Arlington, USA – China`s women`s national volleyball team navigated a tense, five-set battle against the Dominican Republic on Wednesday in Arlington, securing a vital victory that significantly bolsters their prospects for reaching the Volleyball Nations League 2025 Finals. The dramatic encounter, part of the third and final preliminary phase week, concluded with China prevailing 3-2 (25-22, 17-25, 22-25, 25-22, 15-13).
This hard-fought win, their first in the current week, provides China with crucial points in the VNL standings. They solidified their position, remaining in sixth place with a record of six wins and 17 points. Perhaps just as importantly, the result prevented the Dominican Republic, a team battling for a Finals spot themselves and currently ranking tenth, from closing the gap. The `Queens of the Caribbean` now stand at four wins and ten points, facing a tougher path to Łódź, Poland, the host city for the Finals from July 23-27.
China`s persistence was on full display, particularly after finding themselves trailing two sets to one. Outside hitter Mengjie Wu delivered an exceptional performance, leading her team with 25 points. This marks her fourth consecutive match in VNL 2025 scoring 24 points or more, a remarkable display of offensive consistency. Captain and opposite Gong Xiangyu demonstrated resilience, overcoming a quiet start in the first two sets to become China`s second-highest scorer with 18 points, contributing significantly when the match was on the line.
Head coach Yong Zhao commended his team`s spirit. “Our players deserve a lot of credit for this victory,” Zhao stated, acknowledging their “fire” and ability to “fight back.” He highlighted the effectiveness of their blocking and defense in the crucial final stages of the match, areas the team intends to further refine for upcoming games.
Match statistics underscored the tight nature of the contest and the contrasting strengths of the two sides. China`s defensive effort at the net was superior, recording 15 blocks compared to the Dominicans` ten. However, the Dominican Republic held an advantage in attacking, registering 74 kills to China`s 65, and were more effective from the service line with eight aces against China`s six. Errors were minimal for both teams, indicating a high level of execution throughout the extended match.
For the Dominican Republic, star outside hitter Brayelin Martinez was outstanding, carrying a significant offensive load and finishing with a match-high 33 points (28 kills, five blocks). Opposite Gaila Gonzalez also added substantial firepower with 22 points (17 kills, five aces). Dominican setter Ariana Rodriguez reflected on the competitive exchange: “I thought we were pretty aggressive and our serving was really good,” she noted, adding that while China is a “great team,” they “never gave up.” She pragmatically concluded, “We played all five sets, went back and forth, but somebody has to lose.”
In other early action from the Arlington pool this week, Germany also required five sets to overcome Canada in their opening match. The VNL preliminary phase continues with teams fiercely competing for the remaining spots in the Finals.
This thrilling encounter served as a clear reminder of the intensity and high stakes involved in the final week of the VNL preliminary phase as teams push towards the decisive qualification threshold.
