Match 5: Kenya vs. Korea

Koreans take ticket to Nagoya

Tokyo, November 5, 2006: World No. 8 Korea booked a ticket to Nagoya for the second round of the FIVB World Championships by sweeping 11th-ranked Kenya 3-0 in Pool A on Sunday afternoon.

 Korea had suffered three straight defeats since beating Costa Rica on opening day, but this second victory -- by 25-13, 25-13, 25-12 -- was enough to finish fourth behind Chinese Taipei, Japan and Poland.

 Kenya (0-5) and Costa Rica (1-4) were both eliminated from the 24-team competition.

 The Koreans shook off the disappointment of losing the previous evening to Japan by storming to the first set 25-13 in 18 minutes.

 Southpaw spiker Hwang Youn-Joo scored seven of those points, including five spikes, and Han Song-Yi was close behind on five, including the last two points of the set -- a flashing winner on the left to bring up set point at 24-13, and then a block on Lucy Chege.

 In reply, Kenya captain Dorcas Ndasaba and middle blocker Jacky Barasa both scored three points, but it was tough going at the net against Korea's Jung Dae-Young.

 One of the most eye-catching spikes in the Korean repertoire came from Kim Ji-Hyun when she glided round setter and captain Kim Sa-Nee to pound the ball into space on the right.

 The Koreans stayed on top in the second set and reached the first TTO ahead by five at 8-3. Despite some acrobatic defence which brought gasps from the spectators, the Kenyans needed a TO when falling behind 11-4.

 Han Song-Yi was in top form on this day, and Kim Ji-Hyun kept the Kenyan block busy with her well-timed runs off setter Kim.

 The Kenyans were making too many mistakes, especially on serve, and this allowed Korea to open up a 10-point cushion at the second technical break.

 When captain Ndasaba slammed the ball into the net to leave Korea in the clear at 21-8, Kenya's Japanese head coach, Sadatoshi Sugawara, hauled his team off for their second and final TO of the set. The break worked well for power spiker Catherine Wanjiru, who blasted through the Korean block to spark a mini-revival. Ndasaba followed with a whiplash winner into the corner, but the gap was too big and Korea took the second set 25-13 when Janet Wanja served into the net.

 Korea maintained their dominance in the third set. Hwang's cross-court spikes were too hot to handle, and 16-year-old Bae Yoo-Na, one of the brightest prospects in Asian volleyball, also scored consistently to keep Kenya pegged back.

 Korea led by six at the second technical break, and the agile ground defence of libero Kim Hae-Ran cut off many attacks the Africans mounted. In contrast, there were too many gaps on the other side of the net which the Koreans were quick to exploit.

Match 4: Kenya vs. Costa Rica

Costa Rica celebrate an incredible victory

 Tokyo, November 4, 2006: Costa Rica produced a memorable comeback to beat Kenya 3-2 and win their first match on their debut appearance at the World Championships.

 The 33rd-ranked Ticas fought back from two sets down and saved four match points in the fourth set to win a pulsating Pool A encounter 19-25, 23-25, 25-16, 32-30, 15-9.

 Costa Rica improved to 1-3 but Kenya dropped to 0-4 and have yet to win a match in their fourth World Championships appearance.

 Both teams started the match with only one thing on their minds -- victory, which would be a first for either in the World Championships.

 And the opening exchanges suggested it was going to be close all the way with such a prize at stake.

 Kenya's big hitters Lydiah Maiyo and captain Dorcas Ndasaba were quickly into their stride, but the Costa Ricans looked strong at the net through Paola Ramirez and Johanna Moore, the latter bringing up the first TTO at 8-7 for the Ticas after a short set from Onika Pinnock.

 But when Kenya surged ahead 11-9, Costa Rica called the first TO of the match. They could not stop the rot, though, as Kenya's Leonidas Kamende took control of the net and some wild Ticas spiking resulted in the Africans holding a seven-point lead, 16-9, at the second TTO.

 Costa Rica setter Dionisia Thompson halted the flow of Kenyan points with a clever winner into space in the corner, and a block by Verania Willis rejuvenated her team so that Kenya needed a TO with their lead down to four at 16-12.

