BULGARIA
STARTING PLAYERS / SUBSTITUTES
Mood swings on the court led them both up and down during match performances. Bulgaria ranked first in the serve receive skills (41.09% perfect) for all 16 teams but were mid pack in most other skills. Powers, Dobriana Rabadzhieva (5th) and Elitsa Vasileva (9th), led this team with 131 points and 120 points, respectively. They probably had close to the tallest team with a 1.85 height average. Future seems to be bright in the attack and block elements but errors may have not allowed them to fulfill their dream of a medal. Defensively, they were not in the category of the top 3 teams.
Offensive System: 5-1
- Built around strong tall Power players with good 3 m attacking. Powers were tall strong and had good inside attacking angles.
- Middles were not used effectively and often enough.
Defensive System: 6 Back
- Effective when blocking well but many holes in the block did not allow the defensive players to react and dig effectively.
- Team defense lacked at times with skill digging errors resulting in the loss of points.
Free Ball
- Similar to other teams – Shoot, Quick (not much slide), 3m attacks and release to 2 position.
Service
· Average serving with #5 using a strong spin serve but erratic at times. Many service errors (82) cost them points when their side-out play was not steady.
Block
- Very strong at times but weaker when it came to team blocking and building defense around the block.
Attack
- Strong attack from Power’s but not enough use or efficiency of the other players on the court.
Reception
- A solid passing team, surprisingly, because of their height, but they did not use this to create a quick attacking component within their system. Throughout they could not solidify their middle play.