USA continue hot streak at VNL
BANGKOK, Thailand, May 30, 2018 - Kimberly Hill and Lauren
Gibbemeyer celebrated their returns to the starting lineup as
the United States continued their hot streak in the women's FIVB
Volleyball Nations League with a 3-0 (25-20, 25-23, 25-21)
victory against the Dominican Republic on Wednesday.
Hill and Gibbemeyer both missed Tuesday's straight-sets win over
Germany but capped their comebacks with a combined 27 points,
with Hill finishing with 16 and Gibbemeyer racking up 11.
Michelle Bartsch-Hackley was once again the US team's top
scorer. She compiled 19 points to take her total for the
tournament to 106, the most by any player on the American
roster, as the reigning world champions posted their sixth
consecutive 3-0 win in the competition.
Brayelin Martinez led the Dominican Republic with 19 points,
including a game-high 17 kills from 36 attempts, taking her
total of spikes for the VNL to 103 and her overall points total
to 120.
Wing spiker Yonkaira Pena also troubled the Americans throughout
the contest and picked up 13 points along the way while Lisvel
Eve and Dominican captain Niverka Marte got seven each.
The Dominican Republic beat the Pool 11 hosts Thailand 3-0 on
Tuesday but Wednesday's defeat left them at 2-6 for the
tournament while the US have been unstoppable since losing their
second match at home against Turkey, winning 18 sets in a row.
With Martinez's heavy hitting and Marte's never-say-die
attitude, the Dominican Republic provided the Americans with a
real challenge, leading late in the second and third sets, but
the tournament leaders found a way each time to win.
Hill dominated early on and managed 16 kills from just 26
attempts while Gibbemeyer was even more efficient, hitting 9
from 11, as the US improved to 7-1 for the tournament.
Bartsch-Hackley took over in the final two sets, adding a block
and four service winners to her 14 spikes from 33 swings, while
Kelly Murphy became the fourth American to reach double figures
when she closed with 10.
The US have now won their last 13 matches against Dominican
Republic since 2006.
The US play Thailand in their final Pool 11 match on Thursday
while the Dominican Republic tackle Germany. |