Coach Marcos Kwiek instructs the Dominican team during time-out
Varna, Bulgaria, June 18, 2016 - Great blocking performance by the Dominican Republic gave the team the edge in defeating Puerto Rico by 3-1 (21-25, 25-22, 29-27, 25-14) and qualifying for Sunday’s final in Group 2 of FIVB Volleyball World Grand Prix 2016.
Marcos Kwiek, coach of the Dominican Republic: “It was a very difficult match. We, both teams, know each other very well. I expected a difficult game, but I am very happy for the victory today. First we need to know who we are going to play tomorrow. I think both Bulgaria and Poland are really good teams. We have one training session tomorrow to prepare as well as possible for the game.”
Juan Carlos Nunez, coach of Puerto Rico: “In the first set we had good serving and good blocking, but after that we could not even score one ace or a good block. Their serving was pressuring us. We could not perform, we could not play good defence either and that is why they took the advantage.”
Bethania De La Cruz, captain of the Dominican Republic: “As my coach said, we are very happy for the victory because it was a very difficult match. We know each other very well. Now we have to wait to see who we are going to play tomorrow, but I am very happy for today.”
Yarimar Rosa, captain of Puerto Rico: “We are disappointed. I think when we are playing we have to forget that they are playing on the other side. I think we need to stay focused on what we do. We did not perform well today and that is why we could not get the victory. We need to forget about this because we have one more game tomorrow and we have to ready for it.”