Team Canada has improved to a record of five wins and four losses in 2024 Volleyball Nations League action in Manilla, Philippines. On Tuesday, Canada defeated Japan 25-21, 20-25, 25-15, 20-25, 15-10.
In front of a pro-Japanese crowd, Canada won a thrilling encounter that took two hours and four minutes to complete. Three Canadians reached double digits in points. Outside hitter Stephen Maar of Aurora, Ontario had 24 points (22 attack points and two aces). Arthur Szwarc of Toronto, Ontario had 15 points (12 attack points, two block points and one ace), and outside hitter Eric Loeppky of Steinbach, Manitoba has 15 points (13 attack point and two block points).
Maar led Canada with 22 attack points and two aces. Middle blockers Pearson Eshenko of Banff, Alberta and Danny Demyanenko of Toronto led Canada with three block points.
One interesting part of the match was the fact that Canada was the underdog, even when they were leading and the match was tied. Throughout the battle, Japan had a 61% to beat Canada. With the loss, Japan dropped to six wins and three losses.
Canada next faces Germany on Wednesday evening. The Germans are at four wins and five losses. Canada is in seventh place in the Preliminary round, while Germany is in ninth place. The top eight teams reach the quarterfinals of Nations League, which begins on June 27 in Lodz, Poland. Canada’s win over Japan will give them confidence as they prepare for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
