By Rohith Nair
PARIS (Reuters) – The United States beat Brazil in a thrilling five-setter at the Paris Games on Thursday to move into a second straight Olympic women’s volleyball final in what was a rematch of the gold medal contest from Tokyo three years ago.
Although the U.S. brushed Brazil aside 3-0 in Tokyo, the South American team had not dropped a set in Paris and they made things difficult for the reigning champions in a rollercoaster contest.
The match was defined by the individual brilliance of American Kathryn Plummer (26 points) and Brazil’s Ana Cristina de Souza (24 points) as the two stalwarts looked to outdo each other at the net.
But the U.S. also had Olympic rookie Avery Skinner (19 points, 3 blocks) and Andrea Drews (18 points) to guide them to a 25-23 18-25 25-15 23-25 15-11 victory to leave the Brazilians in tears.
“That was such a battle, a dogfight. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy … I’m so proud of us now for how we fought,” Skinner said.
The U.S. will play either Turkey or Italy in the final.
The first set was neck-and-neck after Brazil’s blockers came to their rescue, but at 23-23 it was the Americans who kept their cool when Plummer scored with a kill and another spike produced a block error to give the U.S. a 1-0 lead.
Brazil recovered quickly in the second set, however, as De Souza’s attack and defence proved too much for the Americans, with the 20-year-old fittingly wrapping up the set with a devastating spike.
But Plummer continued to pile misery on Brazil with her relentless attack while Skinner also stepped up on crucial points, applying the finishing touch on set point by beating the block with a deft touch that landed behind the blockers.
Brazil bounced back once again in the fourth but they nearly threw it away when the U.S. saved two set points before an error gave the South American side the set to force a decider.
Brazil took an early lead in the fifth but two outrageous digs from American Lauren Carlini in one rally was just the boost the U.S. needed as they surged ahead while the South Americans crumbled under the pressure.
Brazil’s veteran coach Ze Roberto took a timeout to fire up his troops but he could only watch on with his hands on his head as Plummer capitalised on their second match point with a kill to send the U.S. through.
“We live for these moments where you’re on the precipice of greatness,” American Jordyn Poulter said.
(Reporting by Rohith Nair; Editing by Alison Williams)
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