 Maiyo continued to blaze away on the Kenyan left flank, but Ticas captain Verania Willis responded with some flashing winners of her own. Trailing 22-16, Costa Rica called their second and final TO of the opening frame, but they could not prevent Kenya from taking it 25-19.

 There was a scrappy start to the second set, but Kenya made fewer mistakes and reached the first technical break ahead 8-6.

 A mighty winner from Maiyo gave Kenya a 14-10 lead and had the Ticas running for cover with a TO, but there was still a four-point gap, 16-12, at the second TTO.

 A gentle lob from Karen Cope reduced Costa Rica's deficit to just one point, 16-15, and another well-crafted winner from Angela Willis on the left wing kept the Ticas in the hunt.

 In Doris Palang'a and Maiyo, the Kenyans appeared to have more power out wide, and forced a Ticas TO at 22-20. Kenya had two set points at 24-22, and needed both of them. Ndasaba climbed high on the left, spiked, and the block bounced out to give Kenya the second set 25-23 and a 2-0 lead.

 If the Kenyans thought the Ticas were finished, they were wrong. The Central Americans came out even more determined for the third set and led 8-5 at the first TTO thanks to some aggressive net work from Ramirez.

 Angela Willis kept the Ticas ticking out wide, and at 12-8 forced Kenya into a TO. This lead grew quickly as Verania Willis and Ramirez stepped on the gas, and Cope brought up set point at 24-15 with another soaring leap and sharp spike on the right. Angela Willis completed the job on the Ticas' second set point, 25-16.

 Costa Rica were flying now, and tore through the Kenyans at the start of the fourth set. They led 8-0 at the first TTO, by which time Kenya had taken off Maiyo, and Moore made it 9-0 at the net after some acrobatic defence from libero Marianela Alfaro.

 Kenya ended the run at nine when Catherine Wanjiru punched one to the left corner, and for once Alfaro could not keep the ball in play.

 The Kenyan block of Janet Wanja and Jacky Barasa began to click into gear, and Wanjiru and Ndasaba brought them right back into it. Palang'a came steaming in on the right wing to pull Kenya level 15-15, and it was anyone's set and match.

 The Ticas led 20-16 but Kenya would not go away, and won seven straight points to lead 23-20.

 There was an extraordinary end to the fourth set. Kenya missed four match points before Costa Rica won it 32-30 on their fourth set point in a sequence which left the crowd breathless and set up the tie-breaker.

 Once again the Ticas started the set strongly and led 5-2 and 7-3, playing at a pace and with a determination that Kenya could not match. A sizzling winner from Verania Willis after a decoy leap by Ramirez took Costa Rica to the turnaround ahead by four, 8-4, and Morales pounced for 10-5, forcing a desperate Kenya TO.

Match 3: Kenya vs. Japan

Japanese refuse to bow to African Queens

Tokyo, November 3, 2006: World No. 7 Japan won their second consecutive match in Pool A, downing 11th-ranked Kenya 3-0 on Friday evening.

With the straight-sets victory, by 25-15, 25-17, 25-10, the home team improved their win-loss record to 2-1 and dropped Kenya's African Queens to 0-3.

Miyuki Takahashi scored the first two points of the match before Leonidas Kamende pounced at the net for Kenya. Japan, however, countered at the net with spikes for Makiko Horai and Erika Araki as the home team looked to dominate through the middle and out wide.

With the Kenyan blockers covering all the options, setter Yoshie Takeshita decided to finish off a move herself, and, with a swift movement of her right arm, spiked Japan to the first TTO 8-5.

The Kenyan block clicked into gear, and Japan needed a TO when their lead was cut to two at 12-10. Captain Dorcas Ndasaba and Lydiah Maiyo can pierce any defence, and Japan knew they would be in for a hard game. Jacky Barasa underlined this with a swift kill at the net, but Japan regrouped to lead 16-12 at the second TTO.

A spectacular block by Shuka Oyama prompted a Kenya TO one point later, and the relentless pace of the Japanese attack was beginning to wear down the Africans.

