- #19 — Brodie Hofer – Langley, B.C.
- #20 — Arthur Szwarc – Toronto
- #21 — Jackson Howe – Calgary
- #22 — Steven Marshall – Abbotsford, B.C.
- #24 — Mathias Elser – Calgary
Assistant Coach: Joe Trinsey
Assistant Coach: Mike Hawkins
Strength & Conditioning: Mike Cook
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
