Bangkok, Thailand, July 8, 2016 - The United States stunned China in straight sets to be the second team to qualify to the semifinals of the 2016 FIVB World Grand Prix Finals at Indoor Stadium Huamark on Friday.
USA coach Karch Kiraly: “We didn’t play our best volleyball, but I really like how we played and responded. We brought things back in control, that’s the big part of how we played in this match. It’s just making a good play after a another. We’ve improved every day. We did a pretty nice job by attacking from the service line. We did a nice job on blocking. We also tried something different using the two-libero system. We will try to improve for tomorrow’s match.”
USA captain Christa Harmotto Dietzen: “It was a good match. We were down by several points especially in the second set because China played very well, but we bounced back. We focused a lot on the other side of the net. I like the way that everyone could come off the bench and perform well for us. I am so excited for Michelle Bartsch, it’s her first match in the World Grand Prix.”
China coach An Jiajie: “I think it’s an enjoyable match. However, I feel that USA had height advantage over us. We feel sorry because our key players are not here to play because they have some physical conditions, which they need to recover from.”
China player Zeng Chunlei: “I’m very disappointed that we lost to USA. I hope that we would do better in the next match.”