Epic loss dents Volleyroos' Olympic hopes

Australia's men's volleyball team has suffered a setback at the Olympic qualifying tournament with a tough 3-2 loss to Canada.

An epic 3-2 loss to Canada has dented Australia's chances of qualifying for the Rio Olympics men's volleyball competition.

The Volleyroos looked in control of their third match at the qualifying tournament in Tokyo when they fought back from losing the opening set 25-19 to win the next two sets 26-24 25-20.

Veteran Nathan Roberts, captain Tom Edgar and former captain Aidan Zingel were the backbone for the Australian recovery, with libero Luke Perry standing strong in the face of a powerful Canadian service game.

The fourth set went down to the wire, with Australia saving five set points before losing it 29-27.

The Canadians once again got on top through the power serving of Nicholas Hoag (seven aces) and Gavin Schmitt (four aces) as they secured the deciding set 15-11.

Edgar finished with a game-high 31 points for Australia, with Zingel finishing with four blocks.

The result leaves Australia with one win and two losses after the opening three matches, and with a match against current World League champions, France, on Wednesday.


Share

1 min read

Published

Source: AAP



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world