Since its opening loss to Poland, the defending Olympic champion United States has been getting better each time it has taken the floor in this women’s volleyball tournament at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
Apparently, the ‘P’ in Paris stands for “peaking at the right time”, because that is exactly what the Americans are doing. Team USA discarded a very good Poland team in straight sets to advance to its fifth straight Olympic semifinal, and it looked better than it has all tournament in doing so.
Having a squad as deep as head coach Karch Karaily leads to some very difficult decisions and he has had to make them all tournament. To start the quarterfinals, the U.S. volleyball legend opted for what he calls his “slugger” lineup, with Kathryn Plummer and Avery Skinner getting the start.
That decision paid immediate dividends, as the pairing led the way to a first-set win with five points each. With the sluggers in, the U.S. came out firing, putting 15 of 38 swings on the floor in a set it controlled from start to finish.
It all came together in the second set as the U.S. looked the best it has in the entire tournament. The Americans were firing on all cylinders in the second, flooring 18 of 38 swings and out-digging Poland 22-9. The offense was flowing and finding its biggest stars while the defense would simply not allow the ball to touch the floor. The U.S. lead got as big as 11 and the Americans cruised to a 25-14 win to get to the brink of the semifinals.
All of the Americans early success on offense came despite Poland putting on a clinic at the net, blocking 10 shots in the first two sets. That was always going to be an issue for the United States and it eventually bit back in the third, as Poland made things very difficult early. Poland took an early 10-4 lead as it fought to stay alive, but the U.S. responded with a 14-6 run to take an 18-16 lead. They never looked back from there and the U.S. finished off an easy breezy cruise into the semifinals.
It was the young guns early, then the veterans late who got the U.S. over the finish line. Annie Drews started quiet, but found a groove to finish as the United States’ leading scorer with 13 points. Captain Jordan Larson, who has barely played since the first match, played some huge minutes in this game and was everywhere on defense, in reception and passing the ball. Her performance may not jump off the box score, but she was a key part of the Americans’ success in this match.
Skinner finished with 12 kills on 25 swings and Plummer added 12 of her own, including two blocks. Going with the sluggers worked to perfection for Karaily, who pushed all the right buttons on the way to his third semifinal appearance in three tries as head coach.
Now the U.S. will face its biggest challenge yet in the semifinal. Not only is Brazil yet to drop a set, but it will be out for revenge after losing to the Americans in the Tokyo gold medal match. The big hitters will need to be out in full force again to match up with the likes of Gabi and Ana Cristina for Brazil.
That match takes place Thursday and has all the makings of an instant classic.
SEE MORE: Women’s volleyball quarterfinals recap: Turkiye finds its way past China, into semis
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