Netherlands stuns Dominican Republic, USA lose first match

KALININGRAD, Russia, July 15, 2017 – After dropping the first two sets, Anne Buijs sparked a dramatic comeback as the Netherlands defeated the Dominican Republic 3-2 (23-25, 22-25, 25-22, 25-23, 15-8) on Saturday.

The Netherlands has now won all six FIVB World Grand Prix encounters against the Dominican Republic. 

Buijs led all scorers with 31 points, while Celeste Plak added 16 points for the Netherlands. 

Brayelin Martinez had 24 points for the Dominican Republic, including two blocks. Bethania De la Cruz was next with 15 while Annerys Vargas and Yonkaira Peña each had 14 points.

In Macau, China – Paola Egonu scored an impressive 31 points in her team’s 3-2 (25-22, 22-25, 25-21, 13-25, 15-13) win over the USA on Saturday. 

Madison Kingdon and Michelle Bartsch-Hackley tallied 20 points each for the losing side.