World Grand Prix 2004

Italy beat U.S.A. 3-1 (25-22, 25-23, 22-25, 25-19) - duration 1:52
30-Jul, start time: 20:07, end time: 21:59 - Attendance: 3'800
City: Reggio Calabria; Hall : Palapentimele hall
Tara Cross-Battle (USA captain):
"We were not ourselves tonight. We weren't as we want to be. We didn't play as Italy did. They played very well indeed both in blocking and digging."

Manuela Leggeri (Italy captain):
"We played very well, especially after Wednesday's loss. Our concentration for the match was very good. Unfortunetly we lost the third set, but the important thing was to win tonight and we got it."

Toshiaki Yoshida (USA head coach):
"We never got our rhythm. Tomorrow's match will be extrememly hard for us against such a strong team like Brazil. We think we are a good team, but it is too early to think about winning a medal in the Olympics. We need to focus on tomorrow's semifinal."

Marco Bonitta (Italy head coach):
"It was a hard game day for us today. We needed to win against a great team. They didn't play with their top starting six, but they played well. We managed to win even if we made many mistakes. We need to play better against Cuba tomorrow night. We played a good World Grand Prix in the Preliminary Round, but here in Italy we are very nervous. I hope that now we reached our first aim, with qualification into the semifinals, we will play better and more relaxed."