A brilliant running spike from Araki after an overhead set from Takeshita carried Japan forward, and the home team closed out the first set 25-15.

Doris Palang'a and Barasa gave Japan some uncomfortable moments early in the second, but could not prevent the home team from leading by three at the first TTO. Oyama was blocking well, but was finding it difficult to penetrate the Kenyan defence, and Japan called a TO when falling behind 9-8.

Ndasaba is an inspiring captain, and her defensive work and spiking enabled Kenya to stay out in front, 16-14, at the second TTO.

Oyama was beginning to find her range, though, and every point she scored was greeted with a chant of "Wang Jiao" by the home fans, referring to her Chinese name before she turned Japanese. Kimura began to flex her attacking muscles, too, and Araki got to work on the block, forcing a Kenya TO when down 18-17.

Kenya lost their way down the stretch as Japan moved ahead 22-17, and Kenya's Japanese head coach Sadatoshi Sugawara took his team off again for a final team talk. Two soaring Oyama spikes down the middle swept Japan to set point at 24-17, and confusion in the Kenyan defence on Takeshita's gentle serve did the rest, 25-17.

Middle blocker Sachiko Sugiyama joined the action in the third set, and her high-speed net play helped Japan to jump out to a 5-0 lead and 8-2 at the first TTO.

A Kamende block on Araki offered the Kenyans hope, but a well-drilled Japanese move with Araki as the decoy and Kimura the killer had the stadium shaking with the thunder of 10,000 stick balloons. Leading 16-7 at the second TTO, Japan were almost home and dry.

Match 2 Kenya vs. Chinese Taipei

Chinese Taipei down Kenya in straight sets

  Tokyo, November 1, 2006: Pool A surprise team Chinese Taipei followed up their historic victory over Japan on the opening night with a hard-fought 3-0 win against Kenya on Wednesday afternoon.

 The world No. 23 beat the 11th-ranked African Queens 25-13, 25-9, 29-27 on their third match point to improve their win-loss record to 2-0 and drop Kenya to 0-2.

 Kenya called the first TO of the match when trailing 7-3 in the first set. Chinese Taipei had taken the early initiative at the net through mobile middle blockers Lin Chun Yi and Chen Mei Ching, and this was clearly a concern for Kenya's Japanese tactician Sadatoshi Sugawara.

 Kenya's experienced captain, Dorcas Ndasaba, led the fightback with a couple of sizzling spikes on the left, and the back-court defence of Lydiah Maiyo brought stability to the Africans' play. Maiyo also joined the attack to devastating effect as Kenya began to settle down.

 Chinese Taipei, however, were brimming with confidence and energy after their opening night demolition of Japan, and captain Chen Shu Li drove her team forward with a series of eye-catching winners at the peak of her elegant leap.

 When a low serve from Lin Chun Yi caught out libero Judith Tarus to make the score 18-8, Sugawara brought his team off again as the opening frame began to disappear over the horizon.

 This break seemed to affect the concentration of the Chinese Taipei players, allowing Brackcides Khadambi to reduce Kenya's deficit with a couple of service winners.

 Captain Chen, who had briefly lost her sparkle, was taken out with her team ahead 20-13, but Lin Chun Yi continued the good work at the net to close out the first set 25-13.

 Chinese Taipei maintained their fast pace in the second set, and reached the first TTO ahead by four at 8-4. Kou Nai Han had been quiet up to this point, but now began to make her presence felt in attack as well as defence.

 The Kenyan attack had been firing on all cylinders against Poland the previous day, but on this occasion was stifled by the Chinese Taipei blockers, supported by alert digging behind them. Libero Szu Hui Fang was in particularly fine form, with her expert positioning making the job look easy.

 Kenya began to crumble midway through the second set, and a tame serve from left-handed Wu Hisao Li was good enough to give Chinese Taipei a nine-point lead, 16-7, at the second TTO. Chinese Taipei romped from 16-9 to 25-9 with nine consecutive points to make it 2-0.

 Ndasaba tried to lift her team in the third set, and the Kenyans showed much more fight and energy to lead 8-6 at the first TTO. A block by Leonidas Kamende fired up the Kenyans even more, and a shell-shocked Chinese Taipei took a TO trailing 12-7.

