Manama, Bahrain, July 26, 2019 – Marek Sotola and Lukas Vasina comprised the power duo for Czech Republic’s 3-2 win (25-20, 22-25, 19-25, 25-20, 15-9) against Poland in the FIVB Volleyball Men’s U21 World Championship.
Sotola scored 25 points with Vasina adding 23 more markers in Friday’s five-setter. Czech Republic coach Jan Svoboda mainly stuck to his starters, to force the decider, and to claim a slot for the 9th-10th playoff.
Cuba will also be gunning for their best possible finish in the 9th place, as they claimed straight sets (25-19, 28-26, 25-19) over Canada. The Cuban side dominated the field, with 40 attacks, 10 blocks, 4 service winners, and a hefty share of the points from opponent errors. Cuba’s Juan Carlos Romero made 16 points, while Canada’s Xander Ketrzynski likewise scored 16 points in the loss.
In the 13th-16th Classification, Tunisia endured the challenge of a persistent Puerto Rico team, to win the decider (25-22, 25-18, 23-25, 26-28, 15-12). The Tunisian side outplayed their opponents, leading in attacks (61 to 58), and starkly dominating in blocks (16 to 7) and service aces (7 to 2). Yassine Abdelhedi fired a match-high 31 points, with Hamdi Ben Taleb helping with 23 more.
Egypt won 3-1 (25-20, 18-25, 25-19, 25-22) against Morocco, and will aim for a 13th place finish in the championship. Ahmed Azab Abdelrahman (13 points), Youssef Hamdy Awad (12 points) and Shehab Azab Elsayed (10 points) showed Egypt’s well-distributed offence. Ilyas Rhouni Lazaar scored 23 points in Morocco’s loss.
The competition comes to a conclusion on Saturday at Bahrain’s Isa Sport City with Morocco and Puerto Rico vying for 15th place (10:00); Egypt and Tunisia for 13th place (12:30); Canada and Poland for 11th place (15:00); and Cuba and Czech Republic (17:30) battling for 9th place. All times local.