MATCH INFO

Lima, Peru, July 22, 2011 - China achieves an important win at the second match of the day 1 at Lima Pool D in the FIVB Volleyball Women’s Junior World Championship Peru 2011. In Pool D match, China won 25-19, 25-19, 27-25 in 1 hour and 12 minutes.

Zhou Yang (China) was the top scorer with 15 points, next to Yanchi Pi (8 points) and Peixin Liu (7 points). For Russia, the best scorer was Natalia Malykh with 11 points, while the captain Alina Yaroshik and Valeriya Safonova scored eight points each.

On the second day of the Pool D, Russia will be against Dominican Republic (winner of the today's earlier match against Japan), and China will play against Japan in an all-Asian match.

In the first set, China, No. 13 at the world wide ranking for youth and juniors, dominated the actions from the beginning to the end. After a tight beginning (8-7 for China), the middle blocker Zhou Yang led her team in the attacking (eight points at the second technical time out). Also, Peixin Liu was important with three attacks and two of the blocks for her team in the set which ended 25-19 for China at the 21 minutes.

In the second set, the 2007 runners-up kept the difference over the rivals. Jiande Xu's team started to impose conditions with their blocking (four points) and to pressure with the serve. As in the initial set, Zhou Yang was the determinant (seven points) next to Yanchi Pi (six points in the set). Russia made the draw in many times by 12-12 and 17-17 with a good performance of Natalia Malykh (six points in the set). However, China reached the advantage with four points at 22-18 with their blocking, and at that juncture they kept the match top score until the final 25-19.

The third set was really astruggle on the court. Russia started leading the actions and reached the first technical time out at 8-7 and to the second at 16-12. Russian girls had again Malykh as the attack leader and their universal Petrova reached good actions as receiver. Russia coach Vadim Kiryanov changed the team and his players' response, but China's defense, blocks and aggressiveness could reclaim the score again with the great performance of Yang (15 points in total). China tied the set at 24-24, and then broke in front with the serve to the 27-25 final.