 Match 1: Kenya vs. Poland

Cool Poles extinguish Kenyan fire

Tokyo, October 31, 2006: Poland were given a real fright by Kenya before winning their Pool A match 3-1 at Yoyogi Stadium on Tuesday afternoon.

 The Poles looked to be heading for a straight-sets victory after winning the first two frames 25-15, 25-17, but the "African Queens" produced a memorable comeback to take the third set 25-20 and have their players jumping for joy.

 The Europeans, thanks to some ice-cool individual plays in an otherwise lethargic team performance, had just enough quality and experience to take the fourth set 25-20 and halt the threat of a major upset.

 The Kenyans enjoyed the support of the neutral crowd, due to the presence of Japanese head coach Sadatoshi Sugawara on the bench and their underdog status.

 With this backing and the coach's experience, they showed no nerves at all as Catherine Wanjiru sparked the early assault and the defence followed her lead with some spectacular Japanese-style digging.

 In a frenzied opening, the Poles still managed to show their quality, notably when Natalia Bamber soared high on the left and sent a crisp spike flying down the line.

 Poland enjoyed a three-point lead at the first TTO, 8-5, after Maria Liktoras finished off a nimble move with a powerful winner from the right.

 When a Kamila Fratczak crackerjack stretched Poland's lead to 13-9, Sugawara called a TO, but the Poles were quickly on to Kenya's game plan and held a seven-point advantage at the second TTO, 16-9.

 At 19-12, Sugawara needed another talk to try and halt the flow of points from Fratczak on Poland's right flank, but the pattern was set for the first set and the Poles closed it out 25-15.

 At the start of the second set, Katarzyna Skowronska was prominent in attack and defence for Poland, but Kenya responded through captain Dorcas Ndasaba and Brackcides Khadambi, while Wanjiru remained a powerful threat.

 A gentle lob from Leonidas Kamende caused confusion in the Polish defence and brought the scores level 8-8, turning up the volume of support for the Kenyans inside Yoyogi.

 The Polish block began to click now, and when a Wanjiru piledriver was rejected and the Africans fell behind 13-10, Sugawara called a TO. More strong blocking, notably from Skowronska, kept the Poles out in front, but some agile Kenyan defence was followed by a crisp winner from Doris Palang'a to close the gap to 15-13 and prompt a Poland break.

 An elegant spike down the middle from captain Joanna Mirek kept Poland out in front, and her team-mates maintained the momentum to close out the second set 25-17 with a Skowronska winner on the right.

 In the third set, Lydiah Maiyo kept the Poles thinking with a clever winner at the net, and the same player added the next point with a crashing left-wing spike.

 When Maiyo scored again shortly after, the fans were chanting her name, and Kenya fed off this support to go ahead 6-4 before the impressive Fratczak brought the Poles back to life.

 Poland led 8-7 at the first TTO but still could not pull away. They were struggling for concentration and momentum, and a service ace from Ndasaba gave Kenya the lead at 10-9.

 When Kenya had a two-point cushion at 13-11, Poland needed a TO to discuss the growing problem of Maiyo -- Kenya's tallest player at a modest 1.84 metres -- and their own inconsistency. It did not work, though, and Kenya increased their lead to 16-11 at the second TTO.

 Kenya reached the tempting 20s first, and kept the pressure on with some great defence that led to one point after the Poles had turned their backs on the play.

 A thunderbolt from Palang'a made it 23-19 and had the Kenyans jumping for joy, and Maiyo brought up set point at 24-19. Poland saved the first one through Fratczak, but could not stop Palang'a slicing another winner on the right for 25-20.

 The Kenyans sensed an upset, as did the crowd and maybe even the Poles, and fought furiously in the fourth set. Nevertheless, Poland led 8-6 at the first TTO and 16-12 at the second technical break as the Kenyans began to tire.

 The Africans would not go away, though, and pulled to within one point on more than one occasion down the stretch.

 Sylwia Pycia gave Poland fresh momentum at a critical time, and Mirek brought up match point at 24-20. Kenya spiked wide to end the contest 25-20.