Dominant Italy Sweeps Belgium to Reach VNL Finals

Key contributions from Antropova and Egonu powered the reigning VNL champions.

Italy mathematically clinched their place in the Volleyball Nations League Finals in Lodz following Czechia`s loss to Serbia earlier in Apeldoorn. The Italians then emphatically cemented their qualification by sweeping their match against Belgium 3-0. This victory makes Italy the second team, after Brazil and alongside hosts Poland, to secure a spot in the top eight. Italy currently leads the VNL standings with a perfect 9-0 record and 25 points. Belgium is in 14th place with 3 wins, 6 losses, and 8 points.

The Olympic champions started their final Preliminary Phase week in Apeldoorn strongly, delivering a convincing 3-0 (25-19, 25-15, 25-18) victory over Belgium.

Italy`s two powerful opposite hitters, Paola Egonu and Ekaterina Antropova, split playing time across the three sets but finished as the match`s top scorers. 22-year-old Antropova, who replaced Egonu, led all scorers with 12 points, including the winning point. Her performance featured an ace, two blocks, and a 64% attacking efficiency. Egonu contributed 10 points from attacks, hitting at a 56% success rate. For Belgium, 22-year-old opposite Pauline Martin was their highest scorer with eight points, all from attacks.

“I’m really happy! We played a strange game, but the important thing is that we won, so we are happy for that. For sure, we will focus on our growth during the week. We play really well together, we have fun when we play, so we try to focus only on what we do and we try to get better every day.”

— Anna Danesi, Italy Middle Blocker and Captain

Match Highlights

Later matches on the same day include Germany versus Canada in Arlington, USA, scheduled for 12:30 local time (17:30 UTC), and the final match in Apeldoorn featuring hosts Netherlands against Turkiye, starting an hour later at 20:30 local time (18:30 UTC).