Russia defeats USA team of substitutes

LILLE, France, July 6, 2018 - Maxim Mikhaylov led the Russian troops to the top of pool B in the Men’s Volleyball Nations League in a 3-0 victory (25-22, 25-21, 25-21) over United States’ second choosing.

Both the Russians and Americans were certain of a spot in the semi-finals after beating Poland, so all at stake was the advantage of playing the second ranked team in the semi-final.

Russia had a rest day on Thursday and came out all guns blazing, with high scorers Mikhaylov, Kliuka, Volvo and Muserskiy starting the match. But Mikhaylov proved to be the go-to man for setter Dmitry Kovalev when points are becoming more important. The Zenit Kazan opposite topped the charts with 16 points, including 1 block and an ace.

Before this match the Russians were leading the head-to-head 35-23, having won the last two matches as well. But before that, USA had an 8-0 run, so nothing was decided beforehand. Both countries came into today’s match having won 12 of the 16 Nations League matches of 2018.

Egor Kliuka had a great run of points before being substituted in the third set, when victory seemed imminent for the Russian side. He already had 11 points from the first two sets. Mikhaylov was the steady rock Russia could build on, producing some hard to pass serves - that his teammates could spike from the overpass - and 14 clean scores from attack. Volkov also added 11 points to the scoreboard, most of which he converted in the third set. 

USA head coach John Speraw sent in his B-team to play for the top spot in pool, as he didn’t want his usual starting seven to play four days in a row. So Aaron Russell, Kyle Ensing, Jeffrey Jendryk, Torey Defalco, Daniel Madonnell, Kawika Shoji and Dustin Watten were brought on to stun the Russians. They made the most of the opportunity, playing with nothing to lose. Three players managed to reach double figures, Perugia’s wing spiker Aaron Russell leading the way with 14 points to his name.