Italy and Brazil advanced to the semi-finals of the Women’s Volleyball Nations League in Macau on Wednesday, with emphatic wins over the Netherlands and Japan respectively.
Defending champions Italy beat their rivals the Netherlands 3-0 in the first quarter-final at the Macau East Asia Games Dome, while Brazil came from a set down before beating Japan 3-1, winning 24-26, 25-22, 25-16, 25-20.
Turkey and Canada will battle it out for one of the other two spots in the last four in Thursday’s opener, with China taking on the US champions later.
Brazil, the second-placed team in the tournament, will face Italy for a place in the final, and will be looking for Ana Cristina to repeat her heroics against Japan.
Cristina contributed an impressive 30 points, shot at 54 percent and added three kills and two aces to her total.
“It was a very difficult match today, but at the same time, I was happy on the field with my teammates,” Ana Cristina said afterwards. “We helped each other a lot. I think we’re improving that every